On Tuesday, Jan. 25, investigative journalist and author Rose George returns to Penn as guest speaker at the University’s annual Global Forum, scheduled for 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. in Meyerson Hall, Room B1.

George is the author of “The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters,” which emphasizes how good sanitation can decrease illness and death from fecal contamination, and how so much of the world needs greater access to toilets.

Last February, the Office of the Provost selected “The Big Necessity” as the text for the 2010-2011 Penn Reading Project. Groups of first-year students and faculty leaders discussed the book in September as part of New Student Orientation. George, who received her Master’s of Arts in international politics from Penn in 1994, visited her alma mater to talk about the book.

At the Global Forum, George will discuss global health, sanitation and other world issues with Felicity Paxton, director of the Penn Women’s Center.

“Rose George’s work exemplifies the level of intellectual ambition and social engagement that we most value at Penn,” says Provost Vincent Price. “Her book has been a vital part of the Year of Water, and we are delighted to welcome her back to campus.”

A native of Yorkshire, England, George earned her bachelor’s degree in modern languages from the University of Oxford in 1992. She has served as senior editor and writer at COLORS, a bilingual global magazine published in 80 countries, and as a freelance writer for the Guardian, Independent, London Review of Books and many others. In 2009, an op-ed on human sewage and NoMix toilets that she wrote appeared in The New York Times.

The Penn Reading Project initiates the academic theme the University community embraces each year, currently the Year of Water. The 2011 Global Forum supports that theme, providing attendees with the opportunity to hear about and discuss issues surrounding access to clean water and sanitation facilities, as well as other global issues.

Admission to the Forum is free and open to the public; no tickets are required. A welcome reception begins at 5 p.m.

For more information, email themeyear@upenn.edu.