A new attraction is creating buzz as the Oregon Bach Festival kicks off its 44th edition this week. Performances begin Thursday night and last through July 12, drawing audiences from around the country and featuring several international musicians

The new attraction this year is the Berwick Academy for Historical Performance. Musicians from all over the country have come to Eugene for this three-day intensive program.

The practice is called “historically-informed” performance. The goal is to make the pieces sound as close to their debut performance as possible, said Dave Goudy, interim education director for the festival.

“It will give the audience a new view of a piece than how it was recorded for the last 100 years,” Goudy said.

The Berwick Academy will perform an all-Beethoven concert on Saturday, May 27, and an all-Bach concert the following Friday, July 3.

Phyllis and Andrew Berwick recently donated $6.5 million to the festival. The Berwicks are University of Oregon alumni; they’re $7.25 million donation last year helped start the academy.

Their most recent donation is funding a new building for OBF headquarters. The new two-story building will be located south of the music school facing 18th Ave. It is expected to open before the 2017 festival.

The educational aspect of the Berwick Academy is nothing new.

When the festival began, it was part of the music school on the UO campus. The festival “got started as an education program,” Goudy said.

Other educational programs will go on to perform at the festival as well, such as the Stangeland Family Youth Choral Academy for high school vocal performers and the Conducting Master Class, taught by Matthew Halls, OBF artistic director. The conducting class alone has had over 1,000 graduates since the festival began.

OBF’s position in the university is similar to the museums on campus. They are university-run programs that mostly operate independently.

“As a program of the University of Oregon,” OBF’s mission statement says, “the festival provides the highest level of performances and innovative educational opportunities.”

Interim Executive Director Michael Anderson started as a clarinetist in the festival 35 years ago, and has worked there ever since.

“We couldn’t run the organization without about half the staff knowing classical,” Anderson said.

The festival continues Eugene’s reputation for international events, carrying on from the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships held at Hayward Field two weeks ago.

“Eugene is a small town. It’s not easy to get to,” said Goudy. “But we achieve things that you wouldn’t expect.”

Malaria kills a child in Africa once every minute. There were 584,000 deaths in 2013.

Mosquitoes spread the disease through their bite. If there’s no bite, there’s no disease transmission.

Professors Christina Holzapfel and William Bradshaw at the University of Oregon are attempting to stop mosquitoes from biting. If successful, they could stop the spread of malaria all around the world.

“It would relieve so much pain,” Holzapfel said.

At the center of their research is a simple observation: there is a certain species of mosquito, Wyeomyia smithii, that bites in one geographic area but not in another. This is the only species that varies in this way. Wyeomyia smithii lives in the eastern United States, from Northern Florida to Canada.

South of North Carolina, female mosquitoes take blood for food. North of the state though, that species of mosquito are obligate non-biters, meaning they do not need blood meals.

The goal of Holzapfel and Bradshaw’s research is to isolate the gene in the northern mosquitoes responsible for their non-biting nature.

Wyeomyia smithii has roughly 28,000 genes. The biters and non-biters differ in about 3,000. They are collaborating with several other universities around the world in the process of analyzing each individual gene and eliminating the ones not responsible. Once they get the number down to under 100, they will hand the project over to another team. That team will use a technique called RNAi, which will interfere with the expression of individual genes to determine the one responsible.

Once the culprit gene is identified, another team will create a non-toxic gene inhibitor. This will basically turn off biting in mosquitoes that blood feed.

Bradshaw and Holzapfel’s research has implications at home as well as overseas. Although three quarters of mosquitoes live in warmer, tropic climates, mosquitoes are moving farther north. Because temperatures have been steadily rising over the past few decades, mosquitoes are moving to maintain their same climate. Willamette Valley has a history of malaria. Two hundred years ago the area was referred to as “The Valley of Death” because of how rampant the disease was.

The lab is dedicated to training student research scientists. They believe the earlier students have access to practical research, the earlier they can decide if they wish to pursue that career. “They get to see the dragon,” said Bradshaw. “They either pick up a sword or do something else.”

Eight undergraduates work at the lab. Caitlin Nichols, a math major with a pre-med focus at the UO, is one.

