NOVA’s Annandale Campus to Host Climate Symposium on April 16

The Annandale Campus of Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) will hold its fourth annual climate symposium with presentations from leaders in environmental and meteorological industries. “Talking About Climate Risk,” will take place in the CE Forum on April 16 from 2 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

This year’s speakers include:

Callan Bentley is assistant professor of geology at NOVA’s Annandale Campus. He is the organizer of the annual NOVA Climate Change Symposium, a long-standing member of the College’s Green Committee, and adjunct faculty at George Mason University. He writes the geology blog “Mountain Beltway” and is a regular contributor to EARTH Magazine. Bentley is a five-time nominee for NOVA Faculty of the Year and received the Golden Apple Award in 2006.

Juliet Eilperin has been with The Washington Post since 1998, starting as its U.S. House of Representatives reporter. Since 2004, she has covered environmental issues for the national desk. In the spring of 2005 she was the youngest-ever McGraw Professor of Journalism at Princeton University. Eilperin is the author of two books: “Fight Club Politics: How Partisanship is Poisoning the House of Representatives” (2006), and “Demon Fish: Travels Through the World with Sharks,” which was published in June 2011.

William H. Hooke, Ph.D., directs the Policy Program at the American Meteorological Society. He worked for The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from 1967-2000, in a series of research and management positions, including deputy chief scientist and acting chief scientist. He also served as senior scientist to Commerce Secretary William Daly. Hooke was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 2006. He is the author of the blog “Living on the Real World.”

Joe Witte is currently completing his doctorate on “Climate Education for TV Meteorologists” at the Center of Climate Change Communication at George Mason University. Witte is a climate science outreach consultant for NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Witte was a TV broadcast meteorologist for four decades, spending 20 years with NBC and currently providing voice-over talent for The Today Show. He started his career as a glaciologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. He is a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society.

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Northern Virginia Community College is the largest institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia and one of America’s largest community colleges. NOVA enrolls more than 75,000 students at its six campuses in Alexandria, Annandale, Loudoun, Manassas, Springfield and Woodbridge, and through the Extended Learning Institute. For more information about NOVA and its programs or services, call 703-323-3000 or visit the College’s website, www.nvcc.edu.