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Environmental, national peace leader named Woodrow Wilson Scholar

By Mara Fink '11
January 5, 2009

Robert K. Musil, an international spokesperson on global warming and national security who was the longtime leader of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization Physicians for Social Responsibility, will visit St. Olaf in March as the 2009 Woodrow Wilson Visiting Scholar.

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Musil
Musil will be on campus March 1-7, and during his residency he will be available for class visits, small group meetings and meal conversations. His visit will be in conjunction with the globalization conference and the Nobel Peace Prize forum, both of which have themes related to environmental sustainability.

Executive Director for St. Olaf College's Center for Experiential Learning Bruce Dalgaard says Musil's work on environmental issues was a large part of the decision to bring him to campus, but his diverse interests in other areas as well made him an especially good fit for the college.

"He's done so much that complements this institution and what we're trying to promote. He's living a life of service, working to draw attention to the environment and sustainability, and making a connection between the spiritual and the practical," Dalgaard says.

Musil's new book, Hope for a Heated Planet: How Americans are Fighting Global Warming and Building a Better Future was just released in bookstores this month. Copies of his book will be available in the St. Olaf Bookstore before his visit in March, and he will also sign copies while he's on campus. Hope for a Heated Planet argues that a new climate movement could create positive environmental change, and it focuses on things Americans can do to make a difference.

Musil is currently a scholar in residence at American University's School of International Studies. He is also a visiting scholar at Wesley Theological Seminary, where his research and teaching is centered on religious responses to global warming and security threats.

The Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellow Program has been bringing non-academic professionals such as artists, business leaders and journalists to college campuses around the nation for more than 35 years. Each fellow completes one-week residencies at various schools, where they interact with students and faculty in lectures, seminars and workshops. The goal of the program is to foster a better understanding between academic and non-academic disciplines.

Contact Kari VanDerVeen at 507-786-3970 or vanderve@stolaf.edu.