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- by  Marty Katz
New College of Florida is proud to present its “New Topics” 2022-2023 season, with a lineup of dynamic regional and national speakers covering a broad range of topics. Hosted by the New College Foundation, the season runs from October through March and is sponsored by The Observer Media Group.
Wai Wai Nu

October 26, 2022

“Climate Crisis Now! Learning and Landscape in a Changing Environment”

Chris Reed, a Harvard Professor of Architecture and a leading voice in the transformation of landscapes and cities, will discuss his award-winning strategies related to coastal resilience. With an eye toward the local context of the New College campus and its place on the Gulf Coast, Reed will explore reimagining the role of higher education in community resilience.

January 25, 2023

“Fleeing Atrocities: Witness Perspectives” (a partnership with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Dr. Helen N. Fagin Holocaust, Genocide and Human Rights Collection)

Join us for a powerful conversation with two witnesses of mass atrocities nearly 80 years apart: Holocaust survivor Louise Lawrence-Israëls and Rohnigya witness and survivor Wai Wai Nu. This discussion will be moderated by Naomi Kikoler, director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide. This conversation will shine a light on the ongoing persecution of the Rohingya in Burma and the unique perspective that Holocaust survivors bring to contemporary issues. In March, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken chose the Museum as the location for announcing the U.S. government’s determination of genocide in Burma. It was there that Lawrence-Israëls and Nu first met.

February 16, 2023

“The Bigger Picture: Entertainment Marketing in a Changing World”

Join Smitty Smith ’70 and Jackson George ’95 as they discuss Hollywood and the evolution of entertainment marketing. Smith is a movie industry veteran and the CEO of the creative agency, InSync Plus. George is a creative advertising executive with Disney. The two will discuss how Hollywood develops movies and markets products to consumers. With witty stories and insights, Smith and George will explore how Hollywood is changing, and how rapidly advancing technologies influence the marketing and distribution of movies.

March 21, 2023

“The Sound of the Sea: Seashells and the Fate of the Oceans” with Cynthia Barnett

Award-winning environmental author Cynthia Barnett explores the long, rich and surprisingly profound relationship between humans and seashells. Traveling from Florida to the Bahamas to the Maldives, West Africa and beyond, Barnett uncovers the ancient history of shells as global currency (including their use as religious and luxury objects, and the rarely appreciated but remarkable creatures that make them). While shells reveal how humans have altered the climate and the sea—down to its very chemistry—they are also sentinels of hope for coastal adaptation for climate change, alternative energy and other solutions that lie beneath the waves.

All “New Topics” events will be held in Sainer Pavilion on the New College campus at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 with some exceptions. To register, visit ncf.edu/new-topics. For questions, contact the New College Foundation at 941-487-4800 or [email protected].