Close Close
  • Chrystin Ondersma: “Dignity Not Debt”

    Dignity Not Debt: An Abolitionist Approach to Economic Justice. By Chrystin Ondersma

    Rutgers Law School professor Chrystin Ondersma is giving a presentation on her new book “Dignity Not Debt” on Wednesday, October 29, sponsored by the Greenbaum/Ferguson/NJAR Endowed Chair in Real Estate, the Monmouth University Debate Team, and the Monmouth University Pre-Law Club.

    Food and drinks available before the presentation outside Pozycki Hall 115. Presentation starts at 3 p.m. and will end by 4:15 p.m. No need to RSVP.

  • 2025 Future of the Ocean Symposium and Champion of the Ocean Awards: Exploring the Wine-Dark Sea

    he Urban Coast Institute’s (UCI) signature annual event will be return on Thursday, October 9, to Monmouth University’s historic Great Hall. The theme of this year’s Future of the Ocean Symposium will be “Exploring the Wine-Dark Sea – U.S. Ocean Science and Technology: Keys to Prosperity and Security.”

    This year we’ll also be celebrating the UCI’s 20th anniversary. Come and help us set sail to serve the University and our communities for the next two decades!

  • Current Status and Future of the Global Plastics Treaty (Presented by UCI, Global Ocean Forum)

    The Monmouth University Urban Coast Institute (UCI) and Global Ocean Forum (GOF) will host the webinar “Current Status and Future of the Global Plastics Treaty” on Feb. 4 at 11 a.m. EST. The webinar will assemble an international group of experts to explore the progress, as well as the failures, toward addressing plastic pollution on a global scale while assessing its various implications.

    Key points of action include identifying and addressing the stumbling blocks to treaty adoption, considering the implications of addressing the entire plastics life cycle, ensuring national commitments and transparency, forming explicit guidelines for establishing baselines, addressing international trade measures, respecting Indigenous rights and knowledge systems, and ensuring a science-based approach while endorsing a living treaty.

    Panelists will include: Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution Executive Secretary Jyoti Mathur-Filipp; Monterey Bay Aquarium Chief Conservation and Science Officer Margaret Spring; Ocean Voices Programme Head of Science Policy Research Marjo Vierros; and Center for International Environmental Law Senior Legal Campaigner (Upstream Plastics Treaty) Daniela Durán. The session will be moderated by UCI Director Tony MacDonald and GOF Executive Director Miriam Balgos. Scroll below for speaker bios.

    GOF and UCI logos

    The webinar will be the second installment of an Ocean and Climate Action series that the UCI and GOF are jointly organizing in alignment with the U.N. Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development Vision 2030. The webinars aim to mobilize civil society around critical ocean and climate action identified in the report on Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action 2022-2023 (“ROCA” report). The ROCA report reviews progress made on climate and ocean initiatives, making it a useful tool for discussion of strategies for achieving climate goals moving forward. Click here to watch the first webinar, “Catalyzing Party and Community Action on Ocean, Climate and BBNJ,” held in April.

    The ROCA Report identified plastics as a key issue impacting global marine systems. Thus, the second webinar will discuss the Global Plastics Treaty and explore its implications for the management of land-based marine pollution.

    The webinar is free and open to the public. A Zoom link will be provided upon registration. For questions about the event, contact Aliya Satku at asatku@monmouth.edu.

    Panelist Bios

    Jyoti Mathur-Filipp

    Jyoti Mathur-Filipp

    Jyoti Mathur-Filipp is the executive secretary of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution and head of the secretariat. Prior to this assignment, she served as director at the secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. She has held key roles in inter-governmental processes, leading the work on the new global biodiversity framework. With over 25 years of experience in international environmental diplomacy, she possesses extensive knowledge in environment, climate, and sustainable development networks. She began her career with UNDP and managed groundbreaking partnerships. Her diverse roles include consulting for UNFCCC and senior advisory positions at UNDP. Mathur-Filipp holds an MS and MBA and is an alumnus of esteemed educational institutions.

    Margaret Spring

    Margaret Spring joined the Monterey Bay Aquarium in 2013 to oversee its many conservation and science initiatives, including all ocean science policy work, the Seafood Watch sustainable seafood initiative and conservation research programs, including MBARI. From 2009 to 2013, she held leadership roles at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, first as chief of staff and then as principal deputy undersecretary for oceans and atmosphere. Prior to her tenure in the Obama Administration, Margaret led The Nature Conservancy’s California coastal and marine program. From 1999 to 2007, she served on Capitol Hill as senior counsel, then general counsel, to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, where she advised members of Congress on ocean and climate issues and helped develop legislation on major science and policy topics. She is a graduate of Duke University Law School and Dartmouth College.

