THE DAILY COUGAR
E! INS®ID
‘Iraqi Artists in Exile’ finds home in Houston /LIFE & ARTS
Junior defensive tackle Graham will ‘walk the line’ for Cougars /SPORTS
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Issue 74, Volume 78
TODAY’S WEATHER
3-day forecast, Page 2
Hi 70 Lo 39 www.thedailycougar.com
UH to lead in carbon education By Lizeth Castro The Daily Cougar Bauer College of Business debuts its carbon trading class this semester, which will be the first of its kind nationwide. Students will get the opportunity to learn about the coming carbon trading system and about the problems that come with the new system of exchange, which experts estimate to become a $2 trillion market within the next two years. “The class will feature guest speakers from around the country, and its findings and projects will be communicated with persons in key Congressional committees and the Obama administration who are working on national cap and trade Legislation and international climate change negotiations,” executive director of global environment management initiative professor Praveen Kumar, and teacher of the class, said in a UH press release. Carbon trading is a market-based system of economics dealing with incentives that encourage businesses to keep the environment clean by reducing carbon monoxide pollution in the atmosphere. In addition to rewarding companies for going green, the carbon trade market will help create new jobs, said professor Victor B. Flatt, A.L. O’Quinn Chair in Environmental Law and director of the Environment Energy and Natural Resource center. “Carbon is now just emerging as a commodity and as of yet, we are only starting to see how it’s trading. And we also know that there is going to be a future United States law on this topic and we want to be in front of everyone else on this. It represents a way to learn an area of law that’s brand knew,” Flatt said. “We want to train people to understand the dynamics of how a carbon trading system would work and that way they can practice in that area.” The course syllabus covers the creation of property rights, commodity markets, market design and the incentives of market participants. Professor Craig Pirrong, director of energy markets for GEMI, will be also be contributing to the class. Kumar and Pirrong will be teaming up to teach the financing side of carbon trading. Kumar and Pirrong teach students to analyze flaws in the construction of the commodity trading systems. Since the U.S. has not stated what their system of carbon trading will look like, Kumar and Pirrong will serve as advisers to how the system should work. Business and finance is but one side to this emerging system. Flatt teaches students the legal aspects see CARBON, page 3
Yvette Davila THE DAILY COUGAR
Developement of an unprecedented six-story Planned Parenthood, which will house an ambulatory surgical center, clinic and five floors of administration, has attracted critics and protests more than a year before its doors open.
Group protests new facility By Steven Oster The Daily Cougar A new six-story building that will become the Houston Planned Parenthood headquarters is being constructed on the Gulf Freeway less than a mile from the UH campus. Protesters gathered around the construction site Friday and Saturday to voice their disapproval of the construction of the facility, which will
dwarf the Planned Parenthood on Fannin Street. Pro-life advocates such as the Houston Area Pastor Council protested the building because of the abortion services that will be performed in its clinics. Aside from becoming the largest Planned Parenthood in Houston, controversy surrounds this new building because it will perform late-term abortions Planned Parenthood spokeswoman
Rochelle Tafolla said. “Late-term abortions are necessary for different reasons, depending on the individual. Sometimes birth-defects can be discovered later on in the pregnancy, or sometimes a woman’s health is at risk because of the pregnancy,” Tafolla said. The Fannin Street branch performs abortions up to the week 16 of pregnancy, whereas the new
location will be able to do perform the procedure up to the week 20. There are many design changes that will take place in order to better serve patients, Tafolla said. To perform late-term abortions, a facility must be equipped with an ambulatory surgical center, according to a law passed in 2003, a facility that the building’s size will accommodate. see PROTESTS, page 3
Robbery under investigation UHPD stresses student involvement, cooperation to reduce campus crime By James Rincon The Daily Cougar The UH Police Department released a photograph Monday of what police said depicts the two suspects involved in an alleged robbery that took place Saturday outside of Agnes Arnold Hall. The complainant was walking alone, east of Agnes Arnold Hall, when one of the suspects grabbed her purse and the other grabbed her laptop, police said. The complainant managed to hold onto her purse but one of the alleged suspects ran off with her laptop between the Agnes Arnold Auditoriums and the Social Work Building, police said. “It’s hard to say right now if they are affiliated (with UH),” public information officer Lieutenant Bret
Collier said. “The standing with the University (if suspects are students) — we will always make a referral with the dean of students office, but ultimately it will be their decision what kind of University sanctions will be in place.” The alleged suspects did not threaten or harm the complainant and were unarmed. Police will increase high visibility patrols in the area to discourage any further altercations. They also information that is helping move the case forward Collier said. “The leads that we’re following up currently have to do with tracking the property, which is usually one of our best leads,” Collier said. “If we can get serial numbers, which we did, we can track property, and see CRIME, page 3
Photo Courtesy of UH Police Department
Alleged robbery suspects caught on camera outside of Agnes Arnold Hall on Saturday.