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    About the Center

    The Center of the American West serves as a forum committed to the civil, respectful, and problem-solving exploration of important and often contentious public issues. In an era of political polarization and contention, the Center strives to bring out “the better angels of our nature” by appealing to our common loyalties and hopes as Westerners.

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Race and the Railroad: A Conversation with Julia Lee and Paisley Rekdal

 Event Date: November 9, 2022

 

This event was held in the CBIS Room, 5th floor Norlin Library, between former Utah Poet Laureate, Paisley Rekdal, who talked about her digital humanities project West: A Translation alongside Dr. Julia Lee, Professor of Asian American Studies at UC Irvine who has just published her book The Racial Railroad.


Finding Joy in Mixed Company

 Event Date: April 26, 2022

 

How Spending Time with Thompson Prize Winner Jenny Shank and Getting Acquainted with Her New Book Could Offer a Remedy for Our Nation's Current Calamities in Communication

Patty Limerick reunites with past Thompson Prize winner and local, Boulder author of Mixed Company, Jenny Shank, for a lively discussion about how Shank’s writing career harmonizes with the mission of the Center of the American West.


Hopeless Optimism

 Event Date: April 1, 2022

 

The Surprising Force of Unconventional Communication in Reckoning with Climate Change

Right before your eyes, four women will “push the envelope” of the assumptions that have constrained efforts to persuade the public to pay attention to climate change and closely related environmental issues.


Historians Imagine: Celebrating Creativity in the Craft

 Event Date: June 9, 2021

 

with Natalia Molina, USC

Natalia Molina is a historian who examines the interconnectedness of racial and ethnic communities through her concept of “racial scripts.” Author of How Race Is Made in America: Immigration, Citizenship, and the Historical Power of Racial Scripts and Fit to Be Citizens?: Public Health and Race in Los Angeles, 1879-1940.


Bipartisanship (and Friendship) Happen!

 Event Date: May 21, 2021

 

Former Congressmen Scott McInnis and David Skaggs

On May 21st, they joined us virtually for an afternoon of discussion about their friendship as they engaged in a wide-ranging conversation about issues on which they agreed, disagreed, and half-agreed. The Center of the American West’s Faculty Director and Chair of the Board, Patty Limerick moderated the conversation.


Historians Imagine: Celebrating Creativity in the Craft

 Event Date: May 12, 2021

 

with Phil Deloria, Harvard

Phil Deloria is a social, cultural and political historian of the relations among American Indian peoples and the United States. Author of Playing Indian, and Indians in Unexpected Places.


Bipartisanship (and Friendship) Happen!

 Event Date: May 10, 2021

 

Diana DeGette and Fred Upton

Both joined us virtually on May 10th, 2021 for an afternoon of discussion about their friendship. They engaged in a wide-ranging conversation about issues on which they agree, disagree, and half-agree. The Center of the American West’s Faculty Director and Chair of the Board, Patty Limerick moderated the conversation.


Bipartisanship (and Friendship) Happen!

 Event Date: April 15, 2021

 

University of Colorado President, Mark Kennedy & University of Massachusetts President, Marty Meehan

University of Colorado President Mark Kennedy and University of Massachusetts President Marty Meehan who served in the U.S. House of Representatives together, joined us for a public conversation on April 15th... 


Historians Imagine: Celebrating Creativity in the Craft

 Event Date: April 14, 2021

 

with Jenny Price, Washington University

Jenny Price is a public writer, artist, historian, and author of Stop Saving the Planet!: An Environmentalist Manifesto. Co-creator of the Our Malibu Beaches mobile-phone app.


What It Means to Disagree:
Part II

 Event Date: March 12, 2021

 

More Conversation and (Maybe) More Disagreement with Patty Limerick and Jennifer Ho

On March 12, 2021, they reunited on the Zoom screen to continue their conversation and, especially, to assess the shredded  state of empathy, common ground, and shared hope in the wake of the January 6 violent takeover of  the United States Capitol...


Historians Imagine: Celebrating Creativity in the Craft

 Event Date: March 10, 2021

 

with B. Erin Cole, Minnesota Historical Society

B. Erin Cole is a historian, museum professional and cartoonist. Currently turning some of her research on zoning, race and sexuality into a longform comic for public audiences. Author of the comics, I Am A HistorianI Make Exhibits and Am I Still a Historian?


Memories of Service/Visions for the Future

 Event Date: March 05, 2021

 

CU's Student Veterans as Key Figures in Sustaining the Mission of Higher Education

On March 5, as part of the Memories of Service/Visions for the Future: CU’s Student Veterans as Key Figures in Sustaining the Mission of Higher Education series Limerick interviewed CU student veterans Zach Guiliano & Bob Draughon


Memories of Service/Visions for the Future

 Event Date: February 26, 2021

 

CU's Student Veterans as Key Figures in Sustaining the Mission of Higher Education

On February 26, the Center launched a new series, Memories of Service/Visions for the Future: CU’s Student Veterans as Key Figures in Sustaining the Mission of Higher Education in which Limerick interviewed CU student veterans Nisa Jovel & Reed Robins


Historians Imagine: Celebrating Creativity in the Craft

 Event Date: February 10, 2021

 

with Ari Kelman, UC Davis

Ari Kelman is a historian of the Civil War and Reconstruction, the politics of memory, and Native American history. Author of Battle Lines: A Graphic History of the Civil War andA Misplaced Massacre: Struggling Over the Memory of Sand Creek.


What It Means to Disagree, Admit a Degree of Uncertainty, and Maintain a Robust Friendship: A Dialogue

 Event Date: November 20, 2020

 

Patty Limerick, director of the Center of the American West, and Jennifer Ho, director of the Center for Humanities & the Arts, talked about what it means to disagree. The partisan politics and extreme divisiveness of our current society have made many of us wary about entering into provocative subjects.


The Party of Practicality: An Innovative and Pragmatic Conversation on Immigration, Part II

 Event Date: November 13, 2020

 

A post-election follow up conversation with Penn State University Professor, Mary Mendoza, and Stanford University Sociology Professor, Tomás Jiménez.

The Center of the American West teamed up with the CU Latinx Law Students to orchestrate a virtual event, that brought two noted scholars of immigration into a consequential conversation. 


Lunch with Limerick – The Post Office’s Central Role in American Life: An Advocate for 21st Century Voting by Mail and a Historian of the 19th Century U.S. Post Get Acquainted

 Event Date: October 2, 2020

 

Featuring Former Oregon Secretary of State, Phil Keisling, and Author, Cameron Blevins

Without the Center of the American West, Keisling and Blevins would never have met. In a prime demonstration of the Center’s status as a place of improbable—but actually very logical!—convening, Keisling, the practitioner and Blevins the scholar got together with Patty Limerick, to unite their understandings of the many meanings of the U.S. Post Office.


Lunch with Limerick – Getting Sick and Getting Well: How Americans Have Understood Disease and Health

 Event Date: October 1, 2020

 

Featuring Boston College Historian, Conevery Valencius

Her conversation with Patty Limerick did not deliver a comprehensive diagnosis of the nation’s condition, but proposed new interpretations and raised insightful questions addressing ideas about health and disease that many Americans now take for granted. And matching up to local issues, Professor Valencius is currently working on a book about the science of induced seismology (a.k.a. earthquakes!) and hydraulic fracturing.