She has bred several generations of mosquitoes, crossing northern and southern types of Wyeomyia smithii. She then hangs a rat in the cage to test which combinations are biters. All of the research is conducted in controlled environment rooms, which allow the researchers to precisely control variables like humidity and day length. Each one of these rooms costs roughly $1,000,000.

Nichols joined the lab because she is fascinated with the health implications of the research. She says the lab lets her focus her research toward her area of study.

“They have been so supportive,” Nichols said. Nichols is graduating, and she had her final day at the lab last week.

Bradshaw and Holzapfel have been doing research with mosquitoes since they were studying at Harvard in the 1970s. Their research has touched on areas such as habitat study and climate change. They believe their lives of constant research are similar to being a student. They’re always learning something new and creating new knowledge.

“Research is who we are,” said Holzapfel.

In rural sections of Africa, many people do not have access to banks. Instead, they get together as a community and lock their savings away in a metal trunk. Their system is working surprisingly well, so Alfredo Burlando, professor of economics at the University of Oregon, has been studying them for several years.

These community banks are called “savings groups,” and they serve an important function. People in small villages in Africa, far away from big cities, can’t interact with big banks in any way. This means they have no access to savings or loans and can’t accrue interest. Savings groups provide a simple form of banking to these rural villages.

“The concept of a savings group didn’t exist in East Africa until 20 years ago,” Burlando said. Because of their effectiveness, they have been expanding rapidly since then. “It just spread naturally,” said Burlando.

Savings groups operate on a community level. Once a week about 20 to 30 people meet, usually outside in a community area of their village, and deposit money into their account. All deposits are recorded in personal and group logbooks then locked away in a secure footlocker. The locker needs three keys to open, so all three key holders must be present.

Group members also have the option to take out a loan. Loan sizes are determined by the frequency and size of the member’s usual deposits.

After one year, the savings group redistributes all of the money gathered, including interest from loans. Group members can expect a return on their savings by as much as 15 percent. At the end of a one-year cycle the group dissolves, and a new one is formed for the next year.

There has been a high level of intrigue with savings groups, but very little scholarship. In 2012, Burlando went to Uganda and set up the first project and proposal to study the groups. He wanted to know how the groups function, how the poverty of many of the members affected the group, and if the system itself was doing good things for the people using it. “That’s ultimately what we care about,” said Burlando. “Did we find a way to help the ultra-poor?”

Burlando has a few projects set up for studying savings groups. The long term project involves starting a new savings group from scratch and studying its progress.

The data collection alone takes over a year, or one group cycle. Burlando is currently studying some of this data.

The second project involves lending more money to certain groups to see how they utilize it. This project has been done in collaboration with Norwegian Non-Governmental Organizations, and Ugandan banks, who are both interested in the outcome.

There are many undergraduate and graduate students involved with the project, from schools all around the world. In 2013, UO student Derek Wolfson went to Uganda as a part of Burlando’s team before he graduated. “I had a really good time. I enjoyed the research,” said Wolfson.

A major part of Wolfson’s work in Uganda was developing communication with the study subjects. The first few weeks were focused on translating the economic terms involved. “Some of these things are culturally hard to get through,” Wolfson said.

Wolfson believes going to Uganda was his most valuable experience at the UO. He now works in a similar field, and wants to help very poor populations. “The goal is to better involve these people in financial inclusion,” he said.

Burlando said he is planning to involve more students as the study continues. He was the guest speaker at UO’s Economics Club on May 4 and talked about his research.

“I thought it was really interesting,” said Patrick McClellan, a student in the Economics Club. “Personally, I wanted to go help him with it. It’s a different approach to development in an underdeveloped county.”

The ultimate goal of the project is to inform practitioners working in Africa. There is the academic side, which will ultimately produce a paper, and there is the practical side, which will result in talks at conferences and meetings with Ugandan economists. “We want the results to be known,” said Burlando. “We want to provide them with some answers.”

Sunlight shimmers through a glass ceiling onto rows of brightly colored flowers. In the summer, tall corn stalks fill a small field. Professors, students and maintenance crews scurry around the site, studying the small details of individual plants. The University of Oregon Greenhouse Facility, which is tucked away by Riverfront Field and the Autzen Footbridge, is home to the UO’s flora.

