New College Announces its 2022-23 New Topics Season

October 7, 2022 – Sarasota

New College of Florida is proud to present its New Topics 2022-23 season, with a lineup of dynamic regional and national speakers covering a broad range of topics. Hosted by the New College Foundation, the 2022-23 season runs from October through March and is sponsored by The Observer Media Group.

October 26, 2022

Climate Crisis Now! Learning and Landscape in a Changing Environment

Chris Reed, Harvard Professor of Architecture and a leading voice in the transformation of landscapes and cities, will talk about his transformative and award-winning work developing strategies of adaptation related to coastal resilience.  With an eye to the local context of the New College of Florida campus and its place on the Gulf Coast, he will explore the changing needs and agendas associated with creating a campus aligned with efforts to re-imagine the role of higher education in community resilience.

January 25, 2023

Fleeing Atrocities: Witness Perspectives, in partnership with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Dr. Helen N. Fagin Holocaust, Genocide and Human Rights Collection

Join us for a powerful conversation with two witnesses of mass atrocities nearly 80 years apart: Holocaust survivor Louise Lawrence-Israëls and Rohnigya activist and survivor Wai Wai Nu. This discussion will be moderated by Naomi Kikoler, Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide.

This conversation will shine a light on the ongoing persecution of the Rohingya in Burma and the unique perspective and voice that Holocaust survivors can bring to contemporary issues. In March 2022, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken chose the Museum as the location where he would announce the US government’s determination of genocide in Burma. It was there that Louise and Wai Wai first met. 

February 16, 2023

The Bigger Picture: Entertainment Marketing in a Changing World

Join Smitty Smith ’70 and Jackson George ’95 as they discuss Hollywood and the evolution of entertainment marketing in our rapidly changing world.  Smith, a movie industry veteran and CEO of the creative agency InSync Plus, and George, a creative advertising executive with Disney, will take you behind the scenes to understand how Hollywood develops movies and markets their product to the consumer.  With witty stories and insights, Smith and George, will also explore how Hollywood is changing and the influence of rapidly advancing technologies have on the marketing and distribution of movies. 

March 21, 2023

The Sound of the Sea: Seashells and the Fate of the Oceans

Cynthia Barnett

Award-winning environmental author Cynthia Barnett explores the long, rich and surprisingly profound relationship between humans and seashells.  Traveling from Florida to the Bahamas to the Maldives, West Africa, and beyond, Barnett uncovers the ancient history of shells as global currency, their use as religious and luxury objects, and the rarely appreciated but remarkable creatures that make them. 

While shells reveal how humans have altered the climate and the sea—down to its very chemistry—they are also sentinels of hope for coastal adaptation for climate change, alternative energy and other solutions that lie beneath the waves.

All New Topics events are held at Sanier Pavilion on the New College campus at 5:30pm.  Tickets are $10, with some exceptions. To learn more and register, visit ncf.edu/new-topics. For questions, contact the New College Foundation at foundation@ncf.edu or 941-487-4800.