APRIL CONFERENCE AT UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA WILL STRESS NEED FOR ETHICAL APPROACHES TO ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., March 12 -- A Virginia family's unwavering belief in the importance of ethical values in our society will result in a national conference at the University of Virginia in April on ethics and a wide range of environmental problems. The conference, "Beyond Green: Ethical Values in Environmental Conflicts," has been organized by all nine degree-granting schools at U.Va. and will bring together nationally respected leaders in ethics and other fields. The April 4 conference, sponsored by the University President's Office with a gift from the Elis Olsson Memorial Foundation, is free and open to the public. (Schedule and locations are attached.) It will be held in conjunction with the 1997 Ruffin Lecture Series, "Environmental Challenges to Business," April 4-6 at the Olsson Center for Applied Ethics at the Darden School, an annual seminar for invited academicians in business ethics. "This intensive program underscores the need for a clearer national focus on ethical values and reflects our commitment to ethical principles as the cornerstone of education," said President John T. Casteen III. "The conference is made possible by the generosity and vision of the Elis Olsson Memorial Foundation and its president, Sture Olsson, whose family's longtime commitment to the teaching of ethics has enriched the curriculum across the Grounds." Sture Olsson, a 1942 U.Va. alumnus who lives in West Point, Va., and members of his family have for several decades supported numerous major initiatives promoting teaching and research in ethics at U.Va. The conference begins with a 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. session in Old Cabell Hall Auditorium. Kristin Shrader-Frechette, professor of philosophy and environmental and risk analysis at the University of South Florida and one of the country's leading authorities on environmental ethics, will deliver a 9 a.m. keynote address. Her talk, on "Ethics and the Challenge of Low-Dose Exposures," will examine ethical concerns related to the public's and workers' exposure to low doses of ionizing radiation caused by a variety of medical, industrial and military technologies. A 10:30 a.m. panel discussion, "Not in My Backyard! Hard Choices and Environmental Justice," will consider case studies of hazards associated with placement of "LULUs" (locally undesirable land-uses) such as toxic waste dumps, incinerators, homeless shelters and halfway houses. Panelists will include: Pamela Karlan, U.Va. professor of law, moderator; Ralph Allen, director of U.Va.'s Office of Environmental Health and Safety; the Rev. Bruce Beard, pastor, First Baptist Church (Main Street), Charlottesville; Michael D. Beverly, associate general counsel, Chesapeake Corp.; Tanya Denckla, senior associate, U.Va. Institute for Environmental Negotiation; Charles P. Lord, director, Action for Community and the Environment, Boston College Law School; Lisa Newton, director, Program in Environmental Studies, Fairfield College; and Vivian Thomas, U.Va. lecturer in government. Afternoon programs April 4 will include concurrent sessions on ethical issues in a wide range of environments, with numerous distinguished visiting speakers and U.Va. faculty. (Please see attached program for full list of participants.) ¥ 1-3 p.m.,"Ethics in Educational Environments," Ruffner Hall Auditorium ¥ 1:30-3 p.m.,"Religion's Impact on the Environment: Positive, Negative or Ambiguous?", Minor Hall Auditorium ¥ 1:30-3:30 p.m., "Ethical Perspectives on Science and the Environment," Clark Hall 147 ¥ 1-3 p.m., "Case Discussions of Ethics in Business," Monroe Hall ¥ 1-3 p.m., "Ethical Implications in the Depiction of Nature," Brown College Library ¥ 1:30-5 p.m., "Ethics and the Social Environment: Clinicians Response to Family Violence," McLeod Hall Auditorium ¥ 2-3:30 p.m., "Response to Kristin Shrader-Frechette's Keynote," Classroom Building Room 50, Darden School ¥ 2-3:30 p.m., "Toward a Sustainable Tomorrow: Engineering Design and Ethics," Olsson Hall 120, Engineering School ¥ 4-5:30 p.m., "Environmental Justice: A Case Study About Communities, Historical Preservation and The Lawyer's Role," Withers-Brown Hall E303, Law School ¥ 3-4:30 p.m., "Why Care About Endangered Species? Philosophical Reflections on Biodiversity," Cabell Hall 311 The 1997 Ruffin Lecture Series, "Environmental Challenges to Business," for invited academicians at the Olsson Center for Applied Ethics, will open with a lecture on that theme by William McDonough, U.Va. dean of architecture and winner of a 1996 U.S. Presidential Award for Sustainable Design. Chair of the University-wide steering committee for the "Beyond Green" ethical values conference is James F. Childress, professor of religious studies and a member of President Clinton's National Bioethics Advisory Committee. The conference Web site is at: http://www.virginia.edu/~urelat/ethics/ ### March 11, 1997 schedule enclosed For additional information or to arrange interviews please contact Carol Wood or Bob Brickhouse, U.Va. News Services, at (804) 924-7116. Television reporters should call our TV News Office at (804) 924-7550.