The greenhouse encompasses 6,000 square feet of space. There are two greenhouses by Riverfront Field and a smaller one on top of the Onyx Bridge. A one-acre field is often filled with corn. All of the plants grown in the facilities are studied by professors and students at the university. Some projects study the biology, evolution or pollination of certain plants. Other projects focus on the microscopic, studying individual cells and their make up.

The projects supported by the greenhouse come from a variety of sources. Professors and students study plants there with work varying from the post-doctorate to undergraduate level. The greenhouse has collaborations with multiple universities across the country, such as Duke University.

“There are a whole bunch of departments and a lot of students who depend on the greenhouse,” said Brian Dykstra, the greenhouse manager.

Dykstra and a team of students do all the maintenance at the facility. They provide advice to project leaders about growth conditions and pest management. Besides Dykstra, the greenhouse is completely run by student workers.

“I’ve learned a lot about plant care, pollination, and overall greenhouse maintenance,” said Noah Stuart, a greenhouse employee.

“My favorite part is being able to participate in the science research that is being done at the university,” said Tobias Earley, another employee.

Surrounded by an eight-foot chain-link fence and bordered on one side by an impenetrable field of blackberry bushes, the greenhouse is kept very secure.

In the past, the greenhouse was vandalized by people attributed to eco-terrorist groups. The most common form is throwing rocks at the greenhouse’s glass windows. The attacks are believed to come from a misunderstanding about the practices at the greenhouse. There are no genetically modified organisms at the greenhouse and associates of the greenhouse stress the fact that the experiments at the greenhouse are just basic research, not genetic manipulation.

The funding for the greenhouse comes from user fees, research grants and the university. User fees range from less than a dollar for a square foot of space to hundreds of dollars for field space or an entire soil bed.

Most of the funding comes from research grants provided by organizations like the National Institute of Health and the National Science Foundation. Grants have been awarded for over $1 million. Whenever a grant is received, a portion of the proceeds are given to the university to pay for infrastructure needs, like washing windows and mowing lawns. When the university subsidizes the greenhouses, they use money from this fund.

None of the greenhouse’s funding comes from student tuition.

For over 50 years, the university greenhouse has supported the research and teaching mission of professors and students. There will be important scientific discoveries coming from the greenhouse for many years.

Over 100 candles were lit on Tuesday in remembrance of the victims of the Nepal earthquakes. The candlelight vigil took place in the Erb Memorial Union amphitheater at 7 p.m.

Several people spoke before the candles were lit, including international students from Nepal, a student who was visiting Nepal when the earthquake struck and a physician who will soon travel to Nepal to aid relief efforts.

“Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,” Sugam Singh said, one of the international students who spoke at the vigil.

“I see you all as part of Nepal,” said Anjani Lama, another international student at the event.

Other speakers emphasized the resilience of Nepal and the quick response by the Eugene community to assist Nepal’s recovery. It was announced that the Eugene City Council has voted to send $50,000 to the country’s relief efforts.

A brisk wind blew through the crowd as the candles were lit, so keeping them aflame was difficult. People relit each others’ candles when they blew out. “Perseverance in times of adversity,” Singh said, calling it symbolic of the struggles in Nepal.

Overall the event was designed to raise awareness, according to Lama. “The target is to bring awareness and also to let people know that our country needs help,” she said. Attendees were encouraged to donate online, as money could could not be gathered by event organizers themselves since cash donations are not allowed to be collected on university property.

“Speaking as a student myself,” Singh said, “I realize it’s hard to give, but student groups have helped out in other ways.” He added that simply showing solidarity for Nepal is helpful. “Remember the victims, remember the survivors,” he said to the crowd, “but also remember Nepal in two weeks, a month, two months from now.”

Many speakers criticized the government’s relief efforts in Nepal, saying that most of the work has been done by volunteers. Marie Caroline Pons, a UO student in attendance, called the event “a representation of what’s happening in Nepal. There’s this effort for people to do things by themselves.” She called the gathering symbolic of that community effort to help.

“We’re continuing to pray,” Ani Padmadechoktso said, a Tibetan nun in attendance. She reminded the crowd that Eugene itself is on a fault line and is expecting a 9.0 earthquake in its future.

