Erin Brockovich will deliver sustainability keynote at Iowa State
February 26, 2020
AMES, Iowa — Erin Brockovich, who was propelled into a household name on the heels of the Oscar-winning biopic starring Julia Roberts, is speaking at Iowa State University.
Erin Brockovich
Brockovich, the legal researcher whose dogged persistence was the impelling force behind the largest medical settlement lawsuit in history, will deliver “The Power of One” at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24, in the Memorial Union Great Hall. A meet and greet with Brockovich will follow the lecture at 8 p.m. These events are free and open to the public.
Brockovich’s investigation uncovered that for more than 30 years, Pacific Gas & Electric had leaked a toxic substance into the groundwater of Hinkley, California, affecting the health of its residents. In 1996, as a result of the largest direct-action lawsuit in U.S. history, spearheaded by Brockovich and lawyer Ed Masry, PG&E paid $333 million in damages to more than 600 Hinkley residents.
In 2000, Roberts starred in the title role in the film adaptation of the case. The film went on to receive four Golden Globe nominations and five Oscar nominations, with Roberts winning a Golden Globe and an Oscar for best actress.
Today, Brockovich consults on numerous environmental projects around the world and encourages people to believe in their personal power to affect change.
Her lecture is the keynote for the ISU Symposium on Sustainability, part of the Live Green! Initiative’s 11th anniversary celebration. Iowa State’s Live Green! Initiative provides a call to action to all students, faculty and staff to be fully committed and engaged in ensuring the next sustainable decade.
This lecture is co-sponsored by the Office of Sustainability, Ivy College of Business, Patricia Miller lecture fund, George Gund fund, National Affairs series committee, Green Umbrella student organization and the Committee on Lectures, which is funded by Student Government.
Find more information about ISU lectures online or by calling 515-294-9934.
Contacts
Amanda Knief, Lectures Program, 515-294-9935, aknief@iastate.edu
Merry Rankin, Office of Sustainability, 515-294-5052, mrankin@iastate.edu
Chelsea Davis, News Service, 515-294-4778, chelsead@iastate.edu
11th annual ISU Symposium on Sustainability
Monday, Feb. 24
- 6 p.m.: Sustainability poster and tabling reception; Memorial Union South Ballroom
- 7 p.m.: Keynote lecture by Erin Brockovich and presentation of the 2020 Live Green! Awards for Excellence in Sustainability; Memorial Union Great Hall
- 8 p.m.: Meet and greet with Brockovich
Tuesday, Feb. 25
Sustainapalooza, 5-8 p.m., throughout the Memorial Union
- Picture Yourself in a Sustainable World: Students, faculty and staff are invited to chronicle their vision of a sustainable future: create individual panels of a collective visioning board, network with campus and community sustainability-minded organizations, swap a new wardrobe at the annual clothing swap, enjoy local food refreshments, earn sustainability-focused prizes, take a walk down the “green” carpet and capture your Sustainapalooza moment at the Cy-lebrity Wall.
- “Green It Yourself” centers: Students, faculty and staff are invited to learn and practice sustainable living skills through participating in the Green It Yourself Centers focused on a world that is efficiently and effectively energized, wasteless, food secure and balanced.
Find more information on the Live Green! website and Facebook page.
