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The University hosted debate-related lectures, salons, enrichment courses and other events that led up to the debate.
We also presented students with the Presidential Debate Passport Program, which allowed students to have their names thrown into the lottery for debate tickets each time they attended a debate passport-eligible event. See the archive below for those events that qualified (denoted by the golden ticket icon).
See videos, news and stories of the past events within this series.
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
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Thursday, Feb. 2
Bridges to the Future: Undercurrents of the 2012 Election
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Gates Concert Hall inside the Newman Center for the Performing ArtsThis was the second lecture in this 2011-2012 series by Anne-Marie Slaughter, former director of policy planning for the U.S. State Department and professor at Princeton University.
Monday, Feb. 6
Dismantling Paradigms: Libya One Year after the Arab Spring, by Professor Tamara Sonn
Time: Noon
Location: Cheou-Kang Center, Room 150, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.Tamara Sonn, a professor of religion and humanities at the College of William & Mary, visited DU to discuss Islam from a modern perspective. Sonn is the author of A Brief History of Islam.
Wednesday, Feb. 8
Professor Spencer Wellhofer presents "Transplanting Democracy: Hardy Perennial or Artificial Flower?"
Time: 7 p.m.
Political science professor Spencer Wellhofer spoke at this Humanities Institute Salon about past successes and failures of exporting democracy.
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Thursday, March 1
The Rivalry, a reenactment of the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Gates Concert Hall, inside the Newman Center for the Performing ArtsThe DU community and greater community at large enjoyed this L.A. Theatre Works presentation of The Rivalry, an on-stage depiction of the 1858 series of senatorial debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas.
The Rivalry offers a glimpse into an era without television, bloggers and other media presenting analysis of a political contest touching on such issues as slavery, freedom, equality and states' rights. The production uses original debate transcripts to bring to life a critical time in America's history.
Monday, March 5
Bodies Don't Just Tell Stories; They Tell Histories
Photo courtesy the University of Washington
Time: 11 a.m. - noon
Location: Craig Hall, 2148 S. High St., in the Boettcher Foundation Community RoomIn her presentation, Bodies Don't Just Tell Stories; They Tell Histories: Embodiment of Historical Trauma and Microaggression Distress, University of Washington professor Karina L. Walters examined emotional and psychological injury from a cataclysmic history of genocide and microaggression—interaction among those of different races, cultures or genders that can be interpreted as non-physical aggression.
Walters, founder and director of the University of Washington's Indigenous Wellness Research Institute, investigates historical, social and cultural determinants of physical and mental health among American Indians and Alaska natives.
Saturday, March 24
Temple Grandin speaks at the University of Denver's National Undergraduate Bioethics Conference
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Davis Auditorium, inside Sturm Hall, 2000 E. Asbury Ave.Temple Grandin—a professor and leader in animal sciences—spoke during the National Undergraduate Bioethics Conference at the University of Denver.
Grandin is perhaps best known for the 2010 Emmy-winning HBO movie Temple Grandin, which explores how she found success in the field of animal husbandry despite her struggles with autism as a youth.
She's the author of several books, including Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals and Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior.
March 29, and April 5, 12 and 19
Dying of Thirst: The Right to Water in a Globalized World
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Sié Cheou-Kang Center, Room 150, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.The Center on Rights Development's 13th Annual Symposium focused on international water rights.
The 2012 symposium featured four panels:
- March 29—Micro water management: Individual access to water and sanitation
- April 5—Water in the West: Scarcity and management issues in our own backyard
- April 12—Who owns water: The move toward privatization and corporate responsibility
- April 19—Rivers of conflict: Water as the source of inter- and intra-state conflict
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Monday, April 2
A Conversation with Dr. Condoleezza Rice and Ambassador Christopher Hill
Time: 5 - 7 p.m.
Location: The Cable Center, 2000 Buchtel Blvd.Dr. Condoleezza Rice, former U.S. Secretary of State under the George W. Bush administration, visited her alma mater for this special discussion with Ambassador Christopher Hill—dean of DU's Josef Korbel School for International Studies.
Wednesday, April 4
A Peace Corps Panel: How the Peace Corps Changed my Life
Photo courtesy Peace CorpsTime: 5 - 7 p.m.
Location: Cyber Cafe, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.The University celebrated the 51st anniversary of President Kennedy's establishment of the Peace Corps with this special panel event.
A Panel of returned Peace Corps volunteers shared stories about the countries in which they served, the work they performed, challenges they faced and lessons they learned. Other speakers included Christopher Hill, dean of DU's Josef Korbel School of International Studies and former U.S. ambassador to Iraq.
Thursday, April 5
TEDxDU Salon
Time: 5:30 - 8 p.m.
Location: Marcus Commons, inside the Daniels College of Business
Cost: FreeDU paired live speakers with a broadcast of TEDxChange from Berlin. This TED event focused on the big picture—why we as a society continue to invest in global health and development, and work across borders and political boundaries to make positive change.
