Justin Tiwald

Washington College’s Holstein Program in Ethics is pleased to host Justin Tiwald, a Laurance S. Rockefeller Visiting Faculty Fellow at Princeton University, in a talk that examines the fundamental question of when it is up to us to figure out a moral problem, or when we should defer to others’ expertise.

The Oct. 16 talk “Moral Expertise: Confucian Philosophers on Deference and Deliberative Autonomy” is free and open to the public. It begins at 6:30 p.m., in Hynson Lounge of Hodson Hall.

In his talk, Tiwald will examine a fundamental issue in human life: When and under what circumstances should we defer to people who know more than ourselves about certain moral matters? We trust the experts when we seek a plumbing repair or auto maintenance, but what about when we face a moral problem? Suppose the problem is whether to buy organic or whether to support restrictions on gun ownership. Undoubtedly there are experts who know more about these issues than we do, but many still think that we have a responsibility to reach conclusions on our own. Bringing Confucian philosophy to the complicated moral challenges of today, this public lecture explores various positions on the use and misuse of moral expertise.

As Chair of the Department of Philosophy at San Francisco State University, Tiwald works on Chinese philosophy broadly construed, but has largely focused on Confucian, Daoist, and neo-Confucian accounts of moral psychology, well-being, and political authority, as well as the significance of Confucian views for virtue ethics, moral epistemology, and individual and human rights. He is the editor of, among others, “Oxford Handbook of Chinese Philosophy” (Oxford University Press, 2019), and is the author, with Stephen C. Angle, of “Neo-Confucianism: A Philosophical Introduction (Polity, 2017).

The Holstein Program in Ethics was established in 2014 thanks to the $5 million legacy gift of Richard Holstein ’68, a pediatric dentist. Previous speakers include Walter Shaub, the former director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, Jonathan Rauch, contributing editor of The Atlantic and the National Journal, and Mary John Miller, former Undersecretary for Domestic Finance of the U.S. Treasury. In addition to bringing national leaders in ethics to speak with students and the community about current issues, the program supports and enhances the study of ethics throughout the curriculum and fosters interdisciplinary research on a broad range of ethical issues. Its goal is to spark an appreciation for the importance of moral courage as a foundation for leading a life of purpose and meaning. For more information about the Holstein Program in Ethics see https://www.washcoll.edu/departments/holstein-program/.

About Washington College
Founded in 1782, Washington College is the tenth oldest college in the nation and the first chartered under the new Republic. It enrolls approximately 1,450 undergraduates from more than 39 states and territories and 25 nations. With an emphasis on hands-on, experiential learning in the arts and sciences, and more than 40 multidisciplinary areas of study, the College is home to nationally recognized academic centers in the environment, history, and writing. Learn more at washcoll.edu.

Water security and cooperation in global and local conflicts will be the topic of a talk by Ambika Vishwanath ’05, part of Washington College’s Goldstein Program in Public Affairs Young Alumni Program.

Ambika Vishwanath

The talk on Oct. 16 begins at 5:30 p.m. in Litrenta Lecture Hall of the Toll Science Center, and it is free and open to the public.

Vishwanath, co-founder and director of Kubernein Initiative, will examine how conflict over water resources is exacerbated by growing populations and unpredictable changes in the climate. However, Vishwanath argues that there have been more instances of cooperation than conflict over shared water resources. On occasion, countries have even used their water resources to forge ties leading to cooperation in other spheres as well.

Vishwanath’s lecture will focus on some of these positive examples from around the world and will examine how a nation’s domestic needs often plays a role in determining its transboundary water policy. Having travelled to many of these shared water basins, Vishwanath will bring personal anecdotes to discuss how cooperation is possible, and what other troubled regions and hotspots may learn from these examples.

Kubernein Initiative is an India-based geopolitical advisory that aims to bridge the gap on issues that require greater intellectual questioning and curiosity. Vishwanath has lead track two diplomacy efforts and consulted with several governments and international organizations, in India and around the world, at the intersection between transboundary water security and foreign policy. She also works in emerging concepts of Asian multilateralism and creating a better understanding of the rapidly changing landscape of India.

