Welcome back to Science Fair, Bwog’s weekly roundup of science events happening around campus. As always, email science@bwog.com if you want your event featured.

The Role of Life Cycle Assessment in Sustainability Management

  • Monday, February 19 from 6:30 to 9:30 pm
  • In-person in Low Library. 
  • “The process of tracking the environmental and social impact of consumer products from ‘cradle to grave’—known as Life Cycle Assessment—is gaining in popularity, thanks to progress in respective accounting rules and databases, evolving software, and, crucially, ever-increasing consumer awareness. […] But what does this mean for manufacturers and their suppliers? Where are their pain points? And what R&D skills in university graduates are needed to overcome remaining obstacles? Dr. Steven Cohen will interview a panel of experts from both the private sector and Columbia University’s own Research Program on Sustainability Policy and Management to address these important questions.” More information. 

Generative AI, Free Speech, & Public Discourse: Symposium

  • Tuesday, February 20 from 11:00 am to 5:15 pm
  • In-person in the Auditorium at The Forum. Registration required. 
  • “The emergence of generative AI models has been accompanied by predictions of dire harms, including a fresh deluge of disinformation, threats to free elections, and other attacks aimed at destabilizing democracies. This symposium will bring together leading scholars and practitioners in computer science, law, communications, and policy to debate some of the biggest questions machine-learning tools raise for the future of public discourse, free expression, and democracy.” More information. 

Decarbonization for Everyone | All Ivy Career Fair Panel

  • Tuesday, February 20 from 6 to 7 pm
  • Online. Registration required. 
  • “This panel will focus on industry leaders’ perspectives on what is needed to galvanize an equitable transition and what infrastructure is needed (policies, investment, etc.) to overcome current challenges.” Featuring Zach Cunningham, Training & Education Associate at the Cornell ILR Climate Jobs Institute; Julia Bovey, Director of External Affairs for Offshore Wind at Eversource Energy; and Rachel Goodgal, Government Affairs Manager at The Energy Efficiency Alliance. More information. 

Student Roundtable: The Energy Transition with Gretchen Watkins

  • Wednesday, February 21 from 9:00 to 10:30 am
  • In-person at Center on Global Energy Policy, First Floor. Registration required. 
  • “Every energy company in the world is in the process of adapting to the energy transition. Please join the Women in Energy Initiative program at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs for a student breakfast roundtable discussion with Amy Myers Jaffe and Gretchen Watkins, about her experience as president of Shell USA, Inc. and her insights on a changing energy system.” More information. 

Privacy, Surveillance & Transatlantic Data Flows

  • Thursday, February 22 from 12:10 to 1:10 pm
  • In-person at Jerome Greene Hall, Room 105. Registration required.
  • “Through his work as a lawyer and data privacy activist, Max Schrems has worked to secure court rulings that have reshaped how personal data flows between the US and the EU. But how can the US and the EU continue to navigate their different approaches to privacy? What are the prospects for a new transatlantic data transfer deal? Is there an ideal solution for data sharing among democracies?” More information. 

Getting Critical with Data: Data Activism with Data 4 Black Lives

  • Friday, February 23 from 5:00 to 9:00 pm
  • In-person at Milstein LL002 (Chu Classroom) & Movement Lab (Milstein LL020). Registration required. 
  • “Join us for a keynote by Data 4 Black Lives Founder Yeshimebeit Milner! In her keynote, Yeshimabeit will demystify how to use data for resistance in the fight for Black Lives. After the keynote, there will be a ‘Decompress’ session hosted by Data 4 Black Lives. ‘Decompress’ is a DIY multidisciplinary event space and movement laboratory that centers music as a Black technology, featuring DJs, dancing, and rest.” Keynote will be delivered from 5:00 to 7:00 pm in the Chu Classroom, and Decompress will take place from 7:00 to 9:00 pm in Movement Lab. More information. 

“If Dreams Were Lightning: Rural Healthcare Crisis” – Documentary Screening and Conversation

  • Thursday, February 22 from 6:30 to 9:00 pm
  • In-person at Lenfest Center for the Arts, Katharina Otto-Bernstein Screening Room (Second Floor). Registration required. 
  • “A screening of the powerful short documentary focusing on patients trying to get help in healthcare deserts as rural hospitals close. Followed by a conversation between the film’s Writer and Director, Film Professor Ramin Bahrani (CC ’96) and Wafaa El-Sadr, University Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine.” More information.