Lunch with Limerick – “Bipartisanship Happens”: How Western Governors Set an Example for the Nation’s Leaders

 Event Date: September 25, 2020

 

Featuring Executive Director of the Western Governors’ Association, Jim Ogsbury

On September 25, when Patty Limerick interviewed Jim Ogsbury, the Executive Director of the Western Governors Association (WGA), the Center offered one such remedy. In a time of intense polarization and divisiveness, the Western Governors Association has charted a distinctive course in confronting serious problems and steering clear of the traps set by antagonism, grandstanding, and acrimony.


Lunch with Limerick – Rescuing a Nation: Advice from a “Turnaround Artist”

 Event Date: September 18, 2020

 

Featuring Accomplished “turnaround artist”, Gus Halas

In a conversation with Center Faculty Director Patty Limerick, business turnaround artist Gus Halas offered stories and insights drawn from the years he has spent observing the capacity of human beings to stop short of the brink of calamity. He lead us on a searching exploration of our nation’s dilemmas and an appraisal of the craft of leadership required to address those dilemmas.


Water and Energy in Colorado: Emulsifying Two Great Challenges in Four Parts

 Event Date: August 20, 2020

 

Part IV: Future Pathways

The Colorado Scientific Society, in collaboration with the Center of the American West, presents Water & Energy in Colorado. This four-day virtual symposium, hosted by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, will focus on the science and cultural issues at the interface between water and energy in Colorado.


Water and Energy in Colorado: Emulsifying Two Great Challenges in Four Parts

 Event Date: August 18, 2020

 

Part III: Technology Addressing Current Challenges

The Colorado Scientific Society, in collaboration with the Center of the American West, presents Water & Energy in Colorado. This four-day virtual symposium, hosted by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, will focus on the science and cultural issues at the interface between water and energy in Colorado.


Water and Energy in Colorado: Emulsifying Two Great Challenges in Four Parts

 Event Date: August 13, 2020

 

Part II: User Community Perspectives

The Colorado Scientific Society, in collaboration with the Center of the American West, presents Water & Energy in Colorado. This four-day virtual symposium, hosted by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, will focus on the science and cultural issues at the interface between water and energy in Colorado.


Water and Energy in Colorado: Emulsifying Two Great Challenges in Four Parts

 Event Date: August 11, 2020

 

Part I: Resource Providers

The Colorado Scientific Society, in collaboration with the Center of the American West, presents Water & Energy in Colorado. This four-day virtual symposium, hosted by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, will focus on the science and cultural issues at the interface between water and energy in Colorado.


Why are we stuck on dealing with climate change and how do we get ‘unstuck’?

 Event Date: February 6, 2020

 

Moderated by the Faculty Director of the Center of the American West, Patty Limerick, this panel will feature speakers with backgrounds in politics, energy, advocacy, and psychology. 

 UndocuAmerica Series with the Center of the American West
Shoebox Stories Live: UndocuAmerica Series

 Event Date: January 15, 2020

 

Shoebox Stories is a story-holding project where you stand in another person’s shoes by reading aloud their story, saying their words, and holding, for a moment, the weight that they carry.


Bipartisanship (and Friendship) Happen!

 Event Date: December 10, 2019

 

An evening with Congressman Bob Beauprez and Senator Mark Udall

A public conversation between former Republican Congressman Bob Beauprez and former Democratic Congressman and Senator Mark Udall.


Rescuing the West and the Nation: How Thinking Like a Historian Can Save Us From Ourselves

 Event Date: December 10, 2019

 

with Char Miller

This event is part of a Mellon funded program in Applied History entitled “Weekends with the Accomplished.” In addition to the lectures, the Applied History program provides a number of other opportunities for graduate students and recent Ph.D.s to hone their outreach skills.


Immigrant Workers, Roads, and Nation Building: Legacies of the Transcontinental Railroad on its 150th Anniversary

 Event Date: October 30, 2019

 

Art and the Transcontinental Railroad

In Center of the American West fashion, this program will also draw on “CU Boulder talent” reflecting on the larger lessons for the building of infrastructure (in China as well as in the U.S.) as well as the power of art to invoke deeper thinking about history.


Immigrant Workers, Roads, and Nation Building: Legacies of the Transcontinental Railroad on its 150th Anniversary

 Event Date: October 30, 2019

 

Empire, Infrastructure, and Labor

In Center of the American West fashion, this program will also draw on “CU Boulder talent” reflecting on the larger lessons for the building of infrastructure (in China as well as in the U.S.) as well as the power of art to invoke deeper thinking about history.


Redemption and Reconciliation: The West in Words and Images

 Event Date: October 15, 2019

 

A public conversation with the accomplished Western landscape photographer Peter Goin, exploring his bravery and enterprise in taking on topics ranging from the West’s nuclear landscapes to the legacy of abandoned mines. 


Special Stegner Award & Humor Initiative event with Sheriff Dave Ward

 Event Date: October 3, 2019

 

The Center of the American West is proud to present a special Stegner Award & Humor Initiative event honoring Sheriff Dave Ward.


A Commemoration honoring the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Publication of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto

 Event Date: September 13, 2019

 

Session IV - Leader, Influencer, and Mobilizer

Join us for a tribute to Vine Deloria, Jr.’s enormously influential book, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto, and a recognition of the proud heritage of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s long association (as a recipient of a law degree and as a professor of history) with the University of Colorado.


A Commemoration honoring the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Publication of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto

 Event Date: September 13, 2019

 

Session III - Lawyer, Litigator, Discoverer of Documents and Precedents with Promise

Join us for a tribute to Vine Deloria, Jr.’s enormously influential book, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto, and a recognition of the proud heritage of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s long association (as a recipient of a law degree and as a professor of history) with the University of Colorado.


A Commemoration honoring the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Publication of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto

 Event Date: September 13, 2019

 

Session II - Writer, Reader, Thinker

Join us for a tribute to Vine Deloria, Jr.’s enormously influential book, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto, and a recognition of the proud heritage of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s long association (as a recipient of a law degree and as a professor of history) with the University of Colorado.


A Commemoration honoring the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Publication of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto

 Event Date: September 13, 2019

 

Session I - Initiator, Instigator, Warrior

Join us for a tribute to Vine Deloria, Jr.’s enormously influential book, Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto, and a recognition of the proud heritage of Vine Deloria, Jr.’s long association (as a recipient of a law degree and as a professor of history) with the University of Colorado.


Second Annual Lucile Berkeley Buchanan Lecture Featuring Professor Quintard Taylor

 Event Date: April 18, 2019

 

From the Pages of BlackPast.org: Six African American Women You have Never Heard of Who Changed the West (and the World)

In this lecture, Professor Taylor will examine six little-known black women whose experiences help challenge and redefine the basic narrative of the black historical experience.


