Half-Earth Day brings together people from around the world and across disciplines to share their unique perspectives and thought leadership on how we can work together to achieve the goal of Half-Earth and ensure the health of our planet for future generations.
Inspired by renowned biologist and naturalist Edward O. Wilson, Half-Earth is a call to conserve half the Earth’s land and sea in order to provide sufficient habitat to safeguard the bulk of biodiversity, including ourselves.
Join scientists, conservationists, business leaders, community representatives, and educators for an exciting day of programming at the University of California, Berkeley.
Paula J. Ehrlich, President & CEO, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation, will open Half-Earth Day with a brief introduction to the framework and ambition for the day. Walter Jetz, Yale University; Scientific Chair, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation, and Craig Mills, CEO, Vizzuality, will provide a glimpse of what Half-Earth could look like, presenting the Half-Earth Project Map decision-making tool at the core of the Half-Earth Project. Piotr Naskrecki, Associate Director, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Laboratory, Gorongosa National Park, will showcase the exemplary model that Gorongosa National Park provides for science-based conservation and social growth, providing a launching point for the day’s exploration of Pathways to a Half-Earth Future.
With special appearance by E.O. Wilson, welcoming the inaugural Half-Earth Chair.
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
This 2-hour workshop will Introduce middle school and high school science teachers to the Half-Earth Project and a state-of-the-art interactive tool for mapping the world’s biodiversity. Participants will get an overview of a newly-tested hands-on activity that brings mapping, biodiversity, and conservation biology to your students tied to middle school and high school curricula and standards. Participants will receive a copy of Half-Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life by Edward O. Wilson.
Workshop lead:
Dennis W. Liu, Vice President for Education, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation and the Half-Earth Project
Presenters:
Amanda Briody, Science Teacher, Baltimore Public Schools, Teach For America alumnus
Jim Clark, Next Generation Science Standards and California standards expert
D. Scott Rinnan, Conservation Priority Science, Half-Earth Project and Map of Life
Conference Center: Warring Wilkinson (Room 204)
Companies for a Half-Earth Future is an initiative to explore how companies can contribute to the grand ambition of Half-Earth through transformative, concrete actions.
Nominated companies will develop a handbook of best practices that every company can use, from the leading companies that are breaking new ground and have sustainability integrated into their core business models, to companies that have just begun to explore how they can contribute.
This panel will gather inaugural Companies for a Half-Earth Future to discuss different ways that the Half-Earth vision can be supported. Key questions to be discussed:
Companies will provide a short overview of their work, with the focus on next steps, and ideas and initiatives that have a transformative potential. Potential synergies will be explored.
Moderator:
Dennis Pamlin, Entrepreneur and Founder of 21st Century Frontiers
Invited Panelists:
Sven-Olof Lindblad, President & CEO, Lindblad Expeditions
Andres Gluski, President and CEO, AES
Jonathan Webb, Founder & CEO, AppHarvest
Eva Karlsson, CEO, Houdini
Jeffrey Ubben, Founder & CEO, ValueAct Capital
Trevor Milton, CEO, Nikola Motor Company
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
Description:
This session will feature approaches, results, and issues around identifying the most important places in the world for safeguarding species. The presentations will address the synergies and trade-offs for biodiversity conservation in the context of different demands for terrestrial and marine resources. A particular focus will be the link between the still spatially coarse understanding of global priorities and the capture of priorities and decision-making at regional and local scale.
Moderator:
Walter Jetz, Yale University; Scientific Chair, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation
Presenters:
10:00am, Scott Rinnan, Yale: Which half? Global priorities for terrestrial vertebrate conservation
10:10am, Gabriel Reygondeau, Yale/UBC: Priority areas for a sustainable conservation of marine biodiversity
10:20am, Roger Sayre, USGS: Half Earth, Whole Ocean – Global Ecological Marine Units (EMUs)
10:25am, Holly Doremus, Berkeley: Biodiversity conservation in the high seas
10:40am, William Cheung, UBC: Marine conservation priorities under climate change
11:00am, Ben Halpern, NCEAS/UCSB: The closing window of opportunity to achieve Half Earth in the world’s ocean
11:20am, Jennifer McGowan, TNC: From global to local conservation priorities
11:40am, Adina Merenlender, Cooperative Extension Specialist, UC Berkeley; Claire Kremen, UBC: Conservation on working lands
Building 10: Garden Room & Patio
This 2-hour workshop will Introduce middle school and high school science teachers to the Half-Earth Project and a state-of-the-art interactive tool for mapping the world’s biodiversity. Participants will get an overview of a newly-tested hands-on activity that brings mapping, biodiversity, and conservation biology to your students tied to middle school and high school curricula and standards. Participants will receive a copy of Half-Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life by Edward O. Wilson.
