Annual Meeting 2023

renewal [ri-noo-uhl] noun

1. starting again, especially after a pause
2. the process of improving, bringing about freshness and vigor
3. the act of continuing, such as an official agreement or commitment

 

The Institute on the Environment Annual Meeting is a place to celebrate the IonE community –
affiliates, students, staff, collaborators, and friends – and refresh and reignite our commitments to
interdisciplinary, evidence-based climate solutions. This fall we’ll gather to start new relationships or reconnect
with one another to propel IonE’s mission – a future where people and planet prosper together – to its next phase.

Friday, September 29, 2023
10:00 AM – 4:15 PM, CDT
with optional reception from 4:15–5:00 PM
St. Paul Student Center (SPSC)
University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Registration is open until Sept 26 at noon (CDT).
IonE community members can access
within the September 20th email invitation.

Questions about the IonE Annual Meeting?
Reach out to ioneannualevent@umn.edu.

Agenda

Time and Event
Location or Featured Guest
10:00 a.m. – 10:50 a.m. Registration Open
SPSC Ballroom
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Mainstage Event
SPSC Theater and Zoom, streaming available
11:10 a.m. Piano performance
Ann DuHamel, Morris Affiliate and Associate Professor
11:20 a.m. Keynote Speaker
Rev Dr. Alika Galloway, Liberty Community Church
12:00 – 1:15 p.m. Lunch & Networking
SPSC Ballroom
1:30 – 4:15 p.m. Session Blocks, 45 minutes each
Various SPSC rooms
4:15 – 5:00 p.m. Reception w/ light refreshments
SPSC Ballroom

Mainstage Event

The opening program will center our theme of renewal and community featuring:

Piano Performance by Ann DuHamel, Associate Professor of Music, UMN Morris and IonE Fellow

Towards Hope: Two Reflections on the Climate Crisis, by Zach Gulaboff Davis, occupies a space between programmatic and absolute musical dialogue. Charting a narrative from dark-to-light, the contrasting movements invite the listener to contemplate the dire crisis ravaging our planet. The first movement, On Darkness, evokes the somber urgency of immediate action. A ray of hope ushers in the second movement, On Light, hinting that through darkness and perseverance, light can emerge. It is the composer’s wish that these interludes serve as a vessel for meaningful reflection, frosting a renewed sense of hope, purpose, and action.

DuHamel has performed in 18 countries and 37 states, including concerts at Sala Verdi in Milan, Italy; Carnegie Weill Recital Hall in New York; and Trinity College in Oxford, England. In May of 2023, Ann was awarded a 2023-24 McKnight Artist Fellowship for Musicians. 

Ann’s project “Prayers for a Feverish Planet” responds to the climate crisis with 60 new works for piano. She’s been awarded artist residencies at Tofte Lake Center (MN), Everwood Farmstead Foundation (WI), and Porto Piano Fest (Portugal) for this project, which has received extensive support from the University of Minnesota (Institute for Advanced Study Residential Fellow, Fall 2021; Imagine Fund Special Events Grant; and Grant-In-Aid of Research, Artistry, and Scholarship). She’s been interviewed about the project on Modern Notebook Radio (WSMR) and Minnesota Public Radio’s All Things Considered with Tom Crann, and has performed portions of the project more than 50 times, including as a featured PEDx speaker at the 2023 National Conference of Keyboard Pedagogy in Chicago.

Keynote Speech by Rev. Dr. Alika Galloway, Liberty Community Church
“My ongoing work is in the identification and healing of trauma and internalized racism through an interdisciplinary and intersectional lens. I am passionate about planetary health and co-creating a future where the earth is honored as a beloved and revered manifestation of Creators love.”

Pastor Alika is one of the creative visionaries for a community gathering entitled: Healing the Planet – Healing Ourselves where the community joined in conversation about the interrelatedness of healing and the vital importance of healing the earth so that all creation may be healed! An Eco-Womanist Alika is also Co Pastor of Liberty Community Church PCUSA. She holds a Master of Divinity from the Interdenominational Theological Center in Womanist Ethics and World Religions.

