With everything the media is saying about global warming, Saint Louis University’s Thomas Valone, Ph.D., said it is no wonder students are confused about the issue.

“Global warming is certainly in the news all the time,” said Valone, a professor in the Department of Biology. “There seems to be two sides to the issue-that it is either something we should worry about, or that it is a hoax. Students see that and don’t know what to think, so they want more information.”

In order to clear up any misconceptions and raise campus awareness about global warming, Valone organized two upcoming events for the SLU community.

The first event is a nationwide teach-in on global warming that will be broadcast over the Internet for people to view on SLU’s campus.

More than 1,500 colleges and universities will participate on Jan. 30.

Featuring speakers such as Hunter Lovins, a sustainability expert, and Van Jones, a green jobs pioneer, the webcast will provide information for students on global warming and allow students to interact with policy makers in determining possible solutions.

“Students can go to this event and learn directly from the experts that are researching global warming and its effects on a daily basis,” Valone said. “They can understand what the scientists understand.”

The second event Valone organized is a panel discussion on Jan. 31. Open to all students, the panel will discuss the scientific and ethical issues surrounding global warming.

Panel members will include Valone; Tobias Winwright, representing the department of theological studies; William Dannevick, representing the department of earth and atmospheric sciences; and Sonal Oza, representing Student Government Association’s Environmental Task Force Committee.

“We will be discussing what students can do in this initiative to increase awareness on campus, and how they can devise practices that are environmentally sustainable,” Oza said. “That could be as simple as turning off your lights when you’re not in your room or recycling.”

Oza and the environmental task force committee are currently spearheading efforts to increase recycling on campus and make dorm rooms greener by using less energy.

“We are currently working with other student groups to make the Salvage Drive happen again this year,” Oza said. “Students donated their unwanted items, and it was pretty successful last year. This year, we want to expand the drive to include some sort of online store.”

Valone said the main purpose of the two upcoming events is to show students why they should be concerned about global warming and how it affects their daily lives.

“This is a phenomenon that will likely impact [students] for the rest of their lives,” he said.