She has been published in several global newspapers, blogs, and journals and is a member of the Munich Young Leaders of the Munich Security Conference, Germany. She has a masters degree from the American University of Cairo, Egypt, and is a member of the Class of 2005, Washington College.

About Washington College

Founded in 1782, Washington College is the tenth oldest college in the nation and the first chartered under the new Republic. It enrolls approximately 1,450 undergraduates from more than 39 states and territories and 25 nations. With an emphasis on hands-on, experiential learning in the arts and sciences, and more than 40 multidisciplinary areas of study, the College is home to nationally recognized academic centers in the environment, history, and writing. Learn more at washcoll.edu.

Alisha Knight

Alisha Knight, Associate Professor of English and American Studies, will discuss her unique research into the African American book publishing trade at the turn of the 20th century during a Sept. 26 event at the Rose O’ Neill Literary House.

The talk entitled “Agents Wanted: Selling Racial Uplift at the Turn of the Twentieth Century” is part of the Fall Literary House Series and is free and open to the public. It begins at 4:30 p.m. at the Lit House, followed by a catered reception.

Knight will discuss themes from her current research project, which is centered around the Colored Co-operative Publishing Company, a black-owned publisher based in Boston in the early 1900s. Her work examines the peculiar nature of disseminating literature to African Americans at a time when many publishers either took this reading audience for granted or simply assumed it did not exist.

Knight teaches a range of courses in African American literature and print culture at Washington College. Her teaching and scholarship favors interdisciplinary study, as she aims to expand the canon with lesser-known authors and bring new perspectives to well-known ones. Her first book, “Pauline Hopkins and the American Dream,” was published by the University of Tennessee Press in 2012. In addition to her second book project, she is co-editing a scholarly edition of Hopkins’s novel, “Hagar’s Daughter,” for Broadview Press.

For more information on this event or the Literary House, visit the website at www.washcoll.edu/centers/lithouse, or view the annual Literary Events Calendar brochure here: www.washcoll.edu/live/files/9229-2019-20-literary-events-brochure.

Wilderness First Responder, the definitive wilderness course in medical training, leadership, and critical thinking for professionals and leaders working in outdoor education and low-resource and remote areas, will be offered this summer at Washington College.

The course, administered by Wilderness Medical Associates International and hosted by Washington College, will be held Sunday July 21 through Saturday July 27. Upon successful completion, students will receive a Wilderness First Responder certification and certification of BLS/HPL CPR, valid for three years.

Wilderness First Responder (WFR, pronounced “woofer”) is the ideal medical training for leaders in remote areas including outdoor educators, guides, military, professional search and rescue teams, researchers, and those involved in disaster relief. The curriculum is comprehensive and practical. It includes the essential principles and skills required to assess and manage medical problems in isolated and extreme environments for days and weeks if necessary. Written by a team of medical rescue researchers and professionals, the curriculum is comprehensive, complete, and annually updated, making it the most current and cutting-edge course of any first response medical training (urban or remote) in the world.

The comprehensive training includes:

– The General Principles of Wilderness and Rescue Medicine with an emphasis on the prevention and identification of medical emergencies, appropriate technology, and risk management.
– Patient assessment and emergency care including CPR, Basic Life Support, and the emergency treatment of anaphylaxis and asthma.
– Environmental Medicine including altitude illness, hypothermia and heat illness, frostbite and cold injury, lightning, submersion, and environmental toxins.
– Backcountry Medicine including the assessment and treatment of common medical problems.
– Musculoskeletal Problems including unstable and stable injuries overuse syndromes, and dislocations.
– Wound management including open fractures, lacerations, burns, and blisters.
– Practical skills including splinting, bandaging, litter packaging and medical kit preparation.
– WMA International Wilderness Protocols including wound cleaning and exploration, spine injury assessment, dislocation reduction, BLS/HPL CPR in the remote setting, and anaphylaxis and asthma.

Cost is $725 tuition for the week. Housing is available on-site at Washington College for an additional $120 for the week.

To register click here:  http://bit.ly/WACWFR2019

Or contact Benjamin Ford at bford2@washcoll.edu for more information.