Dr. Galloway is the Editor of the book: Living Waters, Living Stories. A Bush Fellow, Alika serves as the CEO of the Northside Healing Space; a safe place to rest, remember, revive, and resist dehumanization. NHS has its roots in co-creating safe and restorative places for persons engaged in the survival sex trade to heal and recover as well as the community to heal from racialized trauma: she is also the creative founder of the 21st Century Academy, an Out of School Time initiative to assist K-12 grade children to bridge the opportunity gap and dream of a future of wholeness and abundance. Nationally known as a Womanist Scholar and expert in health disparities affecting African American females, she received a Doctorate from Virginia Union University, her dissertation addressed the care and healing of African American persons who identify as female who are victims of sexual violence and the commercial sex trade.

Opportunities throughout the day

Thoughtful touches were created in the day’s activities to bring the community together through topical connections, collective art and more. Opportunities include: 

  • Participate in a collective art with other IonE community members.
    In the Ballroom from 12 – 2 p.m.,
    Mosaic on a Stick, a local small business dedicated to bringing art to the community, will be onsite as IonE creates artwork together in the shape of Minnesota.
  • Over lunch join a table on one of these 10 topics – or suggest your own day of:
    • Clean Energy 
    • Climate Adaptation Community Engagement 
    • Sustainability Education 
    • Environmental Justice 
    • Food Systems & Agriculture 
    • Art / Humanities Engagement with Science 
    • Personal Science Communication 
    • Public Science Communication 
    • Water
  • Need a quiet place to retreat during the afternoon?
    Check out the Renewal Room (110, level one), where you’ll discover a calming and relaxing space with ambient lighting and various lounge options.
  • During all afternoon sessions, the main Ballroom will be open for attendee use.

Afternoon Sessions – Which path will you choose?

Choose from three 45-min breakout session blocks. During registration, you will indicate your initial interest in any of the following sessions currently in development. At the Annual Meeting, you can select what’s best for you! 

Advancing UMN Climate Action via Research and Teaching
By coupling the climate goals on UMN campuses with research and teaching, knowledge gaps can be identified, explored, and addressed while building a living laboratory that enriches student and faculty experience. This session will workshop ways to create collaborations and funding opportunities to further the next steps in climate action on campus.

Impact Goals, Lessons Learned, Opportunities Ahead
Engage with grantees and others in the IonE community to discuss lessons learned and opportunities ahead for Impact Goals grants. Panelists will share their experiences applying research in community settings, building strong community partnerships, communicating research to a non-academic audience, and more.

IonE Community Member Talks – 3 separate sessions
Learn about what new and current IonE community members are working on or thinking about in short 5 min presentations. The full list and descriptions of this year’s IonE Community Member Talks will be released at least one week before the event.

Open Mic Session
This casual session focuses on building stronger connections through the joy of knowing more about each other and our work. Everyone is invited to share in the form of a story, skit, video, song, poem etc. Everyone in the space is welcome to share and you are also welcome just to listen and learn.

Pressing Problems in MN: A dialogue
This session will take advantage of the diverse group of attendees to get different perspectives on some of the most pressing sustainability problems in MN. In addition to pre-selected topics curated from stakeholders, interested session attendees looking for input will be contacted prior to the meeting to provide a discussion topic during the session.

IonE Impact Goals: Tips to develop a competitive proposal
Are you considering applying for an IonE Impact Goals grant? Join us to learn the nuts and bolts of what makes a solid proposal. We’ll explore what kinds of projects are a good match for the RFP, cover proposal process basics, and offer tips for interdisciplinary and community-engaged proposals.
This session is open to everyone, and targeted for people who are looking to apply to the 2024 RFP, which is expected to open for applications in January 2024.

​Workshopping Project Ideas​: ​​Crafting compelling Impact Goals projects
We know you have compelling ideas that will drive progress on complex sustainability challenges! This facilitated working session will provide space to generate and build out novel, innovative project ideas, to strengthen strategies for social impact, and to make generative connections with other disciplines.
This session is open to everyone, and targeted for people who are in project ideation stages.

Who’s Participating? 

This list reflects in-person registrations to attend the IonE Annual Meeting on Friday, September 29. Watch for updates every Monday until registration closes based on participant approval.