April 5, 12 and 19
Dying of Thirst: The Right to Water in a Globalized World
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Sié Cheou-Kang Center, Room 150, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.DU's Center on Rights Development's held its 13th Annual Symposium on international water rights. April panels included:
- April 5—Water in the West: Scarcity and management issues in our own backyard
- April 12—Who owns water: The move toward privatization and corporate responsibility
- April 19—Rivers of conflict: Water as the source of inter- and intra-state conflict
Friday, April 6
U.S. Policy in Africa and its Intersection with China's Interests, featuring David Bruce Wharton
Photo courtesy U.S.
State DepartmentTime: 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Location: Sié Cheou-Kang Center, Room 150, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.DU's Center for China-U.S. Cooperation welcomed to campus David Bruce Wharton, deputy assistant secretary for African Affairs at the State Department.
Wharton—who spoke about the connection between U.S. policy in Africa and China's interests—has worked at several posts at the State Department, and served at U.S. embassies in Argentina, Bolivia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Tuesday, April 10
Lessons from Sub-Saharan Africa
Photo courtesy
Columbia UniversityTime: 11 a.m. - noon
Location: Boettcher Foundation Community Room, inside Craig Hall, 2148 S. High St.Columbia University School of Social Work and International Affairs Professor Fred M. Ssewamala brought his extensive research on sub-Saharan Africa's economic and development challenges to this lecture, "Impact of Economic Empowerment Programs on Health & Educational Outcomes of Orphaned and Vulnerable Children: Lessons from Sub-Saharan Africa."
Tuesday, April 10
Cultural Encounters in the Modern World—An African Perspective
Photo courtesy Kwara
State UniversityTime: 4:30 p.m. wine reception, followed by the lecture at 5 p.m.
Location: Room 251 of Sturm Hall, 2000 E. Asbury Ave.Kwara State University Professor Abiola Irele presented his talk, "Cultural Encounters in the Modern World: An African Perspective" at this public event. Irele, provost of Kwara State University's College of Humanities and Social Sciences, discussed how human interaction and cultural convergences define the history and experience of Africans.
Tuesday, April 10
Dean Baker presents "The End of Loser Liberalism: Making Markets Progressive"
Time: 7 - 8:45 p.m.
Location: The dining room in the Joy Burns Center, 2044 E. Evans Ave.Dean Baker, founder and co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C., presented this lecture based on his 2011 book, The End of Loser Liberalism: Making Markets Progressive.
Wednesday, April 11
Sharon Welch on professional responsibility in a democratic society
Time: Noon
Location: Sié Cheou-Kang Center, Room 150, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.Sharon Welch led an audience in exploring the nature of professional responsibility in a democratic society. Welch, provost and professor of religion and society at the University of Chicago's Meadville Lombard Theological School, spoke about what happens when professionals become responsive to continually emerging and evolving political critiques and aspirations of social movements.
Friday, April 13
Madeleine Albright presents a Conversation on U.S. Diplomacy
Photo courtesy Albright
Stonebridge GroupTime: 2:30 p.m.
Location: The Cable Center, 2000 Buchtel Blvd.Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright returned to the University of Denver campus for this discussion with Ambassador and DU Dean Christopher Hill on U.S. diplomacy. Daughter of Josef Korbel—onetime dean and namesake of DU's Josef Korbel School of International Studies—Albright was the first woman to be named U.S. Secretary of State.
Monday, April 16
Politics, Religion and the 2012 Election: An Oxymoron?
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Room 286 of Sturm Hall, 2000 E. Asbury Ave.Investigative journalist Chip Berlet visited DU for this discussion of hot topics in the upcoming 2012 election.
An award-winning journalist and photographer, Berlet has written for such publications as The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Chicago Sun-Times and Columbia Journalism Review. He's also the co-author of Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort.
Tuesday, April 17
An Updated Strategic Rationale for U.S.-China Relations
Time: Noon - 1:30 p.m.
Location: Sié Cheou-Kang Center, Room 150, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.The DU community learned about U.S.-China relations from the perspective of Dr. Daniel B. Wright, former U.S. Treasury Department managing director for China and the U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED).
Wright's talk focused on the strategic rationale for the countries' relationship, from Washington to Iowa to Beijing to Chengdu.
Tuesday, April 17
"Stories I Steer By," a Lecture by Julia Alvarez, Author, Activist & Middlebury Professor
Photo courtesy Bill
EichnerTime: Reception begins at 6 p.m., followed by the speech at 6:30 p.m.
Location: Davis Auditorium inside Sturm Hall, 2000 E. Asbury Ave.Julia Alvarez, author of such books as In the Time of Butterflies, kicked off this inaugural speaker series through DU's Divisions of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.
Thursday, April 19
Is Consensus Possible?: A Conversation on Health Care Policy
Time: 6:30 - 8 p.m.
