Visionary economist Jeremy Rifkin will keynote the 8th annual Conference for the Association for Environmental Studies and Sciences

Rifkin, president of the Foundation on Economic Trends and advisor to the European Union on issues related to the economy, climate change, and energy security, will be joined by a host of other speakers to address this year’s event, which will take place June 8-11 in Washington, D.C.

Well-versed on the impact of scientific and technological changes on the economy, the workforce, society, and the environment, Rifkin is the bestselling author of twenty books. His latest book, The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism, uncovers a paradox at the heart of capitalism that growing environmental and other resources will require a much more collaborative society if we are to maintain a robust economy. Rifkin is also the principle architect of the European Union’s Third Industrial Revolution (TIR) sustainability plan and is the President of the TIR Consulting Group, LLC.

In addition to Rifkin, the association has invited speakers such as professor and sociologist James W. Loewen, author of the lively book critique, Lies My Teacher Told Me, and attorney Patricia J. Beneke, who is the Director and Regional Representative of the United Nations Environment Programmes Regional Office for North America.

The conference will be held on the campus of American University, and will also include workshops, local site visits, panels, presentations and student poster sessions. The conference is the largest annual event held by AESS, attracting attendees from all over North America as well as from nearly every continent.

Information on workshops and registration for the conference can be found by visiting http://aessonline.org/2016-conference/ 

AESS, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization, serves faculty, students, and staff of the 1000+ interdisciplinary environmental programs as well as professionals in environmental fields across North America and around the world. The annual meeting offers opportunities for attendees to develop interdisciplinary understanding of environmental science, policy, management, ethics, history and all other vital contributions of traditional disciplines.

The conference is sponsored by Johns Hopkins University Advanced Academic Programs, Pace University, Global Environmental Politics at American University, and generously supported by other organizations including Chatham University, Cornell University Press, IES Abroad, and Project Learning Tree. To learn more about sponsoring or exhibiting, visit our website.

Registration is open! An early bird rate of $340 per person (full) $190 (single day), $135 (full student) and $80 (single day student) is available until Friday, April 1, 2016.

Learn more about AESS by visiting our website, and follow us on Twitter or Facebook. For more information about the conference, contact AESS Program Coordinator support@aessonline.org.