As I was walking back from my Astronomy observation session yesterday, I saw crowds of people outside Sage hall, home to Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. They were affixing a model of a car to the building, putting painted wooden boards on the ground, and drinking beer.
I though it was some not-so-secret-society ritual going on, but, upon inquiring, I was surprised to find out they were pre-gaming Schwarzenegger’s visit.
Yale is currently hosting the Conference of Governors. Its aims include developing a new strategy to combat climate change. While the governors of Kansas, Connecticut, New Jersey and a Premier of Quebec will be present, it is the California’s governor who seems to attract most of Yalies’ attention.
All Yale students, faculty, and staff received an e-mail from the Dean of School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale inviting them to come over to Woolsey Hall (the hall with the largest seating capacity) and to listen to the Connecticut and California governors talk. Soon the campus was buzzing with the news. Facebook statuses screamed “the Governator is coming!!!” and the students claimed “Yeah, I just wanna stop by and see Him.”
Yale is no stranger to celebrities: from Henry Kissinger to the Czech Prime deputy prime minister to Arnold Schwarzenegger, one can easily get their fix of celebrities at the guest lectures. But as far as I remember, tomorrow is one of the few times for visitors to speak at Woolsey Hall, which is usually reserved for freshman President address etc.
Probably not all Yalies who will be flocking up to Woolsey Hall tomorrow are interested in environmentalism , but hopefully Schwarzenegger’s address will raise awareness about the global climate change. As for me, the California governor’s address is just an added bonus to the exciting political event. But cheers to the Governator for drawing our attention to the climate change issues.
