Earth Day

More than 25 student organizations and departments will showcase their recent initiatives toward a more sustainable way of life, at an Earth Day Celebration, open to the public April 22, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on the Ag Quad.

Hosted by the student-run Sustainability Hub, the celebration features Lights Off Cornell's Energy Bike powering light bulbs and appliances; a solar parabolic cooker heating marshmallows for s'mores; tie-dyed tote bags, and campus initiatives including Take Back the Tap, which aims to reduce bottled water consumption; the ride-share program Big Red Bikes; Engineers for a Sustainable World's "Drive Not to Drive" campaign; trash removal in the gorges; and Kyoto NOW!, raising awareness of renewable energy sources. Information: https://sites.google.com/site/cornellsustainabilityhub.

The buzz on bees

Professor of entomology Bryan Danforth introduces the area premiere of the 2010 documentary "Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?" April 22, 7:15 p.m. in Willard Straight Theatre. The film examines the crisis caused by colony collapse disorder, decimating bee populations the world over. Directed by Taggart Siegel ("The Real Dirt on Farmer John"); also showing April 23 and 26. Information: http://cinema.cornell.edu.

Ellis Paul live

Contemporary singer-songwriter Ellis Paul returns to WVBR's "Bound for Glory" on Sunday, April 24, 8-11 p.m. in Anabel Taylor Hall Café. Admission is free to the show, broadcast live on WVBR 93.5 FM.

Paul is based in Boston, has recorded several acclaimed albums and in recent years has joined artists Wilco, Billy Bragg, The Klezmatics and the Burns Sisters in interpreting the unrecorded songs of Woody Guthrie. He is "clearly one of the most charismatic performers we've ever had on 'Bound for Glory,'" host Phil Shapiro writes.

Airing since 1967, "Bound for Glory" is North America's longest-running live folk music broadcast. Information: 607-844-4535, pds10@cornell.edu, or http://wvbr.com.

The new world

Journalist Fareed Zakaria will discuss "The Rise of the Rest: The Post-American World," April 25 at 4:30 p.m. in Statler Auditorium. His talk, the Henry E. and Nancy Horton Bartels 2011 World Affairs Fellowship Lecture, is free and open to the public.

Zakaria is the host of CNN's "GPS: Global Public Square," which provides insight on international issues. He also is an editor-at-large for Time magazine, a Washington Post columnist and author of the best-selling book "The Post-American World" (2008).

The annual Bartels lecture is sponsored by the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies. Information: http://www.einaudi.cornell.edu/.

Improvising satire

The Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts presents its final mainstage production of the season, Molière's classic satire "Those Learned Ladies," April 27-30 at 7:30 p.m. and April 30 at 2 p.m. in Kiplinger Theatre.

The play, first staged in 1672 in Paris, pokes fun at pretension and preciousness while skewering those who consider themselves "learned." The Cornell production, directed by associate professor of acting and directing Beth Milles, combines improvisation with spontaneous music and poetry, drawing inspiration from 1960s performance salons. Audience participation is encouraged, and on-stage seating (popcorn included) is available on request.

Tickets are $12 general, $10 students/seniors, at the box office 12:30-4 p.m. weekdays, by phone at 607-254-ARTS, or online at http://www.schwartztickets.com.

In your genes

Biologist and entrepreneur J. Craig Venter, one of the scientists who first sequenced the human genome in 2001, will speak April 28, 7:30 p.m. in Statler Auditorium. Free tickets are available at Willard Straight Hall Ticket Office.

Venter's research has led to significant advances in the modern understanding of genetics; he also led the team that constructed the first synthetic genome in 2010. He served as an A.D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell from 2003 to 2009. His talk is sponsored by the Lawrence and Judith Tanenbaum Distinguished Speakers Fellowship of Sigma Phi.

Flowers, falls, f-stops

Sigma-sponsored professional photographer David Fitzsimmons will lead a macro and landscape photography workshop, "Wildflowers and Waterfalls," April 30-May 1.

Cornell Outdoor Education sponsors the workshop, coinciding with the peak of wildflowers in the Finger Lakes region. Over two days of field shooting, photographers will visit scenic sites on the Cornell campus and local gorges and waterfalls, and learn to edit on a laptop (provided, or bring your own). Fitzsimmons will help beginning to intermediate photographers get the most out of their cameras, whether point-and-shoot, SLR, digital or film. Registration includes loaner lenses provided by Sigma and door prizes. Information: tm49@cornell.edu, 607-255-8004 or http://www.coe.cornell.edu.

Songs of Scotland

Legendary Scottish singer Jean Redpath, who last performed in Ithaca in 1986, returns for a concert April 30, 8 p.m. at the Community School of Music and Arts, 330 E. State St. Tickets $15 advance, $17 door; students $10/$12; children 12 and under free; discounts for Cornell Folk Song Society members, seniors, teens. Information, ticket outlets: 607-279-2027, http://www.cornellfolksong.org.

A "Prairie Home Companion" regular, Redpath has sung traditional and contemporary Scottish songs and ballads and her interpretations of Robert Burns for more than 50 years.

Redpath also leads a vocal workshop May 1, 1-3 p.m., Hollis E. Cornell Auditorium, Goldwin Smith Hall. $15. To register, contact Margaret Shepard at mbs19@cornell.edu.

Slope Day tickets

Guest passes are now available for the Slope Day concert by Nelly, Cool Kids and Ra Ra Riot, May 6 at 1 p.m. on Libe Slope. Passes are $25 and can be ordered online before 9 p.m. May 1, at http://cornellconcerts.com.

Guests must be at least 18 years of age and show a valid ID at the gate. Tickets, limited to two per person, may be purchased by undergraduate and graduate students with ID, and by alumni. There are no e-tickets.

Students must pick up physical tickets between noon and 5 p.m. May 2-5, at Willard Straight Hall Ticket Office. Alumni need to go to the Bartels Hall Ticket Office on May 6 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Students can also buy food tickets (five for $10) online and at Willard Straight Hall, which will sell remaining guest passes (if available) for $30, starting May 2 at noon. There are no refunds, and tickets not picked up will be forfeited.