"Most seminars at Cornell do not present material in a way that is accessible to undergraduates or other young people," said Charles Greene, professor of earth and atmospheric science at Cornell and one of the organizers of a new Cornell speaker series specifically designed for freshmen and sophomores.

"Sustainable Earth, Energy and the Environmental Systems," co-sponsored by the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences and the Cornell Center for a Sustainable Future, will be held Mondays in 101 Phillips Hall, 7:30 to 9 p.m., starting Sept. 7.

"This seminar series was organized to provide 17- to 20-year-olds from Cornell and even the greater Ithaca community with information on the critical Earth, energy and environmental issues that they will face during their lifetimes," said Greene.

The weekly talks will feature researchers from all over the campus -- including such well-known experts as Frank DiSalvo, David Wolfe and Jeff Tester -- on topics related to climate change and its potential effects, such as environmental impacts on land and sea and the challenges of meeting our needs for food, water and energy. Some speakers will also discuss the implementation of technologies at Cornell and Ithaca College to address some of these needs.

The lecture series is free and open to the public. For a list of topics and speakers, see http://www.eas.cornell.edu/cals/eas/news-events/sees-seminar.cfm.