Authentic Italian-American cuisine is on the menu for the next gourmet dinner hosted by the Department of Hospitality Management, and for the first time, the dinner will feature the pop-up restaurant concept.

A new trend in the hospitality industry, pop-up restaurants appear in surprise locations and offer guests access to delicious new foods and restaurant experiences.

The pop-up restaurant VentiQuattro – Italian for 24 and representing the number of students participating in the gourmet dinner class -- will open its doors at 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30, and Saturday, Dec. 1, at Stillings Hall. Guests will enjoy a cocktail hour of passed hors d’oeuvres, beer from Smuttynose Brewing Co., and wine from E & J Gallo Winery.

Highlights of the gourmet dinner include pear and ricotta ravioli, roasted beef tenderloin, and truffle-infused mashed potatoes. “The food is going to be bold, flavorful, and diverse in its origin. The menu’s inspiration stems from a variety of...

In a paper published in the journal Nature, scientists explain why salt marshes have been disintegrating during the past two decades along the U.S. Eastern seaboard and other highly developed coastlines. Unexpectedly, they discovered that nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus from septic and sewer systems and lawn fertilizers can cause salt marsh loss.  

The researchers, including aquatic ecosystem ecologist Wilfred Wollheim of UNH, based their findings on a long-term, large-scale study of salt marsh landscapes in an undeveloped coastline section of the Plum Island Estuary in Massachusetts. A nitrogen flux model Wollheim developed was used to demonstrate potential areas of global vulnerability.

 "With nutrient enrichment increasing globally due to human activities, these results suggest salt marsh vulnerability to nitrogen pollution could be a widespread concern," says Wollheim, an assistant professor in the UNH department of natural...

I.  Roll – The following senators were absent:  Scherr and Simos.  Guests were John Aber, Lisa MacFarlane and Sonic Woytonik.

II.  Remarks by and questions to the provost – The provost handed out copies of the 9/3/2012 revision of the Policy on Interdisciplinary Schools at UNH.  He recapped the history of interest in a new schools policy, starting in 2003 with certain parts of the Academic Plan, work on a definition of colleges and schools, a study group on a proposal for a marine school, parts of the Strategic Plan, the summer retreat which discussed combining studies in different colleges, last year’s proposed policy on interdisciplinary schools which went to UCAPC and then to the senate for recommendations, and the 5/7/2012 Faculty Senate motions XVI-M23 and XVI-M24 on the proposed general schools policy and marine school policy.  This summer,...

UNH is the state’s host site for the sixth annual China Town Hall, an international event that will focus on China’s rapid development and feature Gary Locke, U.S ambassador to the People's Republic of China.

“China Town Hall: Local Connections, National Reflections” is a national day of programming designed to provide Americans across the United States and beyond the opportunity to discuss these issues with leading experts. The sixth annual CHINA Town Hall will be held at 7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 29, 2012, in Richards Auditorium, Murkland Hall. The event is free and open to the public.

UNH is one of only 59 sites in the nation selected to co-host the event with the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and the World Affairs Council of New Hampshire. The event is sponsored by the UNH Department of Political Science and the Asian Studies program.  

The event features a webcast by Locke, who assumed duty as the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary...

UNH has announced a new quarterly economic index that will help the lodging industry conduct short- and long-range economic planning.

 Managed by the UNH Department of Hospitality Management at the Whittemore School of Business and Economics, the Lodging Executive Sentiment Index (LESI) is based on a monthly survey of 20 lodging executives representing companies with more than 2.5 million hotel rooms across lodging segments and geographic regions of the United States -- more than 55 percent of all U.S. rooms.  

Executives are asked about the present and future conditions of the market. Executives also are asked to report their outlook during the next 12 months about room reservations and employment practices, such as an increase or decrease of their nonmanagerial work force.  

In a forthcoming issue of the Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, UNH researchers E. Hachemi Aliouche, associate professor of hospitality management and...

UNH welcomes Jeffrey Alford, author of several books about geography and food, who will present the annual Holden Lecture Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012. The Holden Lecture “Eating Leaves: Seeing the World through Food on the Thai-Cambodian Border” takes place at 7 p.m. in Richards Auditorium in Murkland Hall. The lecture is sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts and Department of Geography, and is free and open to the public.

“Jeffrey Alford is a fascinating man who has led a fascinating life. Though he writes about food, he shows in the process that geography is essential to understanding how people live around the world and, more specifically, what they eat. He demonstrates how the fundamental aspects of geography — environment, culture, politics, history, economics — interact and come together on a plate,” said...

The American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) announced recently that President Mark Huddleston joined its steering committee. In this role, Huddleston will help guide policy and direction of this national network of colleges and universities that have made institutional commitments to lower greenhouse gas emissions and promote the research and educational efforts needed to help society address climate change.

Huddleston is among 18 college and university presidents named today to the steering committee, which includes presidents from seven New England schools. The steering committee is the chief governing body of the ACUPCC and is responsible for guidance, policy, and direction of the ACUPCC. Its members reflect the diversity of higher education in the United States.  

“I am honored to be part of the next phase of ACUPCC work’s to help society address climate change in positive and proactive ways,” Huddleston...