H.W. Brands – The West & The Growing Pains of Democracy

 Event Date: February 21, 2019

 

The Center of the American West and National History Day in Colorado are proud to present noted historian and author, H. W. Brands for his talk: The West & The Growing Pains of Democracy.

Josh Kun
Josh Kun

 Event Date: January 24, 2019

 

The Art of the Crossfade: Music, Archives, and California

The American Music Research Center and the Center of the American West are proud to present a public talk with Professor Josh Kun. Josh uses the DJ method of crossfading to explore and animate historic sheet music, vinyl LPs, and restaurant menus as tools in addressing contemporary issues of gentrification, urban redevelopment, and racial inequality, among others.


Voices from Bears Ears

 Event Date: November 8, 2018

 

Seeking Common Ground on Sacred Land

On December 4, 2017, President Donald Trump shrank the monument by 85 percent. A land rich in human history and unsurpassed in natural beauty, Bears Ears is at the heart of a national debate over the future of public lands.

Ken Burns
An Evening with Ken Burns

 Event Date: October 2, 2018

 

An Evening with the Nation’s Most Influential Documentary-Maker, Ken Burns

Every year, the Center of the American West presents the Wallace Stegner Award to an individual who has made a sustained contribution to the cultural identity of the West through literature, art, history, lore, or an understanding of the West. This year’s recipient is Ken Burns.


NEH Chairman Jon Peede

 Event Date: September 18, 2018

 

An Evening of Conversation with the Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Jon Parrish Peede

Chairman Peede will join the Center of the American West’s Faculty Director Patty Limerick, who was confirmed by the Senate as a member of the National Council for the Humanities in November of 2015, for a wide-ranging discussion of tradition and change in the work of the National Endowment for the Humanities...


The New Normal: Conflict, Polarization, and Incivility

 Event Date: May 2, 2018

 

In conversation with Center of the American West Faculty Director Patty Limerick, Mr. Sondermann will share his distinctive understanding of our political moment, providing keen insight, as well as opportunities for optimism.


Remembering Lucile

 Event Date: April 4, 2018

 

A Virginia Family’s Rise from Slavery and a Legacy Forged a Mile High

In 1918 Lucile Berkeley Buchanan Jones received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado, becoming its first African American graduate (though she was not allowed to “walk” at graduation, nor is she pictured in the 1918 CU yearbook).


Alan, Ann, Pete, & Lynne Simpson

 Event Date: December 17, 2017

 

Wallace Stegner & Fools for a Day Awards Recipients

The University of Colorado Boulder’s Center of the American West is proud to present the Wallace Stegner & the Humor Initiative’s Fools for a Day Awards to Senator Alan Simpson, Pete Simpson and their wives Ann and Lynne.

Belle Turnbull Webad
Belle Turnbull and the Legacy of Colorado Poetry: A Symposium

 Event Date: November 8, 2017

 

 

Belle Turnbull (1881-1970) was the first strong poet to live in and write about the mountains and high mining towns of the Colorado Rockies.


The Social Implications of Technological Change

 Event Date: October 18, 2017

 

In this program, Edmund Russell, a Professor of History at Boston University now working on a project evaluating the development and impact of the telegraph, will present his work on the topic.


Puzzled and Perplexed by Populism? An Evening of Expert Guidance and Conversation

 Event Date: September 21, 2017

 

The Center of the American West presented the influential and accomplished American historian, Michael Kazin, a professor of history at Georgetown University, and the author of The Populist Persuasion: An American History (originally published in 1995), an exploration of the changing meanings and practices of populism through the course of American history.


Comradeship, Moral Injury, and the Legacy of the Vietnam War: The Need for the Humanities to Close the Gap between the Veterans and their Nation

 Event Date: Setember 7, 2017

 

When Americans, whatever their age or record of military service, can convene to speak honestly to each other about the experiences of veterans of the Vietnam War, the benefits of that conversation ripple in dimensions beyond estimation. Adams will also reflect on his recent return visit to Vietnam as a parable of memory and return.

Enduring Vietnam Webad
Book release: Enduring Vietnam: An American Generation and Its War by James Wright

 Event Date: April 18, 2017

 

A Vietnam War Commemoration event

Joined by colleagues from co-sponsoring campus units, Stewart Elliott, Director of the CU Office of Veteran Services, and Patty Limerick, Faculty Director of the Center of the American West, are proud to present James Wright’s talk in a series allied with the Vietnam War Fiftieth Anniversary Commemoration.


Fools for a Day Award: Ian and Cora Frazier

 Event Date: April 4, 2017

 

Father and Daughter duo Ian Frazier and Cora Frazier, both humorists who write for The New Yorker magazine as well as a host of other prominent publications, will join Patty Limerick for a discussion—and many demonstrations!


Fools for a Day: Shane Mauss, Adam Bradley, and Peter McGraw

 Event Date: March 8, 2017

 

Join comic Shane Mauss (From Conan, Jimmy Kimmel, Showtime, Comedy Central, Netflix and host of the science podcast “Here We Are”) and CU professors Adam Bradley (author of The Poetry of Pop and director of the Laboratory for Race & Popular Culture, the RAP Lab) and Peter McGraw (co-author of The Humor Code and director of the Humor Research Lab, HuRL) for an evening of learning and laughter.


Modern Indian Identity: Featuring Burns Paiute Former Chairwoman Charlotte Roderique

 Event Date: February 21, 2017

 

“Charlotte Roderique is a forthright and inspirational leader, and also one of the American West’s most gifted practitioners in the art of using wit and humor to put fresh and disarming ideas into play,” Patty Limerick, Faculty Director of the Center of the American West, observed. “Anyone who joins us on February 21st will remember her visit for years to come.”


Book Release – The Morenci Marines: A Tale of Small Town America and the Vietnam War

 Event Date: October 4, 2016

 

In 1966, nine young men left the Arizona desert mining camp of Morenci to serve their country in the far-flung jungles of Vietnam. Ultimately, only three survived. Each battled survivor’s guilt, difficult re-entries into civilian life, and traumas from personally experiencing war—and losing close friends along the way. 


Timothy Egan

 Event Date: April 13, 2016

 

2016 Wallace Stegner Recipient

Timothy Egan has demonstrated singular achievement, creativity, and dedication to the perception of the West and Western issues. Mr. Egan writes op-ed pieces with a Western perspective for The New York Times once a week.


We Gotta Get out of this Place: The Soundtrack of the Vietnam War

 Event Date: March 28, 2016

 

In We Gotta Get Out of This Place, Doug Bradley and Craig Werner place popular music at the heart of the American experience in Vietnam. They explore how and why U.S. troops turned to music as a way of connecting to each other and the world back home and of coping with the complexities of the war they had been sent to fight.


Book Release: Fracture

 Event Date: February 18, 2016

 

Essays, Poems, and Stories about Fracking in America

The Fracture book release event featured Pam Houston, Patty Limerick, and the book’s editor Taylor Brorby who read selections from the book and engaged in conversation about these complicated and important issues.