After the vigil, attendees signed a banner that will be sent to Nepal. The banner was covered with notes like “We are with you,” “Best wishes,” and “Everything will be better.”

Large red type at the top of the banner read “Nepal will rise again!”

A candlelight vigil will honor Nepal earthquake victims at the Erb Memorial Union amphitheater on Tuesday, May 5 at 7 p.m.

Several people will speak, including community members and students from Nepal, members of the Eugene-Kathmandu Sister City Committee and a Springfield physician who will soon assist relief efforts in Nepal. A UO student who was in Nepal during the earthquake will speak if she is able to return to campus by the start of the vigil.

The vigil will include lighting candles, writing notes to victims and signing the event banner. Attendees are also invited to donate to recovery efforts online at kathmandurelief.org.

Eugene has partnered with Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, as part of the Sister City program. As of Monday, May 4 the volunteer-run Eugene-Kathmandu Sister City Committee has raised $13,000 of their $100,000 goal.

Nepal was devastated by a magnitude–7.8 earthquake on April 25. Buildings and roads not reinforced with steel were permanently destroyed, and the death toll currently exceeds 7,000. A series of aftershocks have made relief efforts slow and difficult. Geologists worry that aftershocks could continue for up to a year after the initial earthquake.

Michael Gannon fell asleep in the Lawrence Architecture Library on Feb. 16, 2014. At 12:35 that night, two hours after the building had closed, an officer of the University of Oregon Police Department found him, woke him up, and asked him to explain why he was there. According to his attorney Brian Michaels, Gannon was only in the library by accident. He had fallen asleep before the library closed. Gannon is homeless, but Michaels says he was not using the library as a replacement for a warm bed. The officer deemed Gannon’s reason’s insufficient, so he issued him a letter of trespass, banning Gannon from all University of Oregon property for 18 months.

Letters of trespass are different than tickets. Gannon was not charged with trespassing, which would have meant a ticket and possible arrest. Instead, letters of trespass involve no tickets, just complete bans from campus.

Gannon’s attorney describes him as an avid reader, who visited the university libraries frequently. Gannon contacted an attorney and filed an appeal with UO Police Chief Carolyn McDermed on Feb. 26. Gannon felt that his constitutional rights were violated, since the university and sections of its owned property are public areas, meaning the UOPD should not be able to prohibit his access to them.

Michaels feels that Gannon is part of a history of discrimination by the university. He believes the university targeted Gannon because he is homeless.

There has been a history of homeless people on campus receiving letters of trespass, Michaels said. Gannon knows several people who have been trespassed off campus. Michaels, has seen several other cases, but Gannon’s is the first he has pursued. Other stories Michaels has heard involve people sleeping on benches and grassy areas.

“[UOPD is] using minor infractions as a trigger to kick these people off campus for 18 months,” Michaels said. He doesn’t deny that being in Lawrence after-hours was against the law.

“If they had just charged him with trespassing, I don’t think we would have fought it,” Michaels said.

The UOPD asserts that using letters of trespass is appropriate, because the offenders are “disrupting and interfering with the mission of the University of Oregon,” as outlined in the trespass notice. They deny that homeless people have been targeted in any way, said UOPD spokesman Kelly McIver, a UOPD spokesman. Because of this, Gannon’s appeal was denied by Chief McDermed on March 10.

Gannon continued to come to campus, and was spotted by the UOPD three more times throughout the year. The second time, in April 2014, he was charged with Trespassing, and the last time, on Aug. 1, 2014, he was arrested.

Gannon and and his attorney are now fighting for dismissal in Municipal Court. They still believe his ban from campus is unconstitutional. To be sure, the ban is very extensive. It covers all property owned by the university, including properties in Bend, Portland, and Charleston. If Gannon is found even walking on the sidewalk in front of a university-owned building, such as the parking lots on Alder Street or even off-campus student dorms, he could be arrested – only by a UOPD officer, not the Eugene Police.

Gannon and Michaels filed a motion to dismiss on June 9, arguing that a ban from public sidewalks and streets was unconstitutional. The only reason someone can be banned from a public place is if they pose a danger to those nearby – in this case, to UO students.

