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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 9, 2004)
018733 JOIN US FOR EASTER WORSHIP! April 10, 2004 Holy Saturday 7:00pm Easter Vigil, the first service of Easter April 11, 2004 The Resurrection of Our Lord, Easter Day 8:30am and 11:00am Easter breakfast-parish hall 9:30-11:00am Lutheran Church Corner of 18th &. Potter • 345.0395 www.welcometocentral.org All are welcome. ISLANDWOOD w ^ Come and Graduate Studies in Environmental and Community-based Education tsfandWood/Udiversity of Washington Partnership DEGREE OPTIONS •Certificate in Education for Environment & Community • Masters Degrees at UW • MIT/Teacher Certification at City University MORE INFORMATION e-mail graduateprogram@islandwood.org phone 206.855.4300 www.islandwood.org/graduateprogram PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS • IslandWood faculty teach graduate courses grounded in multicultural, environmental, integrated, and experiential education. • Graduate students teach children from diverse back grounds and live in cabins on IslandWood's 255-acre campus only 35 minutes from downtown Seattle. • Applications available online. ISLANDWOOD 4450 Blakely Avenue NE Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 Canola farmer, legal experts to discuss Monsanto battle The one-day conference held in Agate Hall features experts on both legal and agricultural matters By Steven Neuman News Reporter A Canadian canola farmer fighting for patent rights to genetically altered seeds that grew spontaneously on his property will discuss his ongoing le gal battle tonight at 7 p.m. in the Agate Hall auditorium. Speaker Percy Schmeiser is current ly engaged in a legal battle in the Canadian Supreme Court with Mon santo, a corporation that develops and markets genetically modified seeds. The company sued him for patent infringement when seeds from its "Roundup Ready Canola" drifted onto his farm. The keynote speech, titled "David v. Goliath: Patent Law and the Might of Monsanto," is part of a one-day sym posium being held today and is spon sored by the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics. The symposium, dubbed "Maithus, Mendel, and Monsanto: Intellectual Property and the Law and Politics of Global Food Supply," will feature ex perts in patent law, plant genetics and agriculture. The convention takes its name from Thomas Malthus, an Eng lish economist who theorized that world population tends to multiply faster than the food supply, and Gregor Mendel, an Austrian monk and botanist widely considered the fa ther of genetics. The symposium will explore how extending intellectual property rights to seeds affects farmers, and how recent Supreme Court deci sions and new technologies threaten global food security and genetic di versity, according to a University press release. "Rapid shifts in the supply of the world's food certainly has implications for global peace and stability." Caroline Forell Wayne Morse Center Interim Director "Over the past two decades, genetic engineers have created and patented improvements in seeds used to grow staple crops," said Keith Aoki, Univer sity law professor and conference or ganizer. "New international agree ments establish the global scope of those patent rights and have allowed a decreasing number of multinational corporations to capture much of the global agricultural market with their patented seed." Aoki said four or five corporations could end up with a lock on the glob al seed supply. Second-year law student J.J. Haa pala, who helped organize the event, is studying the intellectual property laws of agriculture and is also a local farmer. "I think it's important to look at this relationship between farmers and (seed) breeders," Haapala said. "Set ting up this artificial distinction has worked to our disadvantage." He said that during the last 100 years, growers have been divorced from developers in the United States. "With the green revolution, the seed became seen as a transport de vice for breeder's products," Haapala said. "Instead of breeding seeds re gionally to match climate, we sudden ly had blanket crops." The lecture and conference is part of a two-year effort by the Wayne Morse Center to explore "The Chang ing Geopolitical Order: Implications for Peace and Stability." " Rapid shifts in the supply of the world's food certainly has implica tions for global peace and stability," Wayne Morse Center Interim Director Caroline Forell said. The one-day symposium is al ready sold out, but tickets are still available for Schmeiser's lecture, which is open to the public. Admis sion is $5. Agate Hall is located at 1787 Agate St. Contact tiie business/science/ technology reporter at stevenneuman@dailyemerald.com. Monitored alarms in every apt. ^ Nighttime uniformed security officer 7 nights a week f Courtesy managers on duty 7 days a week On-site computer lab Faxing & photocopy services available ^ Clubhouse w/ game room f Fitness center f Ample resident and visitor parking f Resort-like swimming pool f Lighted volleyball and basketball courts f Outdoor gas grills & bbq f Decked out kitchens f Cable/internet hookups 1/ Emergency alarm buttons v' Individual leases f Roommate matching service f On bus route to campus | Furnished 1,2, and 4 bedroom apartments with washer/dryer starting at $335. Call today to ask about our $100 off security deposit special. For a limited time only. UniverSITY Open Monday - Saturday '.“"“"r,8 www.universitycommons.com NEWS BRIEFS Free tax filing available on campus Saturday University accounting honors soci ety Beta Alpha Psi is holding its fourth and final tax preparation Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program work shop Saturday from 10 to 4 p.m. in 228 Chiles. About 60 volunteers, including Beta Alpha Psi pledges and members and representatives from the IRS, AARP and local accounting firms, are helping file tax returns. "This service is free, whereas profes sionals charge for their services, and even online services charge a small fee to file some returns," VITA Program Marketing Coordinator Reem Haj said. "We also walk individuals through the process so that they can gain knowledge about how to file their own taxes." Haj said VITA has helped about 100 people with their returns this year and more than 700 people since the pro gram started five years ago. He said the most common forms filed are the 1040,1040EZ and 1040A. "We help students save money on their returns by helping to identify taxable and nontaxable income de pending on whether it is a state or fed eral return," Haj said. The program started at the Uni versity when a representative from the IRS contacted Helen Gernon, Charles H. Lundquist College of Business accounting department head, to see if Beta Alpha Psi want ed to participate in the program as a means of community service and as a way to help the fraternity members get more experience in preparing tax returns, Haj said. Haj said appointments are sched uled on a first-come, first-served basis. Returns take from 30 minutes to one hour to complete and can be filed electronically if individuals also bring a copy of last year's tax return. Haj said interested individuals should bring all tax-related documents and copies of their social security card and last year's tax re turn. VITA helps with federal tax forms for U.S. citizens and state re turns for Oregon residents. Tax filing information for international students is available at http://oip.uoregon.edu/iss/tax/. — Jennifer Sudick Casting call to be held Saturday for movie filming in Lane County CSC Sisters LLC is holding an open casting call Saturday for non speaking roles in a major motion picture to be shot in Eugene. "Sisters," an adaptation of Russian playwright Anton Chekov's play "Three Sisters," will be filmed entire ly in Lane County, including on the University campus and in Chambers Media Center soundstages. The cast of "Sisters" includes Maria Bello, Rip Torn, Mary Stuart Master son and Chris O'Donnell, and is be ing directed by Arthur Seidelman. The filmmakers are looking for ex tras, college-age and older, to play students, supermarket patrons and other background characters. Around 60 extras are needed and will be required to work for one to 10 days at minimum wage pay. "It should be a lot of fun for the extras, * casting director Ed Ragozzi no said. "They'll be hobnobbing with some pretty big stars." All those interested in working in the film are asked to go to the East Gate of the Chambers Media Cen ter at 2975 Chad Drive this Satur day at 10 a.m. Applicants are also asked to bring a photograph of themselves and a resume listing any work-related experience, although experience is not required in order to receive a role. Principal photography for "Sis ters" is scheduled to begin April 17 and end May 15, according to Ragozzino. — Ryan Nyburg
