David Allan (ENACT Co-Chair)

David Allan and Art Hanson 1970.jpg

ENACT Co-Chair David Allan (right) with Co-Chair Art Hanson by the Huron River in Ann Arbor in 1970

David Allan was a Ph.D. student in the Department of Zoology in the fall of 1969 when he started ENACT as a co-chair. Upon assuming his role as co-chair, Allan took the academic year off to focus solely on the Teach-In. Before attending the University of Michigan, he had finished his undergraduate degree in 1966 at the University of British Columbia. Allan organized the majority of the Teach-In and acted as a figurehead for ENACT. After the U-M Teach-In, he finished his Ph.D. program at the University of Michigan and completed his post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Chicago. Allan later worked for the University of Maryland until 1988 when he returned to the University of Michigan until 2010. 

Interview with David Allan by Amanda Hampton and Matt Lassiter (in Ann Arbor, Michigan), November 6, 2017

Part 1: Dave Allan explains his background as an undergraduate and as a masters student at the University of Michigan, how he became interested in environmental issues, and the mission of the ENACT Teach-In.

Part 2: Allan describes his role in ENACT as co-chair and the struggles he faced while being a leader during a time of radicalism and social issue protests.

Part 3: Allan discusses the politics of ENACT and the problems the organization faced politically during the planning of the Teach-In. Allan mentions several protests from the Black Action Movement and other groups on campus and emphasizes the importance of grassroots efforts during the Teach-In.

Part 4: Allan describes the events he planned for the Teach-In and the organizations goal of bringing entertainment iin order to get students attention. He also goes into depth about the explosion of success the Teac-In had and the role of women in ENACT.

Part 5: Allan describes his career and life after ENACT, including his field of research and his time at the University of Michigan and the University of Maryland. 

Part 6: Allan describes his involvement with the Great Lakes and how it differed from his involvement in 1970. He also discusses the work of other academic departments and their involvement in national and state wide issues. 

Part 7: Allan reflects on the Teach-In and its impact on science. He also describes the change in the ecology field from theortical research to application of their findings to safe wildlife in the 1980s, relating that todays issue of climate change. Allan lastly gives advice to students and individuals of how to get involved in the environment. 

David Allan (ENACT Co-Chair)