Modern Indian Identity

 Event Date: October 26, 2015

 

Featuring Diné Photographer Will Wilson

Join us for what will be a truly unique Modern Indian Identity evening. The Modern Indian Identity series features contemporary Indian speakers telling their stories in ways that confirm the compatibility of tradition with innovation.


Fool for a Day: Bob Mankoff

 Event Date: October 14, 2015

 

The History of Humor and the Humor of History

We are thrilled to announce the first Center of the American West Fool for a Day Award. This award was created to celebrate those individuals whose temperaments support the central conviction of the Center of the American West: a dose of good humor is essential to constructive public discussion, and not coincidentally, to public health.


The Return of FrackingSENSE with Dr. Matthew Cotton

 Event Date: April 28, 2015

 

The Politics of Shale Gas in the United Kingdom

The Return of FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. With the help of community members like you, the Center of the American West’s FrackingSENSE series returns. These Spring 2015 events bring speakers who offer a unique range of perspectives on Hydraulic Fracturing and Natural Gas and Oil development.


Rocky Mountain Rescue

 Event Date: April 20, 2015

 

2015 Wallace Stegner Recipient

For the first time ever, the Center of the American West is presenting the Stegner Award to an organization, Rocky Mountain Rescue. This all volunteer organization embodies the spirit of the American West, serving not only as the primary mountain search and rescue agency for Boulder County but also assisting other mountain rescue teams from across Colorado and throughout the West.


The Return of FrackingSENSE with Dr. Anthony Ingraffea

 Event Date: April 8, 2015

 

Cornell University Professor and Influential 'Talking Head' in Josh Fox's "Gasland," in Conversation with Professor

The Return of FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. With the help of community members like you, the Center of the American West’s FrackingSENSE series returns. These Spring 2015 events bring speakers who offer a unique range of perspectives on Hydraulic Fracturing and Natural Gas and Oil development.


Film Screening: Losing the West

 Event Date: April 7, 2015

 

The Center of the American West is proud to host a screening of Losing the West a documentary about small ranching and farming, exemplified by the story of a lifelong Colorado cowboy. Howard Linscott IS the original Marlboro Man, a gruff, chain-smoking 70-year-old who has been ranching all his life.


Fool’s Enterprise: A Personal History

 Event Date: April 1, 2015

 

The Center of the American West’s Humor Initiative was created to celebrate those individuals whose temperaments support the central conviction of the Center of the American West: a dose of good humor is essential to constructive public discussion, and not coincidentally, to public health. Its centerpiece is the Distinguished Visiting Fool for a Day Award that will be presented once a year on the CU Boulder campus.


The Return of FrackingSENSE with Dr. Jeffrey Jacquet

 Event Date: March 11, 2015

 

Community Impacts from Hydraulic Fracturing

The Return of FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. With the help of community members like you, the Center of the American West’s FrackingSENSE series returns. These Spring 2015 events bring speakers who offer a unique range of perspectives on Hydraulic Fracturing and Natural Gas and Oil development.


A special Modern Indian Identity Event: A film screening of Winter in the Blood

 Event Date: February 18, 2015

 

 

The Center of the American West’s Modern Indian Identity series is thrilled to present Montana filmmakers Andrew Smith and Alex Smith and their movie, Winter in the Blood for a free screening and conversation.


FrackingSENSE: TIMNATH

 Event Date: Ocotber 20, 2014

 

What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Risk, Regulation, and Citizen Concerns

FrackingSENSE:TIMNATH What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Risk, Regulation, and Citizen Concerns.


Robert G. Stanton

 Event Date: Ocotber 9, 2014

 

Former Director of the National Park Service

The Center of the American West is proud to present former National Park Service Director Robert Stanton giving the 2014 Randy Jones Lecture, October 9, in celebration of the centennial of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Gary Graham, Matthew Sura, Patty Limerick, Mike Paules, and David Baumgarten
FrackingSENSE: GREELEY

 Event Date: May 12, 2014

 

The Regulatory Environment for Oil & Gas

FrackingSENSE: GREELEY What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development.

Gary Kaufman
FrackingSENSE: GREELEY

 Event Date: April 28, 2014

 

Risk Assessment & Modern Life, with Air Quality Emphasis

FrackingSENSE: GREELEY What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Josh Joswick

 Event Date: April 15, 2014

 

The Theology of Fracking: God Only Knows

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0. 

Patty Limerick, Joe Ryan, Debra Higley, and Will Fleckinstein
​FrackingSENSE: GREELEY

 Event Date: April 14, 2014

 

Drilling Practices & an Overview of the Issues

FrackingSENSE: GREELEY What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Norman Warpinski

 Event Date: April 1, 2014

 

Hydraulic Fracturing: Where Does the Research Lead Us?

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Rebecca Watson

 Event Date: March 18, 2014

 

Is the oil and gas industry exempt from major environmental laws and what about that “fracking” loophole?

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Pete Morton

 Event Date: March 11, 2014

 

Redefining Responsible Oil and Gas Development

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Tim Wirth and Jim Martin

 Event Date: March 10, 2014

 

Thinking About Fracking and Other Mysteries

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Roger Fragua

 Event Date: February 25, 2014

 

Natural Gas Development and Indian Country

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Barbara Green

 Event Date: February 11, 2014

 

Oil and Gas Permitting: Who's in Charge? Does it Matter?

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Howard Boigon

 Event Date: December 10, 2013

 

Tradition and Innovation in the Oil and Gas Industry: Reflections and Observations

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Robert Martin

 Event Date: December 3, 2013

 

Hydraulic Fracturing On Tribal Lands: A Weight Of The Evidence Approach

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


Words to Stir the Soul:

 Event Date: November 12, 2013

 

A Tribute to the Work of Ed Quillen

The Center of the American West presents, Words to Stir the Soul: Deeper into the Heart of the Rockies. A book release event honoring the late Denver Post Contributor and Preeminent Western Public Intellectual, Ed Quillen.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Congresswoman Diana DeGette

 Event Date: November 5, 2013

 

Federal Laws, Legislation in Congress and Oil and Gas Development in Colorado

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Will Fleckenstein

 Event Date: October 29, 2013

 

Frac’ing (Fracking) – What is it?

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.

Christo
Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Over The River & The Mastaba

 Event Date: October 17, 2013

 

Christo, an internationally renowned artist, will present a lecture on two works in progress: Over The River, proposed temporary work of art that will suspend 5.9 miles of silvery, luminous fabric panels high above the Arkansas River in south-central Colorado.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with George King

 Event Date: October 15, 2013

 

Hydraulic Fracturing and Well Developments: What are the Factual Risks?

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE 2.0 with Matt Sura

 Event Date: October 8, 2013

 

Planning for 1,600 Oil Wells in Greeley

FrackingSENSE 2.0: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Oil & Gas Development. The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the AirWaterGas Sustainability Network and Boulder County are proud to introduce the Spring edition of FrackingSENSE 2.0.


FrackingSENSE with Bernie Goldstein

 Event Date: May 21, 2013

 

Does Living Near Hydrofracturing Activity Put Our Health at Risk?

