February 28, 2007

Nationally-renowned author Bill McKibben will discuss his new book, Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future (Times Books, Henry Holt and Company, $25). He offers a significant challenge to the prevailing view of our economy, observing that "more" is no longer synonymous with "better," and for many of us they have become almost opposites.

He urges the pursuit of prosperity in a more local direction, with cities, suburbs and regions producing more of their own food, generating more of their own energy and creating more of their own culture and entertainment. Deep Economy urges each of us to think about our life both as an individual and as a member of a larger community.

As McKibben sees it, we are producing more inequality than prosperity, more insecurity than progress; we do not have the energy needed to keep producing more at our current rate; and, growth is no longer making us happy. As we address economic issues as they relate to our environment and community, McKibben seeks to shift our thinking, offering a realistic, if challenging, scenario for a hopeful future.

McKibben puts forward a new way to think about the things we buy, the food we eat, the energy we use, and the money that pays for it all. He suggests that an economy based on "better": a better life, a better environment, a better chance of economic justice should not threaten what we truly value.

Wendell Berry
(Photo by Pam Spaulding)

McKibben is the author of numerous books, including The End of Nature, the first book for a general audience to recognize the threat we now call "global warming”, published in 1989. It is often cited as a classic work on the environmental crisis.He is scholar in residence in Environmental Studies at Middlebury College in Vermont.

McKibben will be interviewed by Wendell Berry, honored writer, cultural and economic critic, and a farmer for over forty years in his native Henry County, KY.

Berry is the author of more than forty books of fiction, poetry and essays.  He has been honored with the T. S. Eliot Award, the Aiken Taylor Award for poetry and the John Hay Award of the Orion Society.

Event & Ticket Information

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Visit with University of Louisville students: An intervew and Q&A session with Bill McKibben,will be held 2 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 28, W104 Ekstrom Library on the Belknap Campus. He will be interviewed by Russell Barnett, director of the Kentucky Institute for the Environment and Sustainable Development. The campus visit is open to students, faculty and staff.

The Kentucky Center
501 West Main Street
Downtown Louisville

5:00 p.m. Wine and Cheese offered by Brown-Forman, along with Carmichael's book sale in the lobby of The Kentucky Center

6:00 p.m. Interview with Bill McKibben and Wendell Berry, Bomhard Theatre, set and design by Bittners' (Designing for the Way You Live)

Live taping with KET: The Kentucky Network

Master of Ceremonies: Courier-Journal Forum Editor, Keith Runyon

7:00 p.m. Q & A with audience, followed by book signing for McKibben on stage. Carmichael's Bookstore will have copies of McKibben’s book, Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future, available for sale at this event.

A $17 ticket includes the above three events. A limited number of discounted tickets of $5 each are available for U of L students, faculty and staff at the The Kentucky Center box office --U of L photo ID is required.

8:15 p.m. Dinner with Bill McKibben and Wendell Berry (location to be announced)

Tickets for all evening events, including dinner: $100.00 ($35.00 tax deductible)

Tickets for this event are now on sale at The Kentucky Center.  They may also be purchased by calling 502-584-7777 or 800-775-7777 or online at www.kentuckycenter.org.

Note to TV stations and print media: Access to a live Kentucky Author Forum TV feed during the evening interview is always available through KET by contacting Duncan Hart at 859-258-7296.

Those who cannot attend the Kentucky Author Forum evening interview will be able to enjoy a recorded version free]of]charge at these Louisville Free Public Library locations:

• Crescent Hill, 7 p.m., April 2
• St. Matthews/Eline Branch, 11 a.m., April 13

The University of Louisville Kentucky Author Forum is also distributed for optional airing by PBS affiliates nationwide, under the title: "Conversation with Bill McKibben."

The Kentucky Author Forum series is produced by Mary Moss Greenebaum, with Associate Producer Melissa Bernstrom, and is sponsored by the University of Louisville, Brown-Forman, and The Humana Foundation, in cooperation with Carmichael's Bookstore, The Courier-Journal, Bittners, KET, Office Furniture USA, The Kentucky Center, WFPL-89.3, and "The Spoken Word".

Questions should be directed to the Kentucky Author Forum office at 502-589-2884.

624 West Main, Second Floor
Louisville, Kentucky 40202
Phone 502.589.2884
Fax 502.589.4334
email KYFORUM@aol.com