This Week in English | October 16, 2023
Swacha and Payne Talk about Lake Associations Today at 3pm
On Monday, October 16 from 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM, Katie Swacha and Elizabeth Payne will present on the topic of ‘Productive Disagreement’ at the Lake: The Role of Deliberation in Lake Associations as part of the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions ongoing series of talks.
Although the phrase “upta camp” might elicit memories of carefree fishing, swimming, hiking, and boating for many people in Maine, conserving the waterways where those activities take place can feel anything but carefree. Disagreements between waterfront property owners and other stakeholders concerning exactly what “conservation” means and how to achieve it can frustrate everyone involved. At the same time, such local-level deliberations, which often take place informally between neighbors or at lake association meetings, are exactly where important conservation work does and can occur. In this talk, Katie Swacha and Elizabeth Payne share theoretical concepts about democratic deliberation, paired with personal experience applying those concepts at a local lake association to offer strategies for productively negotiating differences, reaching agreements, and taking action.
Katie Swacha is an assistant professor in the English Department at UMaine. Her research interests center on how to build and sustain participatory, reciprocal partnerships between academic researchers and local communities and how best to include students in that process.
Elizabeth Payne is a lecturer in professional and technical writing at UMaine. As a practitioner and citizen activist for her local lake association, she manages grants, oversees the newsletter, and presents at meetings on environmental sustainability, biodiversity, and water quality.
All Mitchell Center talks are free and open to the public. Talks are held virtually via Zoom and in-person at 107 Norman Smith Hall, UMaine. Refreshments will be served. Virtual attendance: Complete the registration form to receive Zoom connection information. To request a reasonable accommodation, contact Ruth Hallsworth (207.581.3196).
Podcast Hosts Talk about Stephen King Double Feature Thursday
On Thursday, October 19, English Professor Jennifer Moxley and Intermedia Artist Sean Lopez will host I Saw What You Did podcasters Danielle Henderson and Millie De Chirico for an event made possible with the support of the Stephen E. King Chair in Literature and the McGillicuddy Humanities Center. They write:
Please join us on Thursday October 19 from 3:30-5:30 at IMRC 104 – The Fernald Adaptive Presentation and Performance Environment for a public discussion of two films based on Stephen King novels—Pet Sematary (1989) and Misery (1990). Millie De Chirico and Danielle Henderson will talk us through these two classic films, with clips and commentary, followed by a discussion and Q & A.
Started in 2020, I Saw What You Did is a film podcast distributed by Exactly Right media. Millie De Chirico and Danielle Henderson have brought new voices to film commentary. As one listener puts it: “As a Queer Latina woman who has always identified as a cinephile, film podcasts and most mainstream film discussions haven’t always felt like they were meant for me; it’s always felt like a boys club with a perspective that I didn’t always agree on. Needless to say, this podcast has made that feeling disappear.”
Danielle Henderson is a TV writer (Maniac, Divorce, Dare Me, and more), a retired freelance writer, and a former editor for Rookie. A book based on her popular website, Feminist Ryan Gosling, was released by Running Press in August 2012. Her memoir, The Ugly Cry, was published by Viking in June 2021. Currently she’s a show-runner for The Other Black Girl.
Filipina-American Millie Chirico worked as a programmer for “TCM Underground” for 18 years and recently released a book she co-wrote called TCM Underground: 50 Must-See Films from the World of Classic Cult and Late-Night Cinema.
The October 19 event is free and open to the public. The same day, Thursday at 11am, there will be a drop by coffee/tea chat with Millie and Danielle in the Wicks Room. Students interested in writing for TV, film programming, memoir writing, should come and talk to these professional women!
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