  1. Aaron Hanson, IonE Staff
  2. Alan Holt, IonE External Advisory Board Member
  3. Alex Bajcz, IonE Associate
  4. Alika Galloway, IonE External Advisory Board Member & Speaker
  5. Amanda Kohn, UMN Partner
  6. Amber Cameron, UMN Partner
  7. Amy Waananen, IonE Postdoc
  8. Amy Kinsley, IonE Associate and IonE Grantee
  9. An Garagiola, IonE Associate
  10. Andi Sutton, UMN Partner
  11. Andy Wickert, IonE Associate
  12. Anna Henderson, IonE Fellow
  13. Anna Cates, IonE Associate
  14. Annabella Lau, IonE Student Staff
  15. Anne Dybsetter, UMN Partner and Planning Board Member
  16. Apoorva Joshi, IonE Staff
  17. April Snyder, IonE Staff
  18. Ashley Peters, IonE Staff
  19. Aurup Ratan Dhar, IonE Postdoc (virtual)
  20. Barry Greenwald, IonE Guest
  21. Bekah Schulz, IonE Student
  22. Benjamin Toff, IonE Grantee
  23. Beth Mercer-Taylor, IonE Grantee and IonE Staff
  24. Brett McDonnell, IonE Associate
  25. Cara Santelli, IonE Associate
  26. Cari Dwyer, IonE Grantee
  27. Cathy Jordan, IonE Fellow and IonE Staff
  28. Chip Small, IonE Fellow
  29. Chris “CW” Johnson, IonE Fellow
  30. Christian Lenhart, IonE Fellow
  31. Christina Lundgren, IonE Staff
  32. Christine Baeumler, IonE Fellow
  33. Clement Loo, IonE Educator, IonE Grantee, and Faculty Leadership Council member
  34. Colleen Miller, IonE Postdoc
  35. Colin Agur, IonE Fellow
  36. Crystal Ng, IonE Faculty Leadership Council and Fellow
  37. Dan Keefe, IonE Fellow
  38. Dan Larkin, IonE Fellow
  39. Dan Nolan, IonE Educator (virtual)
  40. Dana Hernandez, IonE Staff
  41. Dan Philippon, IonE Fellow
  42. Daniel Scholten, IonE Visiting Scholar
  43. Daniel Forbes, IonE Fellow (virtual)
  44. Daniel Handeen, IonE Grantee
  45. Dee Lobo, IonE MW CASC Postdoc
  46. Deepak Ray, IonE Fellow and Staff
  47. Elissa Welch, IonE Staff
  48. Elizabeth Abraham, IonE Postdoc
  49. Elizabeth Borer, IonE Fellow and Faculty Leadership Council member
  50. Elizabeth Boileau, IonE Associate
  51. Emilie Snell-Rood, IonE Fellow and IonE Grantee
  52. Emily Kreiter, IonE Fellow
  53. Erik Brown, IonE Fellow
  54. Fernando Burga, Guest
  55. Forest Isbell, IonE Fellow
  56. Fred Rose, IonE Staff and Planning Board Member
  57. Hessam Mirgolbabaei, IonE Fellow
  58. Imani Mosher, IonE Grantee
  59. Ingrid Schneider, IonE Grantee
  60. Jacob Harris, UMN Partner
  61. Jacques Finlay, IonE Fellow
  62. James Forester, IonE Fellow
  63. Jaris Emmanuel Veneros Guevara, IonE Postdoc (virtual)
  64. Jennifer Schmitt, IonE Fellow, IonE Grantee, and IonE Staff
  65. Jennifer Frisch, IonE Fellow
  66. Jessica Gutknecht, IonE Fellow
  67. Jessica Del Fiacco, IonE Staff
  68. Jinny Alexander, IonE-UMD Staff
  69. Joanne Slavin, IonE Grantee
  70. Jonee Luisa, IonE Fellow
  71. Jonna Korpi, IonE Grantee and UMN Partner
  72. Joseph Bauerkemper, IonE Associate (virtual)
  73. Judy Yang, IonE Associate
  74. Julie Etterson, IonE Fellow
  75. Karen Brown, UMN Partner
  76. Karen Donohue, IonE Fellow
  77. Karthik Natarajan, IonE Fellow
  78. Jay Coggins, IonE Fellow
  79. Jon Knott, IonE Associate
  80. Kate Nelson, UMN Partner
  81. Kate Nyquist, IonE Staff and Planning Board Member
