With Election Day rapidly approaching, Western Washington University is holding panel discussions, titled "Beyond the Surface: Election 2024," covering various electoral issues.
The series of discussions is presented by the Ralph Munro Institute for Civic Education along with The Centers for Student Access, Community, and Intercultural Engagement. Panels have been held every Tuesday this October in Miller Hall 138 from 4 to 5:30 p.m.
“Part of what motivated this series was the importance of this election year, and how all of us are struggling to think about how we understand these complex issues in a time of such intense polarization,” said Kate Destler, director of the Ralph Munro Institute for Civic Education and a political science professor at Western.
Destler began conceptualizing the series with Litav Langley, the assistant vice president for The Centers, back in February 2024. The two decided early on that the focus should be on issues and policies rather than candidates.
“We thought there was more hope for productive conversations around the dimensions of foreign policy, immigration or environmental concerns rather than ‘Are you for Trump or Harris?’” Destler said.
Western faculty from different departments act as panel members for each discussion and the last 30 minutes are reserved for audience questions.
The Oct. 22 panel, titled “Protecting Our Planet: Election Stakes in Washington and Beyond,” focused on several environmental issues on the Washington ballot this fall. The panelists were made up of professors in WWU’s Urban and Environmental Planning, Political Science and Economics departments. Cookies and coffee were provided to audience members near the lecture hall’s doorway.
“I’ve been to the last few [panels], but today they were talking about protecting our planet, which is a really important topic to me,” said third-year WWU student Taylor Carnell. “It’s very vital and important to the state of Washington.”
The series will conclude on Thursday, Nov. 7 — two days after Election Day — with a discussion titled “What Happened? What We Know and What We Don’t.” As the name suggests, the discussion will focus on what happened on Election Day — whether the president-elect has been decided or not.
Sean Lynch (he/him) is a campus news reporter for The Front this quarter. He is a third-year visual journalism major. Outside of reporting, Sean likes skateboarding, reading and playing kendama. You can reach him at seanlynch.thefront@gmail.com.
