The Prairie Landscape

All-Consuming: Conversations on Oil and Water

Using the lens of the humanities, the Illinois Humanities Council will present All-Consuming: Conversations on Oil and Water, a year-long, state-wide series that examines the key issues related to access to and control of oil and water.

Beginning fall 2008, the IHC plans to present 16 to 18 programs statewide in a variety of formats: film, lectures, debates, art presentations, etc. A series of eight programs in the Chicago metro area will be complemented by eight to ten programs developed locally with other communities throughout Illinois.

The All-Consuming series is designed to:

  • Introduce Illinois audiences to the questions raised by the access to and exploitation of oil and water
  • Involve Illinois audiences in conversations about the implications of the abundance and scarcity of oil and water at the global, national, and individual level
  • Engage different disciplines within the humanities as a lens through which to examine oil and water, both as natural resources and as cultural anchors, especially their role in dividing and uniting civilizations
  • Connect Illinois audiences to experts and scholars who will advance their understanding of the topic

For more information, e-mail the IHC or call 312.422.5580 .