The University of Montana spring 2010 International Brown Bag Lecture Series will kick off Thursday, Feb. 18, with a presentation by Bernadette Sweeney, visiting scholar from University College Cork.

Sweeney will give a lecture titled "An Irish Scholar in Montana: Research and Performance" from noon to 1 p.m. in Old Journalism Building Room 303. The event is free and open to the public.

The spring 2010 series offers two other free lectures this semester, both from noon to 1 p.m. in Old Journalism Building Room 303. They are:

Thursday, March 4: "Conservation and Exploitation of Biodiversity in Developing Nations: Observations from the Fourth Global Summit on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants." Presenter: Associate Professor Colin Henderson, UM College of Technology Department of Applied Arts and Sciences.

Thursday, April 8: "Borders as Barriers and Resources: Experiences and Local Developments on the Finnish/Russian and U.S./Canadian Borders." Presenter: Minna Piipponen, visiting scholar, University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu campus.

For more information, call UM International Programs at 406-243-2288 or go to their Web site at http://www.umt.edu/ip.