A full schedule of events:

Saturday, April 24th:

- Social Gathering at the CFI DC Center with Pizza and Salad in the evening; Welcome to DC by Matt Separa, OPP Policy Analyst

Sunday, April 25th:

- AM: Policy briefings on legislative issues and lobby training

- PM: Two Exhibits at the Smithsonian: One on Charles Darwin and one on Human Evolution; Coffee and Dessert with Doug Crandall

Monday, April 26th:

- AM: A walking tour of Robert G. Ingersoll’s life in Washington DC led by Steve Lowe; lobby training; briefing by an invited member of Congress on current legislative priorities

- PM: Tour of Capitol Visitor Center including a visit to the House of Representatives’ Gallery

Tuesday, April 27th:

- All Day: Lobbying visits on Capitol Hill, debriefing, and departures.

Cost: $100.00 per Person, $ 25.00 per Student, $90 for Friends of the Center.

We are holding a block of rooms at the Donovan House Hotel for $119 single or double per night. For reservations, contact The Donovan House at 800-383-6900, Monday through Friday from 9:00am – 5:00pm Eastern Time. Reservations must be guaranteed with a credit card. An email confirmation will be provided.

The rate is only guaranteed until the cut-off date, March 31, 2010 under the code “Center for Inquiry,” so hurry!

Participants are encouraged to book before the cut-off date because April is a busy month. There is a 24-hour cancellation policy in order to avoid cancellation fees for the hotel reservation. The Donovan House is located at 1155 14th Street NW in downtown Washington—just blocks from the White House—and has easy access to the Metro system.

To register for Civic Days, please visit CFI’s online registration page. For more information, contact Matt Separa at 202-546-2330 or msepara@centerforinquiry.net.

New Info for Students: Hostelling International Washington DC!

For our student participants, we are pleased to offer the option of staying at a hostel that is close to both the Donovan House and the Metro – Hostelling International Washington DC. Room prices range based on selections and reservation timing, but will generally be less than $40 per night. Students wishing to book accommodations are encouraged to do so as soon as possible. To make a reservation, contact the Hostel at 202-737-2333, or reserve online.

Not included: transportation to or from Washington or accommodations, meals, or transportation while in the city. Everything, including all times, agenda, and pricing are subject to change.

Cancellation Policy: All funds are non-refundable for any reason. Cancellation policy is strictly enforced.

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The Center for Inquiry is accepting disaster-relief donations through its S.H.A.R.E. program to support those providing care to the survivors of the 7.0 earthquake that struck Jan. 12 near the capital city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

All donations—100 percent with no operating costs retained—will be sent directly to the secular aid group Doctors Without Borders , which suffered the loss of all three of its medical facilities and is working against difficulties to provide the basics of first-aid care and stabilization.

The needs of those who’ve lost their family members, their homes, and their livelihoods will be very great. Your assistance will make a huge difference for the victims of this tragic disaster. Please join us and other humanists and skeptics as we help those in need in this time of crisis.

A contribution of any amount would be greatly appreciated by everyone at the Center for Inquiry. Thank you for your continued support of our work, and please consider a donation to S.H.A.R.E. in honor of those in Haiti who need help.

Please make your contribution to S.H.A.R.E. directly by clicking here or on the button above. All funds sent to S.H.A.R.E. are tax exempt in the United States.

S.H.A.R.E. has been recently renamed the Skeptics and Humanist Aid and Relief Effort and has now become a program of the wider-reaching Center for Inquiry, responding to the need to continue providing an alternative for those who wish to contribute to charitable efforts without the intermediary of a religious organization in this time of great need.

Go here to donate through CFI.

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Anyway, it’s Richard Dawkins, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Ann Druyan and Victor Stenger. Moderated by D.J. Grothe (of Point of Inquiry), it took place at the New York Academy of Sciences at a Center for Inquiry conference titled “Secular Society and its Enemies.”

The panel discusses atheism versus science, science education, the nature of science, various strategies for advancing society in society, threats to science education including religion and popular culture, racism and sexism in science, and many other topics. It’s about an hour long and quite interesting:

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presented by Tom Flynn, Executive Director of the Council for Secular Humanism and Editor of Free Inquiry magazine

Thursday, October 29, 7:00 p.m.
Carnegie Science Center
1 Allegheny Avenue, Pittsburgh

You’ve seen the various religion polls and the reported percentages of unbelievers – and the polls vary widely.  How do you know which polls are more reliable?  Join Tom Flynn as he explores how sociologists and pollsters measure religious belief and unbelief.  He will also cover the controversies and scandals in the polling field, and what the polling data on religion really mean (for example, how many of those “no religious preference” people are really atheists?).

Tom Flynn is Executive Director of the Council for Secular Humanism and the Editor of Free Inquiry magazine.  A journalist, novelist, entertainer, and folklorist, Flynn is the author of numerous articles for Free Inquiry, many addressing church-state issues, as well as the best-selling The Trouble With Christmas, about which he has made hundreds of radio and TV appearances in his role as the curmudgeonly “anti-Claus.”  He is also the author of the critically acclaimed anti-religious black comedy science fiction novels, Galactic Rapture and Nothing Sacred. His latest work, The New Encyclopedia of Unbelief, is a comprehensive reference work on the history, beliefs, and thinking of America’s fastest growing minority: those who live without religion.

General Admission: $6
Friends of the Center: FREE

For more information about this and other CFI Pittsburgh events, please visit www.centerforinquiry.net/pgh or email pgh@centerforinquiry.net.

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