Lecture on Development vs. Agriculture Facing Landscapes of the West
A collision course is occurring in many parts of the western United States today as increasing urbanization rolls through dwindling rural areas, many of which have a long history of agricultural product.
Gary Nabhan is a writer, lecturer, world-renowned conservation scientist and researcher with the Center for Sustainable Environments at Northern Arizona University. His extensive writings and lectures focus on the preservation of native landscapes and agriculture not just for the sake of preservation, but for survival in terms of food production and water conservation.
Gary Nabhan is a writer, lecturer, world-renowned conservation scientist and researcher with the Center for Sustainable Environments at Northern Arizona University. His extensive writings and lectures focus on the preservation of native landscapes and agriculture not just for the sake of preservation, but for survival in terms of food production and water conservation.
Nabhan’s lecture, “Bridging the Urban-Rural Divide,” will be featured at the 2008 “The Nature of Things” lecture series Wednesday, Feb. 20, 6:30 p.m., in the Utah State University Biology and Natural Resources building, Room 102.
“The Nature of Things” is a presentation of the Utah Museum of Natural History at the University of Utah in partnership with the Utah State University College of Natural Resources, USU’s Intermountain Herbarium and Utah Botanical Center, Bear River Association of Governments Agricultural Preservation and Bear River Heritage Area programs.
As Nabhan travels and researches the landscape of the West, he looks at the changes occurring to the land from human and natural causes, and the impacts on the yields of the lands. For example, what are the impacts on food production? Can lost production be restored? What do growth and other factors mean for future water supplies? Do the economic gains of development outweigh the agricultural productivity of the land? Each is a question being addressed in the Cache Valley area.
“It is time to limit the resources earmarked for each metro area — to stop the fragmentation of farm and ranch lands, and to pay farmers and ranchers for the ecological services they provide for the rest of us,” said Nabhan in pointing out the damage done when wide swaths of farmland and natural landscapes are wiped out by haphazard commercial and residential development.
Nabhan’s research has led to the publication of 20 books and more than 200 technical articles and essays. Nabhan co-founded the nonprofit conservation group Native Seeds/SEARCH and launched the Traditional Native American Farmers’ Association. He is the recipient of numerous honors, including a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society for Conservation Biology.
“The Nature of Things” lecture series highlights the challenges and opportunities in understanding changing natural and man-caused environmental conditions and the effects on living things,” said Utah Museum of Natural History Executive Director Sarah George. “It is part of the museum’s efforts to engage the community in discussions about our evolving natural world and possible actions to reverse negative impacts.”
Contact: Tim Vitale [tim.vitale@usu.edu] (435) 797-1356
Writer: Ben Hibshman, B.hibshman@aggiemail.usu.edu
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