This newsletter is brought to you by Human Resources.
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Special Cornell Retiree Events |
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Our Changing Menu: Climate Change and the Foods We Love and Need
June 29, 2021, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
The following is a special presentation for Cornell retirees by Mike Hoffmann, Professor Emeritus, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences:
This conversation will cover how the changing climate is affecting our globally interconnected and interdependent food supply—impacting just about everything on the menu. Plants, the basis of life, require the right temperatures, water, soil, air, and sunlight. All but sunlight are changing and this has subtle and, in many cases, ominous impacts on our foods and beverages—from spices and herbs to nuts. The flavors of teas, the protein and mineral content of wheat, vitamins in rice, and yields of many crops will all soon be different.
Addressing this challenge requires innovative research to develop more resilient crops, better practices, and tools that help the agricultural and the food sectors adapt to the new normal and mitigate the impact of these changes. This is also an opportunity for all of us, from farmer to consumer, to join forces. And by doing so, to find common ground and draw more attention and action to address this grand challenge of climate change. We all eat and we all have a role to play.
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Adding “Exercise Snacks” to Your Day
Tuesday, July 27, 2021, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Join Ruth Merle-Doyle, associate director from Cornell Wellness, for an interactive discussion about how to transition from being sedentary to taking small bites of activity throughout the day. This concept of “exercise snacking” allows people of all abilities to make a meaningful difference in their health and mobility.
Ruth will discuss all forms of movement including activities of daily living, recreation, and intentional exercise, and help you think through how to fit them all together in the most healthy way.
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Special Father's Day and Pride Event: Little and Often: A Memoir
Monday, June 21, 2021, 7:30 - 8:30 pm
Trent Preszler thought he left South Dakota behind him when he came to Cornell to earn his degrees and became CEO of Bedell Cellars on Long Island’s North Fork. Estranged from his father since he came out in college, Trent received a call in 2014 from his dad to come home for Thanksgiving. Upon returning to South Dakota, he discovered his father was dying of cancer. When he passed away, his father bequeathed him one thing: his toolbox.
Trent’s memoir, Little and Often, details what he did with those tools, and reveals a story of self-discovery, perseverance, and reconciliation.
During this hour-long discussion, Trent will talk about his memoir, take questions from the audience and provide a glimpse of the work that came out of that toolbox.
This event is sponsored by the CALS Alumni Association, CUGALA and
the Cornell Northeast Corridor and is moderated by Shane Dunn ’07, board member, CALSAA and vice president, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) Board of Directors.
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Gardening for Beneficial Insects: Bees, Butterflies, and Natural Enemies
Tuesday, June 22, 2021, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Beneficial insects are so much more than bees! In this class, learn how to recognize some common natural enemies of pests and what you can do to make your garden more attractive to them. There will be specific focus on how to choose plants that provide food and shelter for these beneficial insects and how to establish them in your garden.
Amara Dunn is the Biocontrol Specialist with the New York State Integrated Pest Management Program (a statewide team with Cornell Cooperative Extension). She helps all New Yorkers use biological control more effectively whether on their farms or around their homes, businesses, schools, etc.
Cost is $0-$30/person self-determined sliding scale, pay what you can afford.
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Let’s Meditate in Nature
Thursday, June 24, 2021, 12:30–1:00 pm
The mental and physical benefits of spending time outdoors have been well documented, and so have the benefits of meditation and mindfulness. In combination, meditation while spending time in nature provides a unique experience for the mind and body and allows all the senses to participate in the practice. Grab your preferred online device, head outside, and join Cornell Health "Let’s Meditate" leader Eve Abrams for a virtual 20-minute guided meditation. This event will leave you centered and with a greater appreciation for the planet.
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Museum Book Club: The Forger’s Spell by Edward Dolnick
Wednesday, June 30, 2021, 4:00 pm
If you are looking for a summer read, join Nancy Green and Maryterese Pasquale-Bowen as they discuss a great art-based reading adventure together.
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What’s “Bugging” You? First Friday Education Events
In this free, monthly virtual CALS series, learn about integrated pest management (IPM) to avoid problems and promote a healthy environment where you live, work, learn and play. IPM is a holistic approach that uses different tools and practices to not only reduce pest problems but also address the reasons why pests are there in the first place. Each month, our speakers will share practical information about how you can use IPM.
Events will be held on the first Friday of every month from 12:00 to 12:30 pm via Zoom. Each month we’ll cover a timely topic in 25 minutes, including opportunities for questions.