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


FrackingSENSE with Dan Grossman

 Event Date: May 14, 2013

 

EDF – An Environmental Perspective

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


FrackingSENSE with Gov. John Hickenlooper

 Event Date: May 2, 2013

 

Natural Gas Development in Colorado

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


FrackingSENSE with Nick Flores

 Event Date: April 30, 2013

 

Economic Issues of Shale Oil and Gas Development

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


Elliott West

 Event Date: April 25, 2013

 

2013 Wallace Stegner Recipient

The Center of the American West is proud to announce the 2013 Wallace Stegner Award Winner: Western American Historian and Author, Elliott West.


FrackingSENSE with Jana Milford and Gabrielle Pétron

 Event Date: April 23, 2013

 

Atmospheric Perspectives on Oil and Gas Operations

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


Powell to Powell

 Event Date: April 17, 2013

 

Portraits of the Upper Colorado

In June 2012, four adventurers started at the headwaters of the Colorado River in Rocky Mountain National Park and headed downstream for the next 800 miles. This is their story. Join us for a film presentation and a Q&A with Expedition Manager, Zak Podmore.


FrackingSENSE with Joe Ryan

 Event Date: April 16, 2013

 

What Do We Know and Not Know about the Risk of Oil and Natural Gas Development to Our Water Supplies

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


FrackingSENSE with Kirby Wynn

 Event Date: April 2, 2013

 

Garfield County’s Lessons Learned about Oil and Gas Development: Building Relationships with...

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series.


TINY: A Story About Living Small

 Event Date: March 21, 2013

 
 

The makers of the film TINY: a story about living small, Merete Mueller and Christopher Smith, discuss the small house movement, good design, the nature of home, and the changing American Dream. 


FrackingSENSE with Charles Davis

 Event Date: March 19, 2013

 

The Politics of Fracking

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series. 


FrackingSENSE with Reagan Waskom

 Event Date: March 12, 2013

 

Water for Energy: How much does it take? How much will we need?

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series. 


FrackingSENSE with Susan Tierney

 Event Date: March 5, 2013

 

Unconventional Natural Gas: Trends, Opportunities, and Challenges with America’s New Energy Resource

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series. 


FrackingSENSE with Patty Limerick

 Event Date: February 26, 2013

 

The West Beneath Its Surface: Natural Gas Development in the Big Picture of Western Extractive Industry

FrackingSENSE: What We Know, What We Don’t Know, and What We Hope to Learn about Natural Gas Development. The Center of the American West, Boulder County, and the AirWaterGas Research Network invite you to a new lecture series. 


Ghost Dances

 Event Date: February 21, 2013

 

Book signing with Josh Garrett-Davis

The Center of the American West is proud to present Josh Garrett-Davis, author of Ghost Dances: Proving up on the Great Plains, for a reading and book signing.


Watershed Film Screening

 Event Date: December 5, 2012

As the most dammed, dibbed, and diverted river in the world struggles to support thirty million people and the peace-keeping agreement known as the Colorado River Pact reaches its limits, this film introduces hope for the future. Come join Watershed’s Producer, James Redford, and award-winning Filmmaker and Director, Mark Decena, as they chat about the film.

Patty Limerick standing on stage behind a podium in front of an audience
A Ditch in Time Book Discussion

 Event Date: October 23, 2012

The Center of the American West is proud to announce a discussion about and book signing of A Ditch in Time: The City, the West, and Water, with the Center’s very own, Patty Limerick.

The Nation Possessed panel members sitting on stage
The Nation Possessed: Roundtable Conversation, Part 1

 Event Date: September 14, 2012

 

Turning Hindsight into Foresight: The Past & Future of America’s Public Lands

Roundtable Conversation: Turning Hindsight into Foresight: The Past & Future of America’s Public Lands, Part 1. How should policy makers think about the public lands in the future? What might be the terms of connecting the well-being of the public lands to the well-being of the nation?

The Nation Possessed panel members sitting on stage
The Nation Possessed: Roundtable Conversation, Part 2

 Event Date: September 14, 2012

Turning Hindsight into Foresight: The Past & Future of America’s Public Lands

Roundtable Conversation: Turning Hindsight into Foresight: The Past & Future of America’s Public Lands, Part 2: Next Steps​. How should policy makers think about the public lands in the future? What might be the terms of connecting the well-being of the public lands to the well-being of the nation?

Ken Salazar
The Nation Possessed: Lunch & Special Address

 Event Date: September 13, 2012

 

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar

Lunch & Special Address: Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar

Patty Limerick, Johanna Wald, Bill Ritter, Adrianne Kroepsch
The Nation Possessed: Session 3

 Event Date: September 13, 2012

 

Reconciling the Treasures of Resources with the Treasures of Beauty and Biology: The BLM and the Art of American Energy

When we make decisions about the development of traditional and renewable energy on public lands (or of federally managed subsurface resources), we face the crucial challenge of balancing the partial recovery of the economy, the reliance on foreign oil, the needs of endangered species, the landscape enthusiasms of the American public, and the uncertainties of climate change.

Mike Dombeck, Lynn Scarlett, Curt Brown
The Nation Possessed: Session 4

 Event Date: September 13, 2012

 

Science vs. Emotion: Making Informed Decisions in the Midst of a Stampede

This session will explore the experiences of land managers who are committed to taking science into account when dealing with issues that carry intense cultural, emotional, and political charges. What are the best strategies for using science to resolve conflicting demands for the use and protection of public lands?

Bob Bennett, John Freemuth, Luther Propst
The Nation Possessed: Session 5

 Event Date: September 13, 2012

 

Respecting Posterity’s Property

In the course of the last century, there have been several movements to privatize public lands or to return them to the states. What would be the costs and benefits of such a vast change in our current arrangements?

Anna Triebel, Bob Abbey, Emilyn Sheffield
The Nation Possessed: Session 6

 Event Date: September 13, 2012

 

Orchestrating Tradition and Change: Emphasizing Conservation in the BLM

This session will explore BLM’s unique approach to conservation in a multiple use environment, with particular attention to the National Landscape Conservation System.

Patty Limerick and Clay Jenkinson
The Nation Possessed: Reenactment/Preenactment Event

 Event Date: September 13, 2012

 

The Public Domain and the Public Lands: 1812, 1912, 2112

The Public Domain and the Public Lands: 1812, 1912, 2112 Reenactment/Preenactment Event with Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and a Visitor from the Future

Patty Limerick, Paul Sutter, Anne Hyde
The Nation Possessed: Session 1

 Event Date: September 12, 2012

 

Clerks and Cowboys: The General Land Office and the Shaping of the United States

Three historians will explore the origins of the General Land Office, as well as the most famous land law of all, the Homestead Act.

Will Roger Peterson, Dave Cooper, and Patty Limerick
The Nation Possessed: Session 2

 Event Date: September 12, 2012

 

Burning Man Meets Managing Man: The BLM and the Energy of American Art

The stories of the BLM’s response to the “management challenge” posed by the Burning Man Festival, and the Festival’s response to the “bureaucratic challenge” posed by the BLM permitting process provide a prime case study in the important ties between American art and the public lands.

