Colloquium to Discuss Conservation Efforts Abroad

The next Global Issues Colloquium will feature Hemanta Kafley, assistant professor of biology at Tarleton State University, and Truman student Brad Thornton, environmental studies major, presenting “National Treasures in Peril: Challenges and Successes in Conservation from the Himalayas” at 7 p.m. Nov. 10 in Magruder Hall 2001.

This discussion will cover the crisis in biodiversity conservation. Globally, species are going extinct at a faster rate than ever before. This is even acute in many resource-poor countries, where food security must be prioritized and financial resources for combating biodiversity loss is always in short supply. Despite this, Bhutan and Nepal, small and resource-deprived countries, have been adopting various social and cultural measures, along with other active resource management strategies, that have helped the countries protect their natural treasures.

Kafley will address the challenges these countries have faced and will highlight some of the strategies these countries have employed, emphasizing the people’s indigenous knowledge, cultural norms and social values for ensuring desired ecosystem services to the local people. Thornton will draw upon personal experience from a semester in Bhutan to share challenges and successes from the mountainous kingdom.

The Global Issues Colloquium was first developed more than a dozen years ago as an informal attempt to broaden conversations about current issues affecting the world. More recently, it has found a niche within the structure of the International Studies Program. Charged with “sustaining and enhancing an atmosphere in which global thinking becomes habitual,” the colloquiums aim to help the broader community understand the “strengths, beauties and core humanity of other cultures.” The series is presented for educational or civic purposes and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Truman State University. For more information, visit globalissues.truman.edu or contact Marc Becker.