Desertification: A Perspective from the UNCCD Drylands Ambassador with Miss Universe Leila Lopes ... A Lecture Presented Free to the Public by the Bruce Museum on Tuesday, October 23
To complement the exhibition, Extreme Habitats: Living Desert Dry (now through March 3, 2013), the Bruce Museum is presenting a lecture on the subject of Expanding Deserts: A Global Concern, which features a subject-matter expert who will be discussing the rapid growth of deserts due to human activity and the initiatives underway to mitigate the global impacts of this trend.
“Against the backdrop of Living Desert Dry, our goal is to delve more deeply into the issues and opportunities related to deserts,” says Dr. Gina Gould, Curator of Science at the Museum. “Around the world, deserts are home to culturally diverse societies; the native flora and fauna have evolved adaptations to not only survive but thrive under the hyper-arid conditions. But there is also concern about dryland deterioration and degradation and the effect it is having, and will have, on human populations; indeed, all species.”
To that last point, on Tuesday, October 23 at 6:30 pm the Bruce Museum is pleased to host Ms. Leila Lopes. A native of Angola and Miss Universe 2011, Ms. Lopes is a Drylands Ambassador to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
Appointed in November 2011 as a Drylands Ambassador by the Executive Secretary of the UNCCD, Luc Gnacadja, Ms. Lopes comes from an African region where degradation of the land in the dryland areas is the foremost environmental challenge.
In her presentation – Desertification: A Perspective from the UNCCD Drylands Ambassador – Ms. Lopes will discuss the importance and impacts of desertification, land degradation and drought, and sustainable land management. Though part of her native country of Angola is threatened by desertification, Ms. Lopes understands that drylands are not a liability and that they hold great potential to solve some of the most pressing problems in advancing sustainable development.
According to Gould, this presentation will be informative and engaging. “In addition to her advocacy on behalf of the UNCCD mission, Ms. Lopes has real-world experience with this issue. And when people are speaking about what they know – about what they have lived – they connect with people on an intellectual and emotional level.”
The lecture is free to members, but space is limited.
Make your reservation now -- send an email to info@brucemuseum.org or call 203 413-6757 with the lecture date and number of attendees.
Admission for non-members is $5 at the door. Refreshments will be served at 6:30 pm. The lecture will begin promptly at 7 pm.
About the Bruce Museum: Explore Art and Science at the Bruce Museum, located at One Museum Drive in Greenwich, Connecticut. The Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 1 pm to 5 pm; closed Mondays and major holidays. Admission is $7 for adults, $6 for students up to 22 years, $6 for seniors and free for members and children under 5 years. Individual admission is free on Tuesday. Free on-site parking is available and the Museum is accessible to individuals with disabilities. For additional information, call the Bruce Museum at (203) 869-0376 or visit the website at www.brucemuseum.org.
About Leila Lopes: Leila Lopes was crowned Miss Universe 2011 in São Paulo, Brazil in September 2011. As Miss Universe, Lopes has traveled the world as an advocate for HIV/Aids awareness as well as featured in numerous publications such as “New African Woman”, “Selecta” Magazine, and “L’Uomo Vogue.” Prior to being crowned, Ms. Lopes held the title of Miss Angola Universe and was active with various social causes in her country. She has worked with poor children and the elderly and has helped educate the Angolan community about HIV/AIDS. These are all concerns that resonate with a majority of the 1.5 billion poor people around the world who live off degrading land.
About the UNCCD: Desertification, along with climate change and the loss of biodiversity, were identified as the greatest challenges to sustainable development during the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. Established in 1994, UNCCD is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment, development and the promotion of healthy soils. The Convention's 195 signatory Parties work to alleviate poverty in the drylands, maintain and restore the land's productivity, and mitigate the effects of drought. For more information, visit http://www.unccd.int/en.