    Marjo Vierros

    Marjo Vierros is the Ocean Voices Programme’s director of coastal policy and humanities research, which undertakes interdisciplinary research on oceans issues. She is also a senior associate with the Global Oceans Forum and a Research Associate with the University of British Columbia Nereus Program. Previously she coordinated the Global Marine Governance Project at United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability and undertook research with its Traditional Knowledge Initiative. With degrees in biology, oceanography and marine biology, her career has included work with research, conservation and United Nations organizations in countries in the Caribbean, North and Central America, Bermuda and the Pacific. Her research interests include ocean governance and marine biocultural diversity.

    Daniela Durán

    Daniela Duran

    Daniela Durán is a senior legal campaigner focused on the upstream parts of the plastics treaty for the Center for International Environmental Law’s Environmental Health program. She is a Colombian campaigner, with relevant experience influencing national and international plastic policy. She worked as a public policy specialist for The Nature Conservancy, where she helped enhance the voices of Indigenous Peoples in international climate policy. She also served as a policy advocacy manager for MarViva Foundation, where she co-drafted and advocated for the approval of Colombia’s first law to reduce single-use plastic production. Daniela holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the Rosario University in Colombia, and a master’s degree in environment and development from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where she was awarded the Chevening Scholarship for global leaders and researched the frames used for plastic pollution in national policies.

    Moderator Bios

    Tony MacDonald

    Tony MacDonald

    Tony MacDonald is director of the Monmouth University Urban Coast Institute (UCI). He was previously the executive director of the Coastal States Organization (CSO) from 1998-2005. CSO, based in Washington, DC, represents the interests of the governors of the nation’s 35 coastal states and territories on coastal and ocean policy matters. Prior to joining CSO, Tony was the special counsel and director of environmental affairs at the American Association of Port Authorities, where he represented the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) at the International Maritime Organization on negotiations on the London Convention. Tony also practiced law with a private firm in Washington, DC, and served as the environmental legislative representative for the Mayor of the City of New York.

    Miriam Balgos, Ph.D.

    Miriam Balgos

    Miriam Balgos is executive director of the Global Ocean Forum and concurrent project manager-capacity development specialist of a GEF-funded project on Building and Enhancing Sectoral and Cross-Sectoral Capacity to Support Sustainable Resource Use and Biodiversity Conservation in Marine Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction. Formerly associate scientist at the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment, University of Delaware and the program coordinator of the Global Ocean Forum, Balgos led the Gerard J. Mangone Center for Marine Policy team in the organization and conduct of multi-stakeholder dialogues in integrated ocean and coastal management. Her research focused on integrated ocean and coastal management, marine protected areas, marine areas beyond national jurisdiction, and climate change adaptation. She co-authored and contributed to various publications including “A Comparative Analysis of Ocean Po

  • The Fourth Annual Julian Abele “Out of the Shadows” Public History Symposium (Virtual)

    Sponsored by the Public History Minor at Monmouth University

    Free and open to all

    The Public History Minor at Monmouth University hosted the first annual Julian Francis Abele “Out of the Shadows” Virtual Public History Symposium via Zoom in 2021. Free for presenters and attendees alike, the Symposium is intended as a welcoming place for public history practitioners at all levels, established and emerging scholars, and graduate and undergraduate students to share their public history work on individuals or groups in history whose legacies have been purposefully or inadvertently suppressed, overshadowed, or underappreciated. We hope to bring these parties out of the shadows and into the fuller appreciation that they so richly deserve.

    The Symposium is named in honor of pioneering African American architect Julian Francis Abele, who contributed greatly to the design of Monmouth University’s Great Hall (previously known as both Shadow Lawn and Wilson Hall). Everyone who has attended Monmouth University has personal memories of the building, a National Historic Landmark. But if you ask them about it, they are probably more likely to mention Woodrow Wilson’s brief time at the original Shadow Lawn (not “ours”), or the current mansion’s starring role as Daddy Warbucks’s home in the movie Annie than they are the fact that it was designed in large part by perhaps “the greatest American born Beaux-Arts architect,” Julian Francis Abele. Monmouth University’s Fall 2020 Museums and Archives Management Basics class sought to increase awareness about Abele’s role in the creation of what is perhaps our University’s most beloved landmark by creating “The Julian Abele Project.” Now, we hope to honor Abele’s name with this annual virtual public history symposium, designed to bring regular attention to Abele’s story and to highlight work focused on other figures underrepresented in the historical record.

  • NJ Run for the Fallen

    Please join the Student Veterans Association at the entrance of Norwood Ave & Kirby Ave (Lot11) for the 16th annual NJ Run for the Fallen. There is no running required to participate!