Bob Abbey and Tim Egan
The Nation Possessed: Interview Event

 Event Date: September 12, 2012

 

"Reflections of a Former BLM Director"

Interview Event: “Reflections of a former BLM Director”

Walter Echo-hawk
The Nation Possessed: Welcome

 Event Date: September 12, 2012

 

 

 


A Ditch In Time: Book Release

 Event Date: September 5, 2012

 
 

The Center of the American West is proud to announce the release of A Ditch in Time: The City, the West, and Water, written by the Center’s very own, Patty Limerick with Jason Hanson.


Kent Haruf

 Event Date: April 25, 2012

 

2012 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient

Interview Event: “Reflections of a former BLM Director”


Great Colorado Bear Stories

 Event Date: April 17, 2012

 

Book Release

Are you coming out of hibernation? Ready for spring? So, too, are the bears in our environs. And really, how much do you know about the bears that occupy our state?


Bunky Echo-Hawk

 Event Date: February 16, 2012

 

Modern Indian Identity

The Center of the American West invites you to a special Modern Indian Identity Event featuring multi-talented artist, activist, and public speaker, Bunky Echo-Hawk.


Words to Stir the Soul: A Tribute to the Work of Reg Saner

 Event Date: December 7, 2011

 

Words to Stir the Soul

The Words to Stir the Soul events spotlight some of the region’s best writing by providing a unique opportunity for both readers and attendees to deepen their appreciation of the region in which we live


John McPhee

 Event Date: October 27, 2011

 

2011 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient

The Center of the American West is proud to award John McPhee its highest honor, the Stegner Award, on October 27th at 7:00 in the evening in Old Main Chapel on the CU campus.


Dan Wildcat

 Event Date: September 29, 2011

 

Modern Indian Identity

The Center is pleased to announce Dan Wildcat as the ninth guest in the Modern Indian Identity series.

Native American Star Knowledge, with constellations
John Stocke

 Event Date: September 14, 2011

 

Native American Skies

Join Dr. John Stocke at 7:00pm Wednesday evening September 14th for an “Arts and Culture Week” presentation of “Native American Skies”, the view of the sky as seen by the people of three Western US tribes.

Muffy Marshall
Muffy's War

 Event Date: June 8, 2011

 

A General's Daughter Tells the Tales of Bataan and Corregidor

Accompanied by photos and video clips produced by her son, acclaimed documentary filmmaker Randy Olson, Muffy will tell stories that breathe new life into a fading era.

Native American Star Knowledge, with constellations
John Stocke

 Event Date: March 29, 2011

 

Native American Star Lore

Because of the event’s overwhelming popularity, Astronomy Professor John Stocke will be presenting again for anyone who missed the show.


Words to Stir the Soul and Reckon with Reality

 Event Date: March 14, 2011

 

The Six Month Anniversary of the Fourmile Canyon Fire

The Center of the American West was honored to host Words to Stir the Soul and Reckon with Reality: The Six Month Anniversary of the Fourmile Canyon Fire.

Native American Star Knowledge, with constellations
John Stocke

 Event Date: March 2, 2011

 

Native American Star Lore

John Stocke, Astronomy Professor in the Astrophysical & Planetary Sciences Department at the University of Colorado, and board member of the Center of the American West, presented “Native American Skies” at the Fiske Planetarium on the CU campus at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 2.

Charles Wilkinson standing on stage behind a podium
Charles Wilkinson

 Event Date: January 27, 2011

 

Book Release

Charles Wilkinson is Distinguished Professor and Moses Lasky Professor of Law, University of Colorado Law School. He is also the co-founder of the Center of the American West.


Walter Echo-Hawk

 Event Date: December 2, 2010

 

Modern Indian Identity

We are pleased to announce Walter Echo-Hawk, a lawyer, tribal judge, scholar, and activist, as the eighth guest in our Modern Indian Identity series.


Shaking the Family Tree Book Release

 Event Date: October 21, 2010

 

Join us as Center of the American West affiliate and local historian, Buzzy Jackson, releases her newest book, Shaking the Family Tree: Blue Bloods, Black Sheep, and Other Obsessions of an Accidental Genealogist. “Who are you and where do you come from?”


Ted Turner

 Event Date: September 28, 2010

 

2010 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient

Patty Limerick interviewed the 2010 Stegner Award recipient, Ted Turner, for a morning of engaging discussion. Each year, the Center celebrates the life and achievements of an individual who has made a sustained contribution to the cultural identity of the West through literature, art, history, lore, or an understanding of the West.

Audience watching Patty Limerick on projector screen
Lover’s Guide to the West

 Event Date: ​April 15, 2010

 

Living with Energy

This is a Center of the American West event you can enjoy in the privacy of your own home! Make some popcorn, gather the family, and make an evening of it.


NLCS

 Event Date: ​April 14, 2010

 

10th Anniversary Celebration of the National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS)

The two-day event focused on learning about this great national resource and envisioning its future.

Anders Halverson reading from An Entirely Synthetic Fish
An Entirely Synthetic Fish Book Release

 Event Date: ​March 4, 2010

 

How Rainbow Trout Beguiled America and Overran the World

CU-Boulder Professor, award-winning journalist, and aquatic ecologist Anders Halverson celebrated the release of his newest book, An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How Rainbow Trout Beguiled America and Overran the World, with the Center of the American West on March 4, 2010.


Conversations With History: Theodore Roosevelt

 Event Date: ​February 25, 2010

 

An Interview with Theodore Roosevelt, as portrayed by Clay Jenkinson

Theodore Roosevelt was the twenty-sixth President of the United States and is remembered for his leadership of the Progressive Movement as well as his “cowboy” image.


Conversations With History: Thomas Jefferson

 Event Date: ​February 24, 2010

 

An Interview with Thomas Jefferson, as portrayed by Clay Jenkinson

Thomas Jefferson was the third President of the United States, an avid inventor, and principal author of the Declaration of Independence.


Remedies for a New West Book Release

 Event Date: November 12, 2009

 
 

The Center celebrated the release of its newest book, Remedies for a New West: Healing Landscapes, Histories, and Cultures.

Bob Barbee
Former Yellowstone National Park Superintendent Bob Barbee

 Event Date: September 30, 2009

 

Reflections of a National Park Manager – 42 Years on the Griddle

The lecture series honors former park Superintendent Randy Jones, who had a reputation for negotiation and mediation. Jones’s long and distinguished career with the federal government spanned over 30 years, primarily with the National Park Service. 

Panel Members sitting in front of audience
Sesquicentennial Celebration Panel Discussion

 Event Date: September 23, 2009

 

Separated at Birth: Insights from Kindred Communities


Moderated by Patty Limerick, panelists from “kindred communities” will share their stories and help us all reflect on where Boulder might be headed in the coming years.



Jim Enote

 Event Date: September 17, 2009

 

Modern Indian Identity


Zuni farmer, museum director, and interrupted artist Jim Enote spoke at the University of Colorado at Boulder September 17 as part of the Center of the American West’s Modern Indian Identity series.



