The Environmental Lecture Series was established at Ashland University after the implementation of the Environmental Science Program in 1991-92. The lecture series was designed to support the program by allowing students, faculty and members of North Central Ohio communities to interact with leaders in environmental science and policy. Over the years, the lecture series has generated significant campus and community involvement and support. Recent lectures have been archived on this webpage for your viewing.
Current support for the lecture series is provided by donations from individuals and support from Ashland University. Previous lecture series have been supported by AU and grants from the National Science Foundation, the Lubrizol Foundation, the GTE Foundation, and the Fran and Warren Rupp Foundation.
Please check each listing for details. Specific events may use other locations or be webinar-only.
Ashland University invites participants to attend both in-person or via live webinar whenever possible. All Environmental Lecture Series events, whether in-person or via live webinar, are free and open to the public.
2025-2026 Environmental Lecture Series: Environment & Religion
The theme of this year’s Environmental Lecture Series is Environment & Religion.
Where do humans fit into the natural world? What ethics guide human interactions with their environment? We want to understand more about different religious perspectives on relationships among humans, non-human animals and the environment. How do religious teachings influence environmental policies and environmental activism? Presenters will share some of their experience with different religious traditions and where they see connections with environmental issues.
This year’s lecture series is possible thanks to donations from Kimmie and Steve Humrichouser and other generous individuals and support from the AU College of Arts & Sciences. In addition, the AU Honors Program is hosting Dr. Lindroth and the AU Department of Religion is co-hosting Dr. Moerman and Dr. Belser.
Please note that the three evening presentations have different event locations and start times.
Climate Change and the Pursuit of Truth in a Post-Truth World
Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 7 p.m.
Upper Convo
Hosted by the AU Honors Program
Presentation by Dr. Rick Lindroth
Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor of Ecology, Emeritus, and former Associate Dean for Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Distinguished Fellow of The Lumen Center (slbf.org/lumen-center), Madison, WI
Dr. Lindroth’s earned his Ph.D. at the University of Illinois-Urbana. His academic career focused on evolutionary ecology, global change ecology, and trophic dynamics in forest ecosystems. He has been a Fulbright Fellow and is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the Ecological Society of America, the Entomological Society of America, and the American Scientific Affiliation. He currently works at The Lumen Center, a community of scholars working at the intersection of Christianity and culture. He speaks to public and faith-based groups about creation care, environmental stewardship, climate change, biodiversity, and science denialism/communication.
Christian Environmental Stewardship: Biblical Principles for Addressing Climate Change
Thursday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Ronk Lecture Hall, Schar College of Education
Co-hosted by the AU Department of Religion
Presentation by Rev. Dr. Jessica Moerman
President and CEO, Evangelical Environmental Network (creationcare.org)
Rev. Dr. Moerman is a climate and environmental scientist, pastor, educator and advocate. She earned her Ph.D. in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from the Georgia Institute of Technology and has held research positions at John Hopkins University, University of Michigan and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, where she researched how climate has changed throughout Earth’s history. Prior to joining EEN, Jessica was an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy. She is a co-founding pastor at her church. She speaks regularly with national Christian and secular radio talk shows, news outlets and television shows. Topics include issues related to climate change, pollution, children’s health, the clean energy transition, environmental stewardship and the intersection of science and faith.
Climate Change and Climate Justice
Thursday, March 26 at 6 p.m.
By webinar - Register for Webinar
Co-hosted by the AU Department of Religion
Presentation by Rabbi Dr. Julia Watts Belser
Professor of Jewish Studies, Department of Theology and Religious Studies & Faculty, Disability Studies Program & Senior Research Fellow, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
Rabbi Belser, through the lens of the Noah story from the Bible, reckons with rabbinic narratives which monitor which bodies are permitted onto the ark and others which render the ark one which is a refuge for all bodies. Applying this to contemporary events, she thinks about the way climate crisis affects certain communities disproportionately.
Rabbi Belser earned her Ph.D. at University of California-Berkeley, her M.A. at the Academy for Jewish Religion, and her B.A. at Cornell University. She has held faculty fellowships at Harvard Divinity School and the Katz Center for Advanced Jewish Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. A longtime advocate for disability and gender justice, she currently directs Disability and Climate Change: A Public Archive Project, an initiative that an initiative that documents the wisdom and insights of disabled activists, artists and first responders on the frontlines of climate crisis. Her latest book, Loving Our Own Bones: Disability Wisdom and the Spiritual Subversiveness of Knowing Ourselves Whole (Beacon Press, 2023), won a National Jewish Book Award. She’s an avid wheelchair hiker, a lover of wild places and a passionate supporter of disability dance.
Other Related Events
Voices of the Land: Readings and Activities Inspired by Aldo Leopold
Saturday, March 7 at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
(2 different sessions)
The Davy McClure Outdoor Education Center, Tom Kruse Wildlife Conservation Park
Co-hosted by The Ashland Center for Nonviolence, Ashland County Parks District and the Ashland Public Library
This special celebration invites community members to reflect on their relationship with the natural world and explore their land ethic through a series of engaging activities centered around Aldo Leopold’s classic work, “A Sand County Almanac.”
Shared Soil: Reading Creation Across Abrahamic Faiths
Thursday, March 19 at 6 p.m.
Writing and Communication Center, Archer Library
Co-hosted by Theta Alpha Kappa
The focus of this interactive session is reading texts about creation and the environment from several different religious traditions. Participants will note points of similarities and divergence and, it is hoped, leave with a broader understanding of and respect for different religious traditions.