MUNCIE, Ind. - Five national leaders in environmental education, research, policy, economics and history will help college campuses "go green" this week at Ball State University.

The keynoters for Ball State's third "Greening of the Campus" international conference Sept. 30 to Oct. 2 will share diverse perspectives on how colleges and universities can become environmentally sensitive models for society.

Each of their talks is open to the public in Cardinal Hall of the L.A. Pittenger Student Center. Seating is available for those who have not registered for the conference.

Approximate times of keynote addresses following meals:

• David Orr: "Beyond Greening the Campus," Thursday, Sept. 30, 9 a.m. Orr chairs Oberlin College's environmental studies program, is associate education editor for Conservation Biology magazine and received the National Wildlife Federation's National Conservation Achievement Award. He is a trustee for the Center for Ecoliteracy and Center for Respect of Life and Environment.
• Hilary French: "Global Eco-Politics in the New Millennium: The Role of Universities," Thursday, Sept. 30, 12:30 p.m. French is vice president for research at the Worldwatch Institute, where she has been the author of six Worldwatch Papers and co-author and associate project director for several State of the World reports. Her work has been cited in national media.
• Robert Costanza: "Integrating Ecology and Economics to Design a Sustainable World and a Sustainable Campus," Friday, Oct. 1, 8:30 a.m. Costanza is president and co-founder of the International Society for Ecological Economics, chief editor of the Ecological Economics journal and director of the University of Maryland's Institute for Ecological Economics.
• Susan Flader: "Toward a Land Ethic: The Legacy of Aldo Leopold," Friday, Oct. 1, 12:30 p.m. Flader is one of America's leading historians of conservation, known for her seminal analyses of the life and work of Aldo Leopold. She is a history professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia and a past president of the American Society for Environmental History.
• John Ryan: "The Seven Sustainable Wonders of the World, or The Dalai Lama vs. 'Baywatch'," Friday, Oct. 1, 6:30 p.m. Ryan is research director for Northwest Environment Watch in Seattle. He has also been a Worldwatch Institute research associate, a freelance consultant in Indonesia and co-author of "Stuff: The Secret Lives of Everyday Things" with Alan Thein Durning.

"Greening of the Campus III: Theory and Reality" is presented by Ball State's Green Committee with support from the Provost's Office. This year's event will build on the first two "Greening" conferences in April 1996 and September 1997.

Some 200 registrants from 32 states and five other countries will explore campus environmental strategies, practices and solutions through paper presentations, workshops, roundtable discussions and poster sessions during the conference.

Participants include college students, professors, administrators, environmental and business leaders, architects, researchers, authors and facilities planners.

"Certainly the diversity of participants makes this conference valuable," said C. Warren Vander Hill, Ball State's provost and vice president for academic affairs. "Their commitment to interdisciplinary dialogue is immediately evident."

Discussions will cover technical, educational, social, political and spiritual issues ranging from new curricula to physical plant management. Other topics include recycling and composting programs, environmental literacy, college/government collaboration, energy conservation and campus transportation.

By Ted Buck, Communications Manager