Panelists for this discussion on U.S. health care and the ongoing debate around the most effective means of providing it included:
Location: The Garden Room in the Chambers Center for the Advancement of Women, aka the Women's College, 1901 E. Asbury Ave.- Jandel Allen-Davis, MD, vice president of Kaiser Permanente
- Debbie Welle-Powell, Exempla Healthcare
- Anne Warhover, president and CEO, Colorado Health Foundation
- Joan Henneberry, principal, Health Management Associates
Friday, April 20
Women's Voices: The Textures of Our Lives
Time: 8 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Location: Chambers Center for the Advancement of Women, aka the Women's College, 1901 E. Asbury Ave., and the Cable Center, 2000 Buchtel Blvd.We held our 17th Annual DU Women's Conference, "Women's Voices: The Textures of Our Lives," which featured DU alumna and keynote speaker Dafna Michaelson sharing stories of civic engagement and agricultural entrepreneurship she encountered after visiting all 50 states in 2009.
Friday, April 20
DU Earth Day Summit
Time: 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m.; post-summit meet and greet from 1 - 2:30 p.m.
Location: Joy Burns Center, 2044 E. Evans Ave.In this annual celebration of Mother Earth and DU's continuing efforts toward greater sustainable practices, we welcomed to campus such speakers as DU energy engineer Tom McGee, Professor Michael Kerwin and Mike Harris, the DU Sustainability Council's social sustainability co-chair.
Other guests included renowned Colorado landscape photographer John Fielder and Auden Schendler, vice president of sustainability at Aspen Skiing Company.
Friday, April 20
PeaceJam 2012 featuring Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Shirin Ebadi
Photo courtesy PeaceJamTime: 7 p.m.
Location: Machebeuf Hall at Colorado Heights University, 3001 S. Federal Blvd., DenverDuring this annual event, Dr. Shirin Ebadi—2003 Nobel Peace Prize winner for her work toward increased peace, democracy and human rights in Iran and the Middle East—discussed how removing religious and cultural barriers can aid in creating peace and social justice.
Friday, April 20 & Saturday, April 21
American Society of Microbiology Rocky Mountain Branch Spring 2012 Meeting
Time: 7 - 9 p.m. Friday; 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday
Location: Olin Hall, 2190 E. Iliff Ave., Denver.DU's Dr. Todd Blankenship (Friday) and Dr. Yousif Shamoo of Rice University (Saturday) spoke at this two-day event.
Blankenship discussed cell dynamics that drive organismal shape while Shamoo looked at using experimental evolution to complete the link among genomics, biochemistry and prediction in antibiotic resistance.
Sunday, April 22
What is Wrong with Congress & How Do We Fix It?
Photos courtesy Vail SymposiumTime: 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Location: Boettcher Foundation Community Room, inside Craig Hall, 2148 S. High St.DU hosted this special evening with U.S. Senators Chris Dodd and Hank Brown. They discussed the future of the U.S. Congress by looking at its function and dysfunction.
Tuesday, April 24
The Holy Vote, by Ray Suarez of PBS' NewsHour
Photo courtesy PBSTime: 7 p.m.
Location: Gates Concert Hall, in the Newman Center for the Performing Arts, 2344 E. Iliff Ave.Ray Suarez, senior correspondent for PBS' NewsHour, discussed key themes from his 2006 book, The Holy Vote: The Politics of Faith in America.
Suarez's book and presentation explored the role of organized religion in American politics and how faith in government may transform our country in the future.
Wednesday, April 25
Diplomatic Lessons Learned: From Honduras to Rwanda by way of North Korea
Time: Noon
Location: Cyber Cafe, inside Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.Former U.S. Ambassador to Rwanda W. Stuart Symington discussed his diplomatic experiences in this lecture.
Symington's career has included service as ambassador to Dijbouti (2006-2008) and Rwanda (2008-2011), and helping U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte in Iraq's election process (2004-2005).
Thursday, April 26
CounterPoints: The New Energy Economy
Time: 4 - 5:30 p.m., post-event reception from 5:30 - 6 p.m.
Location: Newman Center for the Performing Arts, 2344 E. Iliff Ave.This panel debate focused on the connection between renewable and traditional energy sources, and their impact on the economy. Panelists included former Colorado Gov. Richard Lamm; Lee Boughey, co-chair of the Colorado Energy Coalition; K.K. DuVivier, professor at DU's Sturm College of Law; Alice Madden, Wirth Chair in Sustainable Development at CU Boulder; and Christopher Votoupal, deputy director of Colorado Cleantech Industry Association.
Saturday, April 28
The United Nations: Myth and Reality
Time: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Location: Ben M. Cherrington Hall, 2201 S. Gaylord St.Timothy E. Wirth—former Colorado senator and president of the United Nations Foundation and the Better World Fund—led this day of discussions and workshops about the myths and realities surrounding the United Nations.
Local nonprofits and UN experts held workshops and discussed the misperceptions cast around the United Nations.
Monday, April 30
Making Sense of the World of Corporate Mergers