FOR GOD, FOR COUNTRY AND FOR THE PLANET: Ten Classmates Lead Reunion Discussion

Had any of us been thinking 50 years ahead as we graduated, we probably would not have guessed that one of the defining issues of the next half century would be the challenging relationship between people and the planet. It turned out that 1969 marked the beginning of what is commonly thought of as the modern environmental era. Since then, many of our classmates have been directly involved in addressing environmental issues in a variety of public and private roles.

This experience launched one of the most spirited and thoughtful discussions of the reunion. For two hours on Friday afternoon, 500 classmates and guests took stock of what has happened on the environmental front, drew out the big lessons and looked ahead.

Ten members of the class with hard-won expertise in many different fields took turns talking briefly about specific environmental issues, from science and technology to people, policy and politics. There was back and forth discussion with the audience and the discussion continued informally throughout the weekend. One panel member remarked later, “I learned a tremendous amount – especially, I am shocked to say, from the lawyers!”

Some major themes were:

• Climate change is happening now, affecting all forms of life on land and in the oceans. We must deal with it.
• There are technologies and policies that we can employ to help, Fortunately, many public and private entities are doing much on their own. However, the path ahead is not clear.
• Our political system is severely challenged by the scope and magnitude of the problems and demands our attention. Classmates really should work to raise public awareness and advocate for smart policies.

The discussion was organized and moderated by Derry Allen and Tom Emmons. All of the presentation slides and other related materials have been posted on the class website at www.Yale1969.org/environment.

Those who want to share further thoughts and perhaps do something as the Class of 1969 are encouraged to leave comments below.

Thank you to all the presenters:

Panel 1: Science and Technology

• Skip Hobbs: “Climate change is happening now: We have to deal with it”
• Jim Porter: “Ocean changes driven by climate changes”
• Howard Newman: “Carbon sequestration (and all that jazz)”
• Ken Brown: “Nuclear power”
• Tom Emmons: “Renewable energy” 

Panel 2: People, Policy and Politics             

• Buzz Yudell: “Designing our living spaces: Green buildings – Green cities”
• Jim Porter: “Population growth & climate change”
• Bob Sussman: Climate Change: Is our political system up to the challenge?”
• David Roe: “Turning self-interest to work for the environment”
• Wayne Willis: “Citizen advocacy for smart climate policy”
• Derry Allen: “Focusing the energy & passion of public & private entities (including our own)”