  82. Katelyn Kolyer, IonE Student Staff
  83. Katey Pelican, IonE Associate and UMN Partner
  84. Kathryn Haglin, IonE Associate
  85. Kathy Draeger, IonE Fellow and Faculty Leadership Council member
  86. Kim Todd, IonE Fellow
  87. Kimberly Hill, IonE Fellow
  88. Kimberly Long, IonE Staff
  89. Kirsten Fischer, IonE Fellow
  90. Kobe Knettel, IonE Student Staff
  91. Kyle Nelson, Guest
  92. Kyle Samejima, IonE Grantee
  93. Laurie Fink, IonE Fellow
  94. Laurie Moberg, IonE Associate
  95. Lindsey Kemmerling, IonE Grantee
  96. Lingling Liu, IonE Staff
  97. Luisa Santos Nothaft, IonE Student Staff
  98. Lucas Granholm, IonE Associate
  99. Madisen Gittlin, IonE Staff and Student
  100. Maggie McKenna, IonE Staff and Planning Board Member
  101. Marin Byrne, IonE Staff and Planning Board Member
  102. Martha Weitekamp, Guest
  103. Mary Hannemann, IonE Staff
  104. Matthew Gabb, IonE Staff and Guest
  105. Meggan Craft, IonE Fellow
  106. Melissa Kenney, IonE Fellow and Staff
  107. Michael Wilson, IonE Fellow
  108. Michelle Garvey, IonE Educator
  109. Mike Dockry, IonE Fellow and MW CASC member
  110. Nat Springer, IonE Associate and Staff
  111. Noah Greensweig, IonE Staff 
  112. Pat Nunnally, IonE Fellow
  113. Patrick Hancock, IonE Postdoc
  114. Paul Gleason, UMN Partner
  115. Priscilla Bunday, IonE Student
  116. Rachel Olson, IonE Associate (virtual)
  117. Richard Graves, IonE Fellow
  118. Rylie Pelton, IonE Associate and IonE Staff
  119. Sajani Kandel, IonE Fellow
  120. Samuel Reed, IonE Postdoc
  121. Sayan Biswas, IonE Fellow
  122. Seth Thompson, IonE Grantee
  123. Shane Stennes, IonE Fellow
  124. Sharon Pfeifer, IonE Visiting Scholar
  125. Shawn Ramberg, IonE Staff
  126. Sheila Sweeney & John Rains, IonE Supporter
  127. Shubhechchha Sharma, IonE Postdoc
  128. Stephanie Sparrow UMN Partner, Librarian for IonE
  129. Steve Kelley, IonE Fellow and UMN Partner
  130. Suki Mozenter, IonE Associate
  131. Sutirtha Lahiri, IonE Graduate Leader
  132. Teddie Potter, IonE Fellow
  133. Thi Nguyen, IonE Staff
  134. Tim Smith, IonE Fellow
  135. Tom Fisher, IonE Fellow
  136. Vipin Kumar, IonE Fellow (virtual)
  137. Wenqing Zhang, IonE Fellow
  138. Will Lockhart, IonE Postdoc
  139. Xinyi Qian, IonE Associate
  140. Yuan (Daniel) Cheng, IonE Associate
  141. Yuxin Miao, IonE Fellow

In-Person Gathering

We’ve heard from our affiliate network and broader IonE community that you are eager to return to meaningful in-person gatherings. For this reason, we are designing this year’s Annual Meeting as an opportunity to come together once again
to build connections and experience the richness of face-to-face interactions. We hope you can join us in person, however, mainstage remarks will be livestreamed and recorded for viewing at a later time.  

Covid-19 Precautions

While masks are not required in University of Minnesota facilities, everyone is welcome to wear a mask if they choose. The University and IonE expect everyone to be respectful of others’ choices to wear or not wear a mask.

Thank you to our 2023 Planning Board Members –
Anne Dybsetter,
Fred Rose, Kate Nyquist, Kimberly Long, Maggie McKenna, Meg Earnest, Marin Byrne, Shawn Ramberg!