The Publix Marathon runs through Decatur again this Sunday, so prepare your driving/cheering plans accordingly.

According to the schedule posted on the marathon’s website, you will see road closures around Decatur between 7:30a-11a.  This is similar to previous years.

Also, remember to get out there and cheer for the marathon runners.  The top 2 cheering zones this year win $1,500 and $1,000, respectively.  In year’s past, the winnings have gone to support Decatur Active Living programs.

The Decatur Minute says that city staff “will be there with plenty of noisemakers, pom-poms, and doughnuts to share.”  They also note the official groups will be located ” in front of Felini’s , the Old Courthouse, or near the Eastlake Marta Station.”

Megan sends along this call for performers…

Celebrate the Arts in Decatur this spring!  The Decatur Arts Alliance is seeking street performers, artists, singers, musicians and dancers to enliven our downtown on Saturday afternoons.  Selected artists will receive $100 for their two hour performance.

Interested?  Send an email with some sort of audition clip to:  sidewalksaturdayartists@gmail.com

Diane sends along this announcement…

Due to pending construction, the Decatur High Community Garden has had to move all of its plots to the Sugar Creek Garden.
Saturday, we are having a MASSIVE work day to transfer soil into the garden beds. We need all kinds of volunteers. Yes, we’re sad that the garden will be paved, but we’re excited by the prospect of new growth.

Community Service volunteer hours available.  We will work Saturday, March 21, from 9 a.m. until noon (possibly later) at the Sugar Creek Garden, 415 East Lake Drive, Decatur, GA. Please wear old clothes and bring a water bottle; we provide the tools. Diane Loupe, [email protected] , or 404-374-3990.

Photo courtesy of Google Streetview

Commissioner Fred Boykin sends along this reminder…

Tuesday, March 24! Please join fellow cyclists, metro area mayors and other elected officials for the tenth annual Georgia Rides To The Capitol event as we ride to the state capitol in support of better cycling conditions in Georgia. The Decatur ride will be led by Decatur City Commissioner Fred Boykin and leaves from the E. Lake MARTA station (north parking lot) at 10:45 am. The route is an easy paced, 5 mile ride and will be police escorted to the capitol (not the return).

Governor Nathan Deal is expected to address the cyclists at noon. FREE registration (registrants are covered by event insurance).  FREE commemorative leg bands for all who register. Donations gladly accepted. $50.00 donations get a commemorative 10th anniversary cycling cap! Details on the web site. Click here for the details.

Due to the high chance of rain tomorrow, some St. Patrick’s Day festivities are being pushed back to Sunday.

This includes Steinbeck’s celebration, which has been advertised here for the past few days and benefits the Decatur Education Foundation, originally planned for tomorrow afternoon.  But you can expect the same events, kid-friendly atmosphere and bouncy house on Sunday afternoon.

Feel free to use this post to update readers on the status of other area St. Patrick’s Day events around Atlanta!

Disclosure: Steinbeck’s is a DM Sponsor

Photo courtesy of the Examiner

Professor Melissa Lane, Class of 1943 Professor of Politics, Princeton University

Harald sends along details about an interesting talk being given at Agnes Scott College tomorrow night…

• Thursday, March 12 at 7:30 p.m.

• The Frannie Graves Auditorium (rm. 128), Campbell Hall

• Agnes Scott College, 141 East College Avenue

• Decatur, Georgia, 30030

The field of climate change communication (CCC) has recently emerged to address the gap between scientific knowledge of climate change and public motivation to respond. Psychologists in this field have offered helpful strategies for improving the effectiveness of CCC, but their empirical research tends to neglect the ethics of CCC. Philosophers have been more attentive to ethical communication, but they tend to focus on its cognitive dimensions and minimize the affective and social dimensions that contribute to effectiveness. As a result, studies that address ethics and effectiveness in tandem are lacking.

In this lecture, drawing on work with co-author Michael Lamb, I will fill this gap by recovering insights from Aristotle’s Rhetoric. By situating all communication within an ethical relationship between speaker and auditor, emphasizing the agency and judgment of auditors, and highlighting ways to build trust, Aristotle offers an art of rhetoric that can help climate scientists communicate both ethically and effectively.

Decatur Arts Alliance’s Angie Macon sends along this announcement…