News Sources: Mexican Trucks Roll in U.S.

The Bush administration is proceeding with a pilot program to allow up to 100 Mexican trucking firms to haul their cargo anywhere in the United States. The program has drawn the ire of Teamsters and members of Congress, who charge it is an attempt at "union-busting" and doesn't address environemental and safety concerns. Reporters looking for experts to interview on this topic can find them online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including the following (click on names for contact information):

Jorge Gonzalez - Associate Professor of Economics, Trinity University - Gonzalez is an expert in trading patterns between Mexico and the U.S., intra-industry trading, the economic impact of immigration, political economy of international trade, and the Mexican economy. His most recent research "The Term Structure of Interest Rates and the Mexican Economy," was published in Contemporary Economic Policy.

Raymond Robertson - Associate Professor of Economics, Macalester College - Robertson specializes in Latin American economic policy. Most of his research is conducted in Mexico, where he has lived. He can discuss a range of issues including the effects of NAFTA on Mexico, unskilled workers, and foreign investment in Mexico.

Elizabeth DeSombre - Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Wellesley College - Desombre can speak on international environmental politics and law. Her research projects include the use of economic sanctions for environmental goals, the relationship between trade and environment, and environmental, labor and safety standards on ocean ships.

News Sources: Chinese Product Safety

The "made-in-China" scare has sparked toy recalls and U.S. Senate investigations. Tackling product safety problems will require a combination of tougher regulation of China's manufacturers, importer vigilance and more inspections. But are America's bargain-minded masses willing to spend more for safety? Reporters looking for experts to interview on this topic can find then online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including (click on names for contact information):

Barry Schwartz - Dorwin P. Cartwright Professor of Social Theory and Social Action, Swarthmore College - Schwartz is the author of The Costs of Living: How Market Freedom Erodes the Best Things in Life. He is an expert on the social and psychological effects of the free market on moral, social and civic concerns and in the rising hostility in American public life.

Margaret Maurer-Fazio - Associate Professor of Economics, Bates College - Maurer-Fazio's current research focuses on labor-market issues in China. With a wide network of Chinese contacts, she travels extensively in China with students, teaching environmental protection and economic development issues.

John A. Conkling - Adjunct Professor of Chemistry, Washington College - Conkling is internationally recognized for his work in pyrotechnics, the high energy solid state chemistry responsible for fireworks displays, road flares and other sound and light generating systems. Executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association, he wrote federal safety regulations governing fireworks and is technical consultant to Chinese fireworks manufacturers.

News Sources: US Bridges under Review

US officials have ordered a review of all bridges similar to the one that collapsed in Minnesota recently, killing at least five people. More than 700 structures will be looked at after it emerged that the bridge in Minneapolis had been classified as "structurally deficient". Reporters looking for experts to interview on this topic can find them online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including the following:

Clive Dym - Fletcher Jones Professor of Engineering Design, Harvey Mudd College - Dym's research has focused on the development of knowledge-based (expert) systems for engineering design and analysis. Previously, he worked on a wide variety of problems in applied mechanics and acoustics. He has published more than 100 journal articles, papers and technical reports, and edited two books and written seven.

David A. Aschauer - Elmer W. Campbell Professor of Economics, Bates College - Leading authority on infrastructure and author of controversial Aschauer Curve, which purports to show positive correlation between public spending on infrastructure and economic growth. Formerly a senior economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, he has conducted numerous studies and presented findings to the World Bank and U.S. Senate. Received the distinguished service award from the Transportation Research Board.

Paul Shrivastava - Professor of management, Bucknell University - An expert on industrial safety, corporate environmental practices, environmental management, strategic management and planning, and crisis prevention. He is a former editor-in-chief of the international journal Industrial and Environmental Crisis Quarterly.