“Nothing Mr. Gannon is accused of doing would in any way be seen as a threat to the protection of the University’s students,” Michaels stated in court documents. “Mr. Gannon fell asleep once. What are the policies and procedures the University has promulgated to classify such an act worthy of exclusion for the protection of its students?”

Michaels also believes the university is a public space, so the UOPD has no right to ban Gannon from it.

“Essentially the university is no more [the UOPD’s] property than it is [Gannon’s],” he said.

The university maintains that issuing letters of trespass is within their rights. In a statement, the university said “the university’s practices regarding letters of trespass are reasonable and legal. Further comment on a pending criminal case would be inappropriate.”

The official policy surrounding Letters of Trespass states that anyone can be given one who “commits violations of ORS, OAR or University Rules,” or has “been served with a L.O.T. and returns to University property under conditions contrary to restrictions,” among other guidelines. Gannon violated both of these rules by staying in Lawrence Hall after the building closed and returning to campus after receiving a letter of trespass.

Gannon’s court date is Oct. 17. Michaels said he is surprised the city was willing to try Gannon on behalf of the university, but is using the opportunity to try and change what he sees as an “atrociously abominable policy toward the disadvantaged.”

“He hasn’t done anything but fall asleep,” Michaels said.

In the spring of last year, the University of Oregon established the Complaint Resolution Committee to oversee complaints brought against University of Oregon Police Department officers. However, the newly-established CRC is still searching for an undergraduate member.

Interim President Scott Coltrane finalized the rest of the CRC membership in late 2014. The mission of the CRC is “to provide recommendations to the Vice President for Finance and Administration to help ensure that complaints regarding the conduct of sworn members of the UOPD and UOPD policies are resolved in a fair, thorough, reasonable, and expeditious manner,” according to its mission statement. The CRC meets at least once a term, and additional meetings will take place when necessary as complaints arise. So far, they have met twice — in the spring and fall terms.

In its procedures, the CRC is clearly defined as holding “an advisory role.” While UOPD conducts the internal investigations, the CRC reviews them to make sure they are fair and timely. The committee gives recommendations to VPFA Jamie Moffitt, who ultimately decides what UOPD’s response will be. Some UO community members believe an advisory role isn’t enough.

ASUO is responsible for recommending the undergraduate student member.

Helena Schlegel, ASUO President, disapproves of the CRC’s format. Schlegel is asking the university to “make their review panel representative of the community and its meetings and decisions transparent to the public.”

“The ASUO currently has no say in either UOPD policy or its internal reviews. We welcome the opportunity to participate meaningfully in police oversight and transparency issues on and off campus,” Schlegel said.

A lack of transparency has been a topic of debate surrounding the CRC. The CRC’s procedures have a clearly defined confidentiality clause that states, “All information received or developed by the CRC or one of its members is strictly confidential and may be disclosed only to the extent expressly authorized by law.” Minutes and agenda are available through public records requests.

The creation of the CRC was an attempt to bring external review into the UOPD’s complaint procedures. Before the CRC was established, complaints were dealt with internally, according the Kelly McIver, spokesman for the UOPD. McIver says the old format is typical of most law enforcement agencies.

The CRC was established so “there would be another external body that would be involved with looking at complaints of serious misconduct and illegal policy,” McIver said.

“I think the biggest advantage is being able to have greater credibility and accountability with the community,” McIver said.

The UOPD has pushed for transparency with other formats, including incorporating more body cameras and hiring a new assistant chief of police in charge of community outreach. That search is still ongoing.

The CRC will meet again during winter term if no new complaints arise.

When students leave for winter break Eugene becomes a ghost town in areas populated mostly by students, like the West University area near 13th Avenue. Entire blocks can be abandoned for three whole weeks, and these abandoned houses are perfect targets for burglars. Every year the rates of theft and burglary skyrocket over winter break.

Last year in the West University area, the blocks from Kincaid to High and 13th to 19th, there were 11 burglaries and 19 thefts between the Saturday after finals week and the Sunday before classes begin. In the 2013-2014 school year, there were ten burglaries and 16 thefts in the same area and time frame.

“Statistically, the Eugene Police Department is aware that property crime spikes during the weeks of winter break when many take the opportunity to visit family, friends and warmer weather,” the EPD said in a news release. EPD acknowledges that students are particular targets during the break.

