Seven professors will share their latest research on biodiversity, team building, chivalry and many other subjects during the six-week Faculty Lecture Series in February and March.

Williams presents its annual Faculty Lecture Series, which runs each Thursday from Feb. 8 through March 14. The series aims to present big ideas beyond disciplinary boundaries. The lectures, which start at 4:15 p.m., are free and open to the public in the Lawrence Hall Auditorium.

The speakers are:

Feb. 8: Laura Martin, associate professor of environmental studies, presents Wild by Design: From Bombs to Biodiversity.”

View Laura Martin’s lecture on YouTube.

Feb. 15: Christi Kelsey, assistant professor of physical education and head women’s volleyball coach, and Tomas Adalsteinsson, assistant professor of physical education and head women’s golf coach, present “Belieph: Cultivating Teams Beyond Courts and Courses.”

View Christi Kesley and Tomas Adalsteinsson’s lecture on YouTube.

Feb. 22: Alex Bevilacqua, associate professor of history, presents “Chivalry and Alterity at the Renaissance Tournament.

Alex Bevilacqua’s lecture was not recorded due to rights restrictions.

Feb. 29: Sarah Olsen, associate professor of classics, presents “The Virgin’s Promise: Euripides’ Helen and the Tragedies of Women.”

View Sarah Olsen’s lecture on YouTube.

March 7: José Constantine, associate professor of geosciences, director of CES and the Environmental Studies Program, “A Journey Through the Historical Impacts and Modern Challenges that Face Tropical River Ecosystems.”

View José Constantine’s lecture on YouTube.

March 14: Christophe Koné, associate professor of German, director of the Oakley Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, “The House of Lagerfeld: Fashioning Homes for an Alternative German Homeland.”

View Christophe Koné’s lecture on YouTube.

Organized by the faculty members of the Lecture Committee, the Faculty Lecture Series was founded in 1911 by Catherine Mariotti Pratt, the spouse of a faculty member who wanted to “relieve the tedium of long New England winters with an opportunity to hear Williams professors talk about issues that really mattered to them.”

From these humble and lighthearted beginnings, the Faculty Lecture Series has grown to become an important forum for tenured professors to share their latest research with the larger intellectual community of the college.

Published February 6, 2024