Our longtime Obermann Conversations partner, the Iowa City Public Library, helped us to move the program online seamlessly. We shifted to an evening hour and attracted some of our largest audiences to date. Thank you to Jason Paulios and Bond Drager at the Library for their assistance and to all of the speakers listed here for taking the time to share their expertise. Below are highlights of some of our conversations; to view each conversation in full, click on the titles below.
Little Resurrections (10/8/20) explored the tension between the mundane and profound qualities of 21st-century labor—with David Borger-Germann (local pastor), Christopher-Rasheem McMillan (Dance and GWSS, CLAS), and Kristy Nabhan-Warren (Religious Studies, CLAS).
Out in the Field: Finding Wonder under the Water, in the Ground, and on the Waves (11/16/20) centered the experiences of field researchers—with George Peterson (Director of Dive Programs, Monterey Bay Sea Aquarium), Cynthia Chou, (Anthropology, CLAS), and Katina Lillios (Anthropology, CLAS).
Food Insecurity in Johnson County (1/14/21) featured local experts from a diversity of disciplines and organizations, including Patrick Brady (Community & Behavioral Health, College of Public Health); Katharine Broton (Iowa City Community School District), Joan VandenBerg (Iowa City Community School District), and Sarah Witry, (School of Social Work, CLAS).
COVID’s Lessons: End of Life and Grief (2/16/21) explored cultural reactions to death and dying through the lens of the pandemic—with Laurel Lyckholm (Hematology/Oncology and Blood and Bone Marrow Transplantation, UIHC), Lilian Akimpaye, (Iowa City Hospice), and Lori Erickson (author of Near the Exit: Travels with the Not-So-Grim Reaper).
Native Lands: Belonging and Reclaiming (3/10/21): Shelley Buffalo (Meskwaki Food Sovereignty Initiative) and Carrie Schuettpelz (UI Policy & Planning) shared their experiences as indigenous women regarding their relationship to the land and one’s right to tribal membership. We also touched on the topic of land acknowledgements.
Neighborhood NESTS: Building Community-Education Partnerships (4/7/21): Three leaders of a collaborative effort to support at-risk learners during the pandemic shared lessons they had learned—with Megan Alter (South District), Missie Forbes (4Cs), and Peggy Schwab (Obermann Spelman Rockefeller Community Scholar and College of Education).
Obermann Annual Report 2020-21 