Stephen Pyne

 Event Date: September 3, 2009

 

Flame and Fortune: A Brief History of Fire in America


One of the foremost experts on the environmental history of fire, Stephen Pyne discussed fire in America, addressing the issues that it raises about the interface of wild lands and urban development.


Al Bartlett, Sonny Flowers, Doris Hass, Bill Reynolds
Sesquicentennial Celebration Panel Discussion

 Event Date: May 13, 2009

 

Legends of Progress and Loss: Boulder from 1959 to 2009


Moderated by Patty Limerick of CU’s Center of the American West, panelists Albert Bartlett, Sonny Flowers, Doris Hass, Bill Reynolds, and Dorothy Rupert will wrestle with that question.



David Treuer

 Event Date: April 23, 2009

 

Modern Indian Identity


The Center was proud to welcome David Treuer as the sixth guest in our Modern Indian Identity series. 



Amy Irvine

 Event Date: March 11, 2009

 
 


Amy Irvine is a nationally-ranked competitive rock climber and for five years was the Development Director at the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. 



Tom McGuane

 Event Date: February 26, 2009

 

2009 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient


The Center of the American West presented Western author Tom McGuane with the prestigious 2009 Wallace Stegner Award in an engaging evening.


Will Kempton
What Most Analysts Tell You About Renewable Energy is Wrong

 Event Date: February 19, 2009

 

Rethinking Energy, Power, and Policy in the Context of Climate Change


Willett Kempton is Associate Professor in the College of Marine and Earth Studies, and Director of the Center for Carbon-free Power Integration, at the University of Delaware.


Robert Lawrence, LouAnn Jacobson, Patty Limerick, Steve Moore
Public Lands – Private Ceremonies

 Event Date: January 21, 2009

 

Native American Religious Practices and Public Lands in the West


This evening highlighted the issues that arise when traditional and cultural land use issues come into conflict with non-religious and oftentimes profit-motivated uses of the land.



Words to Stir the Soul

 Event Date: November 12, 2008

 

Immigration


This special evening celebrated the literature of immigration, rather than the policies of immigration. A large crowd listened as community members, politicians, public servants, professors, and a host of others read selections from a literature that has played a crucial role in the formation of the narrative of the West.


Western Literature Panelists
Western Literature Week

 Event Date: October 1, 2008

 
 


The Western Literature Association and the University of Colorado’s Center of the American West hosted a celebration of contemporary Western writing in conjunction with the Western Literature Association’s 43rd Annual Conference.


Gerard Baker
Gerard Baker

 Event Date: September 17, 2008

 

Modern Indian Identity


The Center welcomed Superintendent Gerard Baker, the highest-ranking Native American in the National Park Service, to both the University of Colorado and to Rocky Mountain National Park.


 The Ordeal of J. Robert Oppenheim
An American Faust

 Event Date: July 16, 2008

 

Patty Limerick Interviews J. Robert Oppenheimer


Patty Limerick, Ph.D., award-winning historian and Chair of the Board at the Center of the American West, University of Colorado, interviewed J. Robert Oppenheimer as portrayed by Clay S. Jenkinson, award-winning humanities scholar and author.


Sandra Day O'Connor
Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor

 Event Date: April 17, 2008

 

2008 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient


The Center of the American West, in conjunction with the University of Colorado Law School, was proud to present one of the most influential, and interesting, Westerners of our time, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, with the 2008 Wallace Stegner Award.


Robert Mirabal and Patty Limerick
Robert Mirabal

 Event Date: March 19, 2008

 

Modern Indian Identity


This was a very special evening with Grammy Award-winner Robert Mirabal.


Marc Smith, Patty Limerick, Joe Brown, Pam Eaton, Reeves Brown
National Sacrifice Zone: Colorado and the Cost of Energy Independence

 Event Date: February 28, 2008

 

Film Screening and Conversation


This film screening was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Patty Limerick. The respectful and positive exchange reflected on the current opportunities and challenges surrounding energy development in the West.


John Hausdoerffer
Living Beyond Lament

 Event Date: February 7, 2008

 

Rethinking George Catlin's Vanishing America, featuring Professor John Hausdoerffer


George Catlin was a self-taught artist who dedicated himself to painting Indians and their culture. Professor John Hausdoerffer discussed the impact these paintings have had on Indians and the popular conception of them.


Barbara O'Brien reading on stage
Words to Stir the Soul

 Event Date: November 17, 2007

 

Public Servants, hosted by Mayor John Hickenlooper


This year, the Center honored the tireless, and oftentimes thankless, exertions of Colorado’s public servants. With Mayor John Hickenlooper as our host, we celebrated the dedicated spirit that drew these exceptional individuals into their challenging line of work.



Eva Marie Garroutte

 Event Date: October 25, 2007

 

Modern Indian Identity

The Center presents Dr. Eva Marie Garroutte in this fall’s Modern Indian Identity lecture.

Ivan Doig shaking hands with Charles Wilkinson
Ivan Doig

 Event Date: September 27, 2007

 

2007 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient


The Center was proud to present internationally-acclaimed author Ivan Doig with the 2007 Wallace Stegner Award. Mr. Doig spent the evening in conversation with Center of the American West founders Patty Limerick and Charles Wilkinson.


William Travis presenting in front of an audience
New Geographies of the American West Book Release

 Event Date: April 26, 2007

 
 


The changing patterns of land use in the American West and problems of land use planning and growth management are the subject of a talk by University of Colorado at Boulder geographer William Travis on April 26.


Patty Limerick and Phil Deloria
Phil Deloria

 Event Date: April 16, 2007

 

Modern Indian Identity


University of Michigan Professor Phil Deloria will lecture at the University of Colorado at Boulder April 16 as part of a Center of the American West series aimed at improving understanding between Indians and non-Indians.


Richard Sellar and Patty Limerick at the front of a classroom
The Randy Jones Lecture Series with Richard West Sellars

 Event Date: March 12, 2007

 

Past Perfect? Historic Preservation in the National Park System


The inaugural event in the Randy Jones Memorial Lecture Series is free and open to the public. The lecture is sponsored by the CU-Boulder Center of the American West.


Annie Proulx
Annie Proulx

 Event Date: November 29, 2006

 

2006 Distinguished Lecturer


Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx presented the Center of the American West’s Distinguished Lecture at 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 29 in the Glenn Miller Ballroom at the University of Colorado at Boulder


John Echohawk and Billy Frank Jr. sitting on stage
John Echohawk and Billy Frank, Jr.

 Event Date: November 2, 2006

 

2006 Wallace Stegner Award Recipients


Native American activists John Echohawk and Billy Frank, Jr., were honored by the University of Colorado at Boulder’s Center of the American West on Nov. 2 at 7:00 p.m. at the Glenn Miller Ballroom.


Celebration of the Centennial of the Antiquities Act Webad
Celebration of the Centennial of the Antiquities Act

 Event Date: October 9, 2006

 


Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt celebrated the centennial of the Antiquities Act – used by U.S. Presidents to declare national monuments and thereby protect millions of acres of land – in a talk at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Oct. 9.


