Tim Bobosky Photographer
Musician to share experiences in Middle East
Worldwide traveler Cameron Powers went to Iraq nine days after the U.S. invasion of Baghdad, armed with a treble clef and a mission to bridge cultural divides through music.
Powers will share his overseas experiences in a presentation on the Middle East at 6 p.m. today at Cozmic Pizza, located at 199 W. 8th Ave.
He is on a coast-to-coast lecture circuit, having visited more than 80 locations since September.
“This is not a political lecture,” he said. “The goal is to give Americans an accurate visual image of Arab people and Arab culture. We want to show Americans what Arabs are like if you immerse yourself in their culture.”
Powers traveled from Iraq to Egypt during the past year, playing Middle Eastern folk songs along the way.
“The militias and Jihadists represent less than 1 percent of the Iraqi population. Many are angry because they feel that the U.S. has overstayed its welcome, but their first instinct is not to resort to violence,” Powers said. “You don’t always get that impression here in the U.S.”
— Jeremy Berrington
Architecture school to host sustainability conference
The School of Architecture and Allied Arts will host the 10th-annual Holistic Options for Planet Earth Sustainability conference (HOPES), which begins today and will run until Sunday in Lawrence Hall.
The conference, sponsored by The Ecological Design Center, focuses on topics such as green building, energy conservation strategies and community planning, according to a press release. HOPES will feature four keynote speakers this year: Architect Eric Lloyd Wright (the grandson of famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright); landscape architect and educator Edward L. Blake Jr.; ecologist, educator and activist Brock Dolman; and University of California, Berkeley City and Regional Planning Professor Ananya Roy.
HOPES will also include two all-day workshops Friday and Saturday, as well as smaller workshops such as designing for aviary species, recycled art and roofpond building design. There will also be panel discussions on integrating ecological design into professional practice, politics and architecture, natural ventilation, urban biodiversity and the Lillis Business Complex, which was designed to be environmentally friendly and energy conscious.
The HOPES contest also features a “design charrette,” or group design challenge, tackled by students and community members that will focus this year on a potential Center for Applied Sustainable Living, a project currently underway at the University.
All lectures and workshops are open to the public, although space is limited. For more information on the conference, contact the Ecological Design Center at 346-0719 or visit http://edc.uoregon.edu.
— Steven Neuman
Swing dance group to host dance Saturday
Community dance group Eugene Lindy Learning Activists will host a one-year anniversary dance Saturday night. Known on campus as U-Lindy, the group will be giving lessons on lindy hop, East Coast swing, Charleston and balboa.
“Our goal is to hold dances in the community so people can go dance every week,” sociology graduate student and ELLA member Brandon Olszewski said.
The dance will be held at Studio B, located at 189 W. 8th Ave., with a lesson at 8 p.m. and open dancing from 9 p.m.-midnight. Music will be provided by Club 7 and disc jockey Kevin Schaper. The cost is $5 for students and $7 for the general public.
The eight-member group also holds weekly lessons for $4 at 8 p.m. on Wednesdays at Studio B and sporadically hosts public “lindy bomb” dances to promote events.
“It’s where basically you go set up a boombox somewhere and dance,” Olszewski said.
More information available at www.eugenelindy.com.
— Jennifer Sudick