Chapman University’s Vice President for Research Thomas Piechota hosts and moderates the next Ask the Experts Virtual Town Hall. The Ask the Experts installment brings together knowledgeable people from a variety of disciplines, viewpoints, and backgrounds to discuss timely topics surrounding the challenges that we face as a community and people.

The event titled, OC Annual Survey: Public Perceptions of Climate Change is scheduled for Friday, September 18, 11:30 -12:30 PM and will feature OC Annual Survey authors Fred Smoller, Ph.D. and Mike Moodian, Ed.D. along with panelists Seung Hee Kim, Ph.D., Associate Director of The Center of Excellence in Earth Systems Modeling & Observations (CEESMO);  Georgiana Bostean, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Environmental Science; and Paul A. Cook Manager of the Irvine Ranch Water District and Chair of the Chapman University Board of Governors. The panel will discuss the public perceptions of climate change, the subject of this year’s survey and implications in various sectors (e.g., water, health, wildfires).  Join us to learn more about this timely topic and ask questions of your local experts.

The entire Chapman community (staff, faculty, and students) as well as the broader community are invited to join. Q & A will follow. Registration is required.

Fred Smoller, Ph.D., is Associate Professor in the Wilkinson College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of Political Science where he has been on the faculty since 1983. He received his Ph.D. from Indiana University. His major areas of interest are American politics, with an emphasis on media and politics, local government, and public administration. Smoller directs Chapman’s annual local government conference, the Orange County Annual Survey, and is the author of the 2018 book, From Kleptocracy to Democracy: How Citizens Can Take Back Local Government.

Michael (Mike) A. Moodian, Ed.D., is a lecturer of leadership studies for the Attallah College of Educational Studies, and he co-directs the Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Orange County Annual Survey each spring. He is the editor of the textbook Contemporary Leadership and Intercultural Competence (Sage, 2009) and a member of the UC Irvine Olive Tree Initiative Advisory Board. California Governor Jerry Brown appointed Mike to the California Commission on Judicial Performance in 2015 and reappointed Mike to the commission for a four-year term in 2017. Mike’s colleagues on the commission voted him vice-chairperson this year.

Seung Hee Kim, Ph.D., is Associate Director of The Center of Excellence in Earth Systems Modeling & Observations (CEESMO). Dr. Kim received his Ph.D. from UCLA and joined Chapman in 2012. His areas of research include climate change and its impact assessment, climate variability, and severe weather. Besides climate work, his research has attracted attention in several other fields such as wildfire, drought, and other natural disasters.

Georgiana Bostean, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Environmental Science, Health and Policy at Chapman University. She is a demographer and sociologist by training, with a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Irvine, and postdoctoral training in cancer prevention and control research at UCLA. Broadly, her research is around population health and health disparities, focusing on immigrant and Latino groups. Dr. Bostean’s research examines the factors contributing to disparities in health outcomes and health behaviors, particularly smoking and vaping. Her work has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, American Lung Association, and UC Office of the President, and has been published in journals including American Journal of Public Health, Social Science & Medicine, and Stress & Health.

Paul A. Cook is the General Manager of the Irvine Ranch Water District (IRWD), which is known as a national leader among water and wastewater agencies for innovative water supply projects, creative water management solutions, and water efficiency programs.   Previously Mr. Cook served as the Manager of Engineering for the Central and West Basin Municipal Water Districts in Los Angeles County area. As a long-time Orange County resident, Mr. Cook was elected to the Orange County Water District Board of Directors where he served for three years including a term as Vice President. He is a registered Civil Engineer and Class A Licensed General Contractor in California. He holds a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from California State University, Long Beach and a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of California, Irvine.  Mr. Cook serves as Chair of the Chapman University Board of Governors.