Sue Dean holding the book One Man's West
Words to Stir the Soul

 Event Date: September 5, 2006

 

Readings from the American West


The CU-Boulder Center of the American West celebrated the rich literary heritage of the region Sept. 5 with its 10th annual “Words to Stir the Soul: Readings from the American West” at 7:00 p.m. in Old Main Chapel.


Bill Mooney portraying frontier showman William F. Cody
Tonight! Buffalo Bill!

 Event Date: August 14, 2006

 

Portrayed by Bill Mooney


Two-time Grammy and two-time Emmy nominee Bill Mooney of Boulder performed an original one-man show as famed frontier showman William F. Cody in “Tonight! Buffalo Bill!” Aug. 14 at Chautauqua Auditorium. The show was written by Mooney especially for the Center of the American West at the University of Colorado at Boulder.


Harry Lewis and Patty Limerick sitting on stage
Harry Lewis Presents “Excellence Without a Soul”

 Event Date: July 25, 2006

 

How a Great University Forgot Education


Harry R. Lewis, a Harvard Professor and former Dean of Harvard College, offers his provocative analysis of how America’s great universities are failing students and the nation.


rainbow over a forest
Greg Franta

 Event Date: June 19, 2006


 

The Center’s next event, part of its summer lecture series on energy, will feature Greg Franta, principal architect and team leader of the Rocky Mountain Institute/ENSAR Built Environment Team.


Mark Trahant signing a book
Mark Trahant

 Event Date: June 12, 2006

 

Modern Indian Identity


Hoping to make at least a small contribution to the cause of better understanding between Indians and non-Indians, the Center now launches a series of speakers: contemporary Indian people telling their stories in ways that confirm the compatibility of tradition with innovation.


Patty Limerick and Rebecca Watson
Rebecca Watson

 Event Date: May 22, 2006

 

Current Administration Energy Policies and Public Policy


Rebecca Watson, former Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management at the U.S. Department of the Interior, lectured on “Current Administration Energy Policies” at Chautauqua Park in Boulder on Monday, May 22.


Willett Kempton speaking in front of audience
Willett Kempton: Preventing Climate Catastrophe

 Event Date: May 15, 2006

 

How Soon, How Much, and How to Cut CO2?


Noted energy expert Dr. Willett Kempton gave a talk on Monday, May 15, entitled “Preventing Climate Catastrophe: How Soon, How Much, and How to Cut CO2?” at the Chautauqua Community House.


Dr. George Russell playing his guitar on stage
Jubilate!

 Event Date: May 14, 2006

 

Sacred Singers and Cowboy Poetry with Dr. George Russell


The Jubilate! Sacred Singers of Boulder performed works celebrating nature and the American West by Charles Ives, Aaron Copland, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, William Billings, Bob Nolan, William Dawson, and others at Chautauqua Auditorium.


Secretaries Stewart Udall and James Watt looking at a program
Secretaries Watt and Udall

 Event Date: April 20, 2006

 

Secretaries of the Interior Series


Two prominent former Secretaries of the Interior, Stewart Udall and James Watt, will meet in a public event for the first time April 20 to discuss land management issues with University of Colorado at Boulder Professor Patricia Limerick.


David Wrobel
David Wrobel: Partnerships for the Future Built on the Past

 Event Date: March 22, 2006

 

How Professors and K-12 Teachers Together Can Revive the Study of History


The University of Colorado at Boulder’s Center of the American West will present a talk by author and historian David Wrobel on March 22, 2006, addressing how K-12 teachers and college professors can collaborate – and have collaborated – in the teaching of history.


Elliot West standing at a podium in a classrom
Elliott West

 Event Date: February 20, 2006

 

Reflecting on The Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers, and the Rush to Colorado


Elliott West, an award-winning author and Distinguished Professor of History at the University of Arkansas, gave a public talk at the University of Colorado at Boulder on February 20, 2006.


Patty Limerick signing an autograph for historian Richard White
The Legacy of Conquest

 Event Date: February 4, 2006

 

Re-release of Patricia Limerick's Landmark Book, Legacy of Conquest


To celebrate the re-release of her landmark 1987 book, The Legacy of Conquest, University of Colorado at Boulder Professor Patricia Nelson Limerick joined with Stanford University historian Richard White in a special public conversation on Feb. 4.


Secretary Don Hodel
Secretary Don Hodel

 Event Date: January 19, 2006

 

Secretaries of the Interior Series


Donald Hodel, who held two cabinet posts during the Reagan administration, including Secretary of the Interior, will speak at the University of Colorado at Boulder on January 19, 2006.


Patty Limerick on stage with Timothy Egan
The Worst Hard Time

 Event Date: January 9, 2006

 

A Book Discussion with Author Timothy Egan


Personal stories and eyewitness accounts of the 1930s’ Dust Bowl disaster on the high plains were part of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Timothy Egan’s public discussion January 9, 2006, at the University of Colorado at Boulder.


Pam Houston, Laura Pritchett, and Gary Wockner
Comeback Wolves

 Event Date: November 21, 2005

 

An Evening with Pam Houston, Laura Pritchett, and Gary Wockner


A new anthology about reintroducing wolves in Colorado and the Southwest was discussed by a panel of three writers, including Pam Houston, on Monday, Nov. 21, at a University of Colorado at Boulder event.


Charles Wilkinson and Terry Tempest Williams
Terry Tempest Williams

 Event Date: November 2, 2005

 

2005 Wallace Stegner Award Recipient


Author and naturalist Terry Tempest Williams will be honored by the University of Colorado at Boulder’s Center of the American West on Nov. 2 at 7:00 p.m.


Louis Warren
Talk with Louis Warren, Author of Buffalo Bill’s America

 Event Date: October 25, 2005

 
 


Warren’s book is a biography and social history that examines Cody’s genuine achievements, his many self-inventions, and the manner in which he successfully combined the two.


Dave Hunsaker, Patty Limerick, Charles Wilkinson
Reflecting on the First Decade of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

 Event Date: September 27, 2005

 

A Talk with Manager Dave Hunsaker, Charles Wilkinson, and Patricia Limerick


The first nine years of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah was discussed with monument manager Dave Hunsaker in a public event at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Sept. 28. 


Bruce Babbitt
Secretary Bruce Babbitt

 Event Date: September 23, 2005

 

Secretaries of the Interior Series


Former U.S. Secretary of the Interior and Arizona Governor Bruce Babbitt will visit the University of Colorado at Boulder Sept. 23 to speak about his new book, Cities in the Wilderness: A New Vision of Land Use in America.


James Williams
Words to Stir the Soul

 Event Date: September 6, 2005

 

12 Books - 1 Boulder


The program “Words to Stir the Soul” is our fall “kick-off” event, spotlighting some of the region’s best writing and providing a unique opportunity for both readers and attendees to deepen their appreciation of the region in which we live.


Words to Stir the Soul Banner
Words to Stir the Soul

 Event Date: September 1, 2005

 

Denver Scholars and Civil Servants

The program “Words to Stir the Soul” is our fall “kick-off” event, spotlighting some of the region’s best writing and providing a unique opportunity for both readers and attendees to deepen their appreciation of the region in which we live.

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