    The NJ Run for the Fallen has teams of military runners who embark on a 225+ mile journey starting in Cape May and finishing in Holmdel, to honor every NJ service member who died in support of the Global War on Terror.

    The family of Christopher Cosgrove, a Monmouth Alumni and US Marine Corps Veteran, will be present as military runners pass by to pay respect. We ask that you join us in celebrating the life of LCpl Cosgrove alongside his family.

  • The Election We Didn’t Expect, with Patrick Murray

    Join Monmouth University Polling Institute Director Patrick Murray for a presentation highlighting how the presidential candidate switch has impacted the election outlook, the motivations of voters, and the issues that are important.

    Q&A to follow.

    Patrick Murray has three decades of experience in public opinion research and has been director of Monmouth University’s Polling Institute since 2005. The Monmouth University Poll is one of the nation’s leading independent survey research centers, recently rated one of the five best polling organizations in the country by FiveThirtyEight.com. Murray frequently appears as a commentator on national and regional TV and radio. During election years, he serves as an exit poll analyst for the National Election Pool. In his home state, Murray regularly appears on various “Power Lists” of influential people in New Jersey politics.

  • The Third Annual Julian Abele “Out of the Shadows” Public History Symposium (Virtual)

    Sponsored by the Public History Minor at Monmouth University

    The Public History Minor at Monmouth University hosted the first annual Julian Francis Abele “Out of the Shadows” Virtual Public History Symposium via Zoom in 2021. Free for presenters and attendees alike, the Symposium is intended as a welcoming place for public history practitioners at all levels, established and emerging scholars, and graduate and undergraduate students to share their public history work on individuals or groups in history whose legacies have been purposefully or inadvertently suppressed, overshadowed, or underappreciated. We hope to bring these parties out of the shadows and into the fuller appreciation that they so richly deserve.

    The Symposium is named in honor of pioneering African American architect Julian Francis Abele, who contributed greatly to the design of Monmouth University’s Great Hall (previously known as both Shadow Lawn and Wilson Hall). Everyone who has attended Monmouth University has personal memories of the building, a National Historic Landmark. But if you ask them about it, they are probably more likely to mention Woodrow Wilson’s brief time at the original Shadow Lawn (not “ours”), or the current mansion’s starring role as Daddy Warbucks’s home in the movie Annie than they are the fact that it was designed in large part by perhaps “the greatest American born Beaux-Arts architect,” Julian Francis Abele. Monmouth University’s Fall 2020 Museums and Archives Management Basics class sought to increase awareness about Abele’s role in the creation of what is perhaps our University’s most beloved landmark by creating “The Julian Abele Project.” Now, we hope to honor Abele’s name with this annual virtual public history symposium, designed to bring regular attention to Abele’s story and to highlight work focused on other figures underrepresented in the historical record.

  • Sustainability in Teaching and Research (STAR) Symposium

    A Symposium on Curricular and Scholarly Innovations based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Exploring National and International Efforts Toward Equity, Coastal and Climate Futures, Sustainability and Social Justice, and Global Partnership for Sustainable Development.

    Registration is Now Open

    Preliminary Agenda & Speakers

    Additional information about speakers and scheduling will be added in the coming days. Please check back soon for updates.

    Symposium Opening

    Patrick Leahy, Ed.D., Monmouth University President

    Tammy Snyder Murphy, First Lady of New Jersey

    Keynote Speaker

    Omar Hernandez, Program Manager of the United Nations Academic Impact

    Executive Plenary Session on Institutional Best Practices on Sustainability

    Dr. Angel Cabrera, President of the Georgia Institute of Technology

    Dr. Rupa Chanda, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia, and the Pacific

    Panel Themes by Day

    Day 1: In-Person/Hybrid

    Track A: Educating for Sustainability

    Track B: Moving Towards Sustainable Environment

    Track C: Equity Justice and Sustainable Communities

    Special Attraction: “Youth Creative Works on Sustainability” session with representation from Monmouth University and high school students

    Day 2: Virtual

    Tracks D and E: Interdisciplinary Perspectives in Sustainability Teaching and Research

  • Woody Guthrie: Songs and Art, Words and Wisdom – Conversation and Book Signing with Nora Guthrie and Bob Santelli

    Hosted by the Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music at Monmouth University

  • Interdisciplinary Conference on Race

    Cognizant of the current economic and societal climate, the Race Conference committee is waiving registration fees for this year’s event in order to further the goals of open, active, and unhampered engagement.

    Monmouth University’s Seventh Biennial Interdisciplinary Conference on Race
    Public Spaces, Private Places: Constructing Race and Liberation 
    Virtual Conference