ISU Reading Project ‘Affluenza’ events scheduled Sept. 18-21
September 13, 2007
色花堂app鈥檚 Book Reading Project 2007, which is focusing on the book 鈥淎ffluenza,鈥 will offer various presentations Sept. 18 to 21 concluding with the showing of the 鈥淎ffluenza鈥 documentary followed by a keynote presentation and book-signing reception. 
The authors John de Graaf, David Wann and Thomas H. Naylor define 鈥渁ffluenza鈥 as 鈥渁 painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more.鈥
鈥溾橝ffluenza鈥 will allow the University and local community to explore the high social and environmental costs of materialism and over consumption and examine valid solutions on how to treat this rapidly spreading epidemic,鈥 said Bonnie Frantz, ISU Reading Project coordinator.
ISU Student Unions and the ISU Reading Committee are sponsors of the Reading Project events. Visit www.isu.edu/union/reading for more information the ISU Book Reading Project 2007. Events planned include:
Tuesday, Sep. 18
鈥 Showing of the documentary 鈥淎ffluenza 鈥 at 8 p.m. in the Bengal Movie Theater, Pond Student Union Building.
Wednesday, Sept. 19
鈥 鈥淐reating Television Documentaries鈥 presentation at noon in the PSUB Salmon River Suite with author John de Graaf. De Graaf will talk about his career as a documentary filmmaker and how documentaries can be used to promote positive social change.
鈥 鈥淲riting Non-Fiction鈥 discussion at 2 p.m. in the PSUB Salmon River Suite with author David Wann. Wann's will share his perspectives on how to write non-fiction articles and books. The workshop is designed for aspiring writers and anyone else who's interested.
鈥 鈥淓scape from Affluenza鈥 documentary film at 5:30 p.m. in the PSUB Bengal Movie Theater. Authors will be available for a short question-and-answer session.
鈥 鈥淣eighborhoods on Purpose/Revitalizing Communities鈥 workshop at 7 p.m. in Frazier Hall with Wann. He will present the importance of having strong neighborhoods. Wann will use slides and film clips to highlight the benefits of designing and re-designing neighborhoods for community rather than consumption.
Thursday, Sept. 20
鈥 鈥淭ake Back Your Time鈥 presentation at noon in the PSUB Salmon River Suites with author de Graaf, who will talk about time famine and overwork in America and its impact on our health, families, communities and environment. De Graaf will discuss what the Take Back Your Time campaign is doing to solve these problems, including a new campaign for a paid vacation law in the United States and how students are organizing on other campuses to gain better control of their time.
鈥 Showing of the documentary film 鈥淎ffluenza鈥 with author Wann at noon in the Multipurpose Room of the Bennion Student Union Building at University Place in Idaho Falls.
鈥 Presentation of segments of the documentary 鈥淭he Motherhood Manifesto鈥 with de Graaf at 1 p.m. in the PSUB Salmon River Suite. De Graaf will show segments from his new documentary and talk about new public policies to help make America more family friendly.
鈥 Showing of the documentary 鈥淎ffluenza鈥 at 5:30 p.m. in the Bengal Movie Theater, Pond Student Union Building.
鈥 鈥淎ffluenza the All-Consuming Epidemic鈥 keynote discussion with authors de Graaf and Wann at 7 p.m. in the PSUB Ballroom.
鈥 鈥淎ffluenza鈥 book-signing reception with authors de Graaf and Wann at 8:30 p.m. in the PSBU Wood River Room.
Friday, Sept. 21
鈥 鈥淔inding Real Wealth鈥 presentation and slide show with author Wann at 11 a.m. in the PSUB Wood River Room. This presentation focuses on how Americans can reinvent their lifestyle to meet needs more directly, including what they eat, where they live, what they buy and where they work. By becoming less dependent on a "lifestyle support system," we can have twice the satisfaction for half the resources.
鈥 鈥淲hat鈥檚 the Economy for Anyway?鈥 discussion with de Graaf at noon in the PSUB Wood River Room. Using humor and Powerpoint, de Graaf will talk about his latest national campaign and provide a historical comparison of American and European economic policies from 1972 until the present, in terms of their effect on quality of life, health social equity and long-term sustainability.
De Graaf has been producing documentaries, primarily for public television, for 25 years. As a filmmaker, de Graaf has received more than 100 regional, national and international awards. Wann is president of the Sustainable Futures Society, a board member of the Co-housing Association of the United States and the recipient of various lifetime achievement awards for his work on sustainability.
About the Authors
John de Graaf has been producing documentaries, primarily for public television, for 25 years. More than 15 of his programs have been broadcast nationally in primetime on PBS. As a filmmaker, de Graaf is the recipient of more than 100 regional, national and international awards. He is the founder and president of the board of directors of the Hazel
Wolf Environmental Film Festival. In addition to 鈥淎ffluenza鈥 and 鈥淓scape from Affluenza,鈥 he also produced 鈥淩unning Out of Time,鈥 鈥淔or Earth鈥檚 Sake: The Life and Times of David Brower,鈥 鈥淐ircle of Plenty,鈥 鈥淕reen Plans鈥 and 鈥淕enetic Time Bomb,鈥 among many others.
David Wann is president of the Sustainable Futures Society, a board member of the Co-housing Association of the U.S., and the recipient of various lifetime achievement awards for his work on sustainability. He鈥檚 been a passionate gardener for 25 years and coordinates a neighborhood garden in the co-housing community in which he has lived for 11 years. He is editor of the book 鈥淩einventing Community鈥 and coauthor of 鈥淪uperbia! 31 Ways to Create Sustainable Neighborhoods.鈥 He produced 鈥淏uilding Livable Communities鈥 for then vice president Al Gore鈥檚 office. He has also produced several other programs on communities and neighborhoods, including the award-winning TV programs 鈥淧lacemakers鈥 and 鈥淒esigning a Great Neighborhood,鈥 which appeared on Free Speech TV, Lime TV and PBS stations.
Professor emeritus of economics at Duke University, Thomas H. Naylor is a writer and a political activist and is the third author, but he won鈥檛 be appearing at ISU. For 30 years, he taught economics, management science, and computer science at Duke. As an international management consultant specializing in strategic management, Naylor has advised major corporations and governments in over thirty countries. He has concluded the American Empire, not unlike its former nemesis the USSR, has lost its moral authority and is no longer sustainable.
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