Peter Raven, Ph.D., director of the Missouri Botanical Garden, will present “Poverty, Disaster, and Sustainability: How do we Move Forward,” a talk at Loyola University New Orleans, on Thursday, March 23, 2006, at 7 p.m. in Nunemaker Auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Raven is an internationally-renowned conservationist who focuses on global environmental issues, particularly issues on the human condition in this world of limited resources. He is well-known for his theories on the increasing extinction of species worldwide, and has coined the phrase “6^th extinction,” to describe this phenomenon, which he says is brought about by the mushrooming human population, human ignorance, and commerce.

The Missouri Botanical Garden has been transformed into one of the world’s leading conservation centers under the leadership of Raven. He has published more than 400 articles and 18 books. A member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Raven has been honored with countless national and international conservation awards. Time Magazine named him one of the “Heroes of the Planet.”

For additional information, please contact Professor of Biological Sciences David White, Ph.D., at 865-2770, or e-mail dawhite@loyno.edu.