Michelle Morgante

The spirit of giving is taking root across UC Merced as the campus collects gifts for Merced County families through the annual “A Home for the Holidays” campaign.

Members of the campus community are invited to adopt a “home” by selecting an envelope from any of four small “giving trees.” The trees can be found at: the Facilities Building; the School of Engineering (SE2 315); the Downtown Campus Center; and the Community Engagement Center (KL 190).

Worldwide, nearly 25 million people are victims of human trafficking, a criminal enterprise that generates $150 billion each year — more than the combined annual profits of Exxon, Microsoft, BP, Samsung and Apple, according to The Human Trafficking Institute.

In the United States, California is one of the major centers of human trafficking, a modern-day form of slavery in which vulnerable people are coerced into sexual exploitation or forced labor.

Thirty-four students from San Joaquin Valley colleges are getting an opportunity to learn how to access and build careers in technology and research at a unique workshop designed to help diversify science-related fields.

Students from UC Merced, Merced College and California State University, Stanislaus, will attend the three-day Valle de Exploracion: Find Your Path to a Tech Career workshop held Feb. 7-9 at UC Merced.

UC Merced will hold a free Spanish-language health conference for the community on Saturday, Nov. 16, with sessions on topics including preventative health measures, coping with stress, domestic violence and vaccines.

The event is led by the Medical Spanish Service Learning Project, which trains students how to discuss medical topics in Spanish.

American democracy is an evolving force, one on the edge of peril, and the future of our government depends on how — and whether — individual Americans choose to be part of it, says Maria Echaveste, a distinguished public policy advocate and former senior White House official.

“The Future of American Democracy” is the theme of a conversation set for Tuesday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. when UC Merced Chancellor Nathan Brostrom welcomes Echaveste to the campus.

UC Merced has been named one of the best schools for environmental sustainability and quality of campus life, placing 20th on The Princeton Review’s list of top 50 “green colleges.”