2009-2008

News Release

REF NO.: 156

SUBJECT: Dr. David Suzuki to lecture at Memorial

DATE: May 13, 2009

Dr. David Suzuki, co-founder of the David Suzuki Foundation and an award-winning scientist, environmentalist and broadcaster, will conduct a public lecture hosted by Memorial University’s Faculty of Science on May 27. Dr. Suzuki will be in St. John’s to receive an honorary degree from the university during spring convocation.
Ttitled The challenge of our Time: Setting the Real Bottom Line, Dr. Suzuki’s lecture, which will take place at 7 p.m. in the St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre, will discuss what we can do to address the ecological crisis that we now confront on the planet.
“Human beings have become a geological force, altering the chemical, physical and biological features of the planet on an unprecedented scale,” said Dr. Suzuki. “The only thing we can manage is ourselves. Why are we not able to see the magnitude of our crisis and what keeps us from taking the steps needed to deal with them?”
Dr. Suzuki is renowned for his radio and television programs that explain the complexities of the natural sciences in a compelling, easily understood way. A geneticist, he graduated from Amherst College (Massachusetts) in 1958 with an honours BA in Biology, followed by a PhD in Zoology from the University of Chicago. He is now professor emeritus of the University of British Columbia, Sustainable Development Research Institute. 
Dr. Suzuki has won numerous academic awards and holds 22 honorary degrees in Canada, the U.S. and Australia. A member of the Royal Society of Canada and a Companion to the Order of Canada, he has written 42 books, including 17 for children. 
Tickets for this public lecture are available at the Arts and Culture Centre Box Office. Regular tickets are $12. Alumni, faculty and staff: $10. Students: $5. A book signing with Dr. Suzuki will follow.

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