Below is the schedule of presentations from July to September 2021:
- July 2: Finding and eliminating mosquitoes in your yard
- Aug. 6: How to select a pesticide
- Sept. 3: Keeping pests -- from stink bugs to mice -- out of your home this fall
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Safety at Home - Caregiving Nitty-Gritty for Day-to-Day Challenges
Tuesday, July 20, 2021, 12:00 pm
Family and friends are often suddenly pressed into service when a loved one is discharged from the hospital after surgery, or gradually as a loved one begins to need additional assistance with aging safely in their home. Without much training, caregivers may find themselves, helping with tasks like dressing, bathing, toileting, transferring, and managing medications. These day-to-day challenges can be frustrating and overwhelming; they are also potentially hazardous for you and your loved one.
The July Caregiver Support and Education Network meetings will be open discussions on suitable techniques and practical solutions for challenges of day-to-day caregiving. These solutions can also provide insight to anyone planning to age in place – aging in a safer manner while acknowledging the progression of changing care needs. Learn about universal design and ADA accommodations, discharge plans and Activities of Daily Living (ADL's), and planning for emergencies. Home checklists, training video recommendations, and local resources for assistance will be provided.
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Local and Virtual Offerings |
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Science in the Virtual Pub: Do “pre-existing conditions” prime the Earth for mass extinction?
Corrinne Myers, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of New Mexico
Thursday, July 1, 2021, 7:30 pm
Mass extinctions get a lot of attention from paleontologists since they generally wipe out 70% or more of the species on the Earth! However, the state of the Earth System prior to those extinctions is not as well researched and could have an important effect in enhancing or inhibiting mass extinction rates. This research, guided by my Master’s student Dustin Perriguey, tests for what kinds of environments BEFORE mass extinctions might act to make those extinctions worse once they get going. The results provide a predictive model that can tell us how vulnerable the Earth System is right now to have a worse extinction if human activities detrimental to the biosphere persist.
Sponsored by the Paleontological Research Institution.
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Free New York Public Library Events
Did you know it is free to get a membership to the New York Public Library? New York residents ages 13 and older can get a digital library card through the library's online card application and access a wide variety of digital resources.
Check out some upcoming virtual offerings:
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Finding Your Family Genealogy Research for Beginners, Monday, June 21, 2021,10:00 am. Learn about library resources such as newspapers, municipal databases, Ancestry.com, and related tools to begin researching your family history or start a family tree. The program will take place on google meet. Register
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Financial Counseling, Friday, June 25, 2021, 9:00 am. In this financially difficult time, speak to counselors about your current financial situation, including general money management, budgeting, saving, banking, retirement planning, and more. Come prepared with questions. To make your appointment, click here.
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Adult Coloring & Conversation, Saturday, June 26, 2021, 3:00 pm. Join staff from the West New Brighton Library for an hour of coloring and conversation. Even though we will be coloring from our homes, we can still color together! We can chat with each other about books we are reading, hobbies, and movies/tv shows all while we color. Feel free to share your coloring creations with others if you like! Coloring can be done by anyone of any age, and coloring has been shown to alleviate stress and anxiety. Please note: This is a virtual program--no materials will be provided. Register
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Volunteer to monitor harmful algal blooms
This summer, the Community Science Institute (CSI) will again be leading the Cayuga Lake Harmful Algal Bloom (HABs) Monitoring Program in collaboration with the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network (CLWN), Discover Cayuga Lake (DCL), and our many dedicated HABs Harrier volunteers around the lake! Through this program, CSI rapidly reports and analyzes HABs that occur on the Cayuga Lake shoreline during the summer months. All blooms that occur on Cayuga Lake are reported on CSI's Cayuga Lake HABs Reporting Page in near-to-real time and the results of laboratory analyses - including the concentration of microcystin toxin in the bloom - are updated within one to three days. In addition, weekly updates are published by CLWN to keep the community informed about recent and current HABs occurrences. This fast and accurate information about HABs helps lake-goers make safe decisions about recreating on the lake and betters our shared understanding of the risk these blooms may or may not present.
As a HABs Harrier volunteer, you will be responsible for the following:
- Attend a two-hour HABs identification and sampling workshop (virtual) in June.
- Survey a length of shoreline for HABs once per week from July through September.
- Collect HABs samples and transport them to the CSI lab for further analysis.
- Be available to respond to HABs sightings reported by the general public near your shoreline zone.
To learn more about HABs, the Cayuga Lake HABs Monitoring Program, and our findings from the past three years of HABs monitoring, please visit the website at www.communityscience.org.
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Miscellaneous Articles & Webinars |
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