EPD warns students not to advertise that they’re leaving. Burglars often scope out potential houses in student populated areas right before break, looking for people packing up. Any indication that students are leaving or will leave should be hidden.

“One suspect advised that they would case their targets in advance and would look for mailboxes that were full,” said Debbie Janecek, the acting supervisor of EPD’s Crime Prevention program. “They would knock at doors first to see if anyone was home.”

Two cases last year stuck out to Janecek. Both happened in the West University area in houses with multiple roommates, all of whom had left for the break.

“In both situations, entry was forced,” Janecek said. “In one case pry marks were found on the back door and was likely the point of entry. in the other, pry marks were also found on the back door but entry was ultimately gained by smashing a window pane of the door.” The burglars stole an eclectic mix of items, from jewelry and checks to video games and a passport, she said.

While dorm rooms are generally secure, students who park their bikes on campus over break leave them at risk.

“It’s best to not leave a bike locked up in a rack, unused and unmonitored, for long stretches,” UOPD spokesman Kelly McIver said. He suggested storing bikes in the caged bike rack areas on campus. “If a person has no choice but to leave a bike locked up outdoors, choose an area with good lighting and visibility that would deter thieves,” he said. Removing easily detached sections like wheels and seats decreases the chance of a bike being targeted.

While EPD will patrol and respond to most burglary reports in off-campus areas, UOPD is also patrolling the edges of campus and University of Oregon owned housing. The Spencer View Apartments will continue to be monitored during winter break.

“The Community Assistants at Spencer View walk around the community each evening,” UO Housing Communications Director Leah Andrews said. “When they see items that may have been left on patios our lawns they knock on resident’s doors and encourage them to place those items in secure areas.”

If you see any suspicious activity, call UOPD at 541-346-2919, EPD at 541-682-5111, or 9-1-1 in an emergency.

The state lawsuit filed against the University of Oregon by former UOPD officer James Cleavenger has come to a standstill. The lawsuit likely will not progress until the federal case verdict has been finalized.

James Cleavenger worked for the UOPD for several years. His employment was terminated in 2012 following a series of disagreements with colleagues and poor performance reviews. In Oct. 2013, Cleavenger filed a federal lawsuit against several UOPD employees, citing wrongful termination, retaliation and whistleblowing. In Sept. 2015, the jury awarded Cleavenger $755,000 in economic damages.

The university is considering filing for an appeal. UO attorneys have filed pre-trial paperwork.

Six days before the federal trial began however, Cleavenger filed a similar lawsuit in state court, at Eugene’s federal courthouse. While the federal case was filed against individual UOPD employees, the state case was filed against the university specifically.

After winning the federal case, the verdict is still out on whether the state case will continue.

On Dec. 21, 2015, there was a state case hearing at Eugene’s federal courthouse. The defendant and plaintiff both gave oral arguments. The hearing itself was very short. The final decision: keep the lawsuit under advisement.

UO attorneys argued for a full dismissal of the state lawsuit. Because Cleavenger won the federal case, they argued, he should not be allowed to file for the same damages again. In court documents UO attorneys said, “Plaintiff’s attempt to obtain a second recovery in this forum for identical harm, stemming from an identical factual transaction is both inappropriate and a waste of this court’s and the Defendant’s time and resources.”

“The university has filed a motion to dismiss the state case, because the claims are the same as they were in the federal case and one cannot recover damages twice,” university spokesman Tobin Klinger said in a statement. “The university is still giving consideration to a potential appeal of the federal case.”

However, Cleavenger has not been guaranteed any money yet, since UO still has the option of appealing the federal case. The judge is likely waiting on the federal case to wrap up, Cleavenger said.

“They’ll probably end up staying it until the end of the federal stuff,” Cleavenger said. “But we’ll see.”

In court documents, Cleavenger’s attorneys said that UO’s decision to file a motion to dismiss before deciding whether they would appeal the federal case was a tactical decision. “[The defendant, UO] chose to bring these motions to dismiss the state case knowing that the pre-trial motions in the federal case would still be pending,” plaintiffs said.

UO has filed post-trial motions in federal court, preparing for a retrial if they decide to appeal. Both sides will present their oral arguments for the federal case on Feb. 12.