Conflicts and cooperation from the Columbia River to the Nile

by Hassan Latif and Aaron Wolf

Water connects history, geography and culture, sometimes in surprising ways. This special Science Pub Corvallis will explore the impacts of dams and development in two places — Egypt and the Pacific Northwest. In both regions, communities and cultural treasures were threatened, and in some cases destroyed, by waters rising behind dams that were built to generate electricity, reduce downstream flooding and irrigate crops. Two speakers — Hassan Latif from Cairo, Egypt, and Aaron Wolf of Oregon State University — will share their deep knowledge of these water management projects and ongoing efforts to navigate difficult issues across cultural and political boundaries.