Feb. 8, 2002

Contact: Jo Ann Lloyd
(805)756-1511

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Nationally Known Author, Physicist, Environmentalist Amory Lovins To
Speak At Cal Poly March 8

As part of Cal Poly's ongoing Centennial Celebration, the university is planning its second annual History Day March 8, focusing on environmental issues and featuring a lecture by nationally known physicist, environmentalist and energy expert Amory Lovins.

Lovins will speak on "Sustainability and the Future of the Polytechnic
University," and will discuss the importance of environmental
stewardship, research and education as part of Cal Poly's mission in
its second century of existence. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. in
Chumash Auditorium. Admission is free and the public is invited.

A nationally recognized author, physicist and environmentalist, Lovins
was among 39 people named by the Wall Street Journal's centennial issue
as "most likely to change the course of business." He has also received
a "Hero for the Planet" award from Time magazine, and Newsweek praised
him as "one of the Western world's most influential energy thinkers."

"We are thrilled to have Amory Lovins with us for this occasion," said
Cal Poly Provost Paul Zingg. "He is a person of both passion and
action, and I expect he will challenge Cal Poly to develop more fully
an environmental consciousness and a commitment to environmental
education."

Lovins is the co-author of "Natural Capitalism: The New Industrial
Revolution." His current work focuses on transforming the car,
electricity, and real estate sectors.

Lovins is the founder and chairman of Hypercar Inc., a new company
established to promote auto research and development. Car magazine put
him on its list of the 25 most powerful people in the global automotive
industry. He is also the co-founder, CEO and research director of Rocky
Mountain Institute, founded in 1982 as an independent nonprofit
resource policy center.

A physicist educated at Harvard and Oxford, Lovins' has worked in
energy, sustainability, and resource management fields. He has earned
six honorary doctorates, a MacArthur Fellowship, the Heinz Award and
the Onassis Prize. Lovins has held visiting academic chairs in the
United States and Canada, briefed more than 15 heads of state and
serves on the U.S. Department of Energy's senior advisory board.

In addition to Lovins' lecture, the March 8 event will include a slide
show and display about the Cal Poly Land Project. The project is an
interdisciplinary faculty effort exploring the intersections of nature,
science, technology, agriculture, art and recreation that take place on the
10,000 acres of land under the university's ownership.

The Cal Poly Land Project, now in its second year, has produced an
extensive Web site, http://polyland.lib.calpoly.edu . The project has
also created a new general education class called "Cal Poly Land:
Nature, Technology and Society" and a 250-page book to be published
this spring titled "Cal Poly Land: A Field Guide."

"The formation of the Campus Sustainability Initiative, the Cal Poly
Land Project, and this Centennial event are part of a growing
nationwide movement, known as 'education for sustainability,' 'greening
the campus' or 'campus ecology,'" said English Professor Steven Marx,
one of the coordinators of the event.

Pablo Paster, a manufacturing engineering junior and one of the
organizers of this year's History Day, said the event's focus on
environmental stewardship is particularly significant at this time.
"Cal Poly has a potential for leadership in this movement because of
its distinction in engineering, agriculture and technology, its
practical orientation and its large land holdings," Paster explained.

Lovins' appearance at Cal Poly is part of the university's Centennial
Celebration, and is sponsored by the Cal Poly Campus Sustainability
Initiative, the California Faculty Association, the College of Liberal
Arts, the College of Architecture and Environmental Design, the College
of Science and Mathematics, the College of Agriculture, and the Orfalea
College of Business, among others.

For background information on Lovins, visit his biography page in the
staff section of the Rocky Mountain Institute Web site at
www.rmi.org/sitepages/pid166.php. For more on the book "Natural
Capitalism," including downloadable chapters, go to www.natcap.org/.
For an essay summarizing the book, co-authored with Hunter Lovins and
Paul Hawken, go to http://cla.calpoly.edu/~smarx /
Nature/NatCap/natcap.html

Information on the Cal Poly Land Project can be found at
http://polyland.lib.calpoly.edu.
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