Wednesday, 30 September 2009
Runaway climate change, species loss, ecosystem collapse - these predictions for the future are so dire that many people believe nothing can be done to prevent ruination. But Australian Laureate Professor Richard Hobbs from The University of Western Australia argues that we are not doomed, that there is room for optimism.
In his lecture Questioning Hanrahan: Environmental Optimism and Realism in the 21st Century, Professor Hobbs refers to the classic Australian bush poem by John O'Brien (1878 - 1952). No matter whether Hanrahan's community battled drought, floods or bushfires, the old farmer was gloomy about the future: "We'll all be rooned!"
One of 15 Australian Laureates chosen from a highly competitive field of national and international researchers at the peak of their careers, Richard Hobbs is Professor of Restoration Ecology in UWA's School of Plant Biology. He leads the Ecosystem Research Laboratory, a dynamic research group involved in projects such as woodland restoration on Rottnest Island, speeding the return of vertebrates to rehabilitated bauxite mines, and understanding the responses of rare plants to habitat fragmentation.
In his lecture, he will outline the many positive steps being taken to repair the environment in Australia and around the world - efforts amounting to a large counter-current working against negative influences. He will also urge cleverer and more purposeful interventions and argue that "whether Hanrahan proves to be right or not depends on how we approach environmental challenges now and in the future".
WHAT: Free public lecture, Questioning Hanrahan: Environmental Optimism and Realism in the 21st Century. RSVP: (+61 8) 6488 1340
WHEN: Wednesday, October 21, from 5.30pm
WHERE: University Club Theatre Auditorium UWA (Carpark P3, Hackett Drive Entrance1)
Media references
Professor Richard Hobbs
(+61 8) 6488 4691
Audrey Barton
(Institute of Advanced Studies) (+61 8) 6488 4797
Janine MacDonald
(UWA Public Affairs) (+61 8) 6488 5563 / (+61 4) 32 637 716
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