Workshop lead:
Dennis W. Liu, Vice President for Education, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation and the Half-Earth Project
Presenters:
Amanda Briody, Science Teacher, Baltimore Public Schools, Teach For America alumnus
Jim Clark, Next Generation Science Standards and California standards expert
D. Scott Rinnan, Conservation Priority Science, Half-Earth Project and Map of Life
Conference Center: Warring Wilkinson (Room 204)
Description:
The 236 accredited members of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums are transforming the very conception of a modern zoological institution. No longer simply curiosities or menageries, modern aquariums and zoos are purposeful conservation organizations, powered by engaging and inspiring attractions. At a time when human populations are increasingly urban, indoors, and nature-disconnected, zoos and aquariums offer accessible opportunities for connection to nature, through animals, and in settings where visitors feel and emerge with a sense of empathy, and a knowledge of how they can act on it. At a time when wild nature is diminishing in the face of human expansion, aquariums and zoos are expanding investment in conservation, and collectively, now rank among the world’s largest conservation funders. And at a time when confidence in institutions, public and private, is at all-time lows, public trust in aquariums and zoos is robust and strengthening. In 2006, author Stephen Meyer told us that “the race to save the composition, structure, and organization of biodiversity as it exists today – is over, and we have lost.” Whether we have lost is yet an open question; but we are losing, and losing badly. We must find new ways to engage and inspire people, and modern aquariums and zoos are ready and able.
Presenter:
Daniel Ashe, President & CEO, Association of Zoos & Aquariums
Description:
President Xi Jinping has called for China to have a fully developed national park system in China by 2030 and has designated 10 pilot national parks to lead the effort. With funding from the Paulson Institute, Executive Director of the UC Berkeley Institute for Parks, People and Biodiversity Jon Jarvis and Thea Yang been leading the team effort to evaluate their pilot parks, train their leadership and develop a model that ensures sustainability and conservation and science are the top priorities. Thea Yang will present their findings and recommendations from a recent trip to evaluate Sanjiangyuan National Park Pilot, an area of over 30 million acres on the Tibetan Plateau.
Presenters:
Thea Yang, Master of Landscape Architecture, UC Berkeley
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
How are companies integrating conservation and sustainability into their business operations? How do companies negotiate the pressure for short-term financial returns, with long-term company and planet sustainability? How are companies looking at the need to grow as a company, with the understanding of finite resources and planetary impact? This panel will look at how leading companies are thinking about sustainability and conservation, and both successes and challenges in the field. Brought to you by the Berkeley Haas Center for Responsible Business, featuring alumni and faculty from the Berkeley Haas School of Business.
Moderator:
Seren Pendleton-Knoll, Associate Director, Berkeley-Haas Center for Responsible Business
Panelists:
Lynelle Cameron, Vice President, Sustainability, Autodesk, and CEO Autodesk Foundation
Jason Kibbey, CEO, Higg Co.
Nick Wobbrock, Co-Founder, Blue Forest Conservation
Conference Center: Sargent Johnson (Room 203)
Description:
This session will feature approaches, results, and issues around identifying the most important places in the world for safeguarding species. The presentations will address the synergies and trade-offs for biodiversity conservation in the context of different demands for terrestrial and marine resources. A particular focus will be the link between the still spatially coarse understanding of global priorities and the capture of priorities and decision-making at regional and local scale.
Moderator:
Walter Jetz, Yale University; Scientific Chair, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation
Presenters:
10:00am, Scott Rinnan, Yale: Which half? Global priorities for terrestrial vertebrate conservation
10:10am, Gabriel Reygondeau, Yale/UBC: Priority areas for a sustainable conservation of marine biodiversity
10:20am, Roger Sayre, USGS: Half Earth, Whole Ocean – Global Ecological Marine Units (EMUs)
10:25am, Holly Doremus, Berkeley: Biodiversity conservation in the high seas
10:40am, William Cheung, UBC: Marine conservation priorities under climate change
11:00am, Ben Halpern, NCEAS/UCSB: The closing window of opportunity to achieve Half Earth in the world’s ocean
11:20am, Jennifer McGowan, TNC: From global to local conservation priorities
11:40am, Adina Merenlender, Cooperative Extension Specialist, UC Berkeley; Claire Kremen, UBC: Conservation on working lands
Building 10: Garden Room & Patio
José González, Founder and Emeritus President of Latino Outdoors and highly-regarded leader in conservation will lead a panel discussion with young rising leaders who reflect the changing demographic of the US, bringing new energy, enthusiasm and innovation to science and conservation. They will discuss issues of environmental justice, historic discrimination in parks and public lands as well as current trends in justice, equity, diversity and inclusion in the conservation movement. This is the future of conservation. Panelists include Olivia Lomasi VanDamme, Coastal Access Activist & Surfer; Jennifer Adams, Regional Coordinator, Latino Outdoors; and Amanda Machado, Writer and Facilitator.
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
Young people are our planets next generation stewards and can have a powerful influence on adults. Student experiences both inside and outside of the classroom can have a powerful influence on forming their values, community connections, and future educational and career directions. It is essential that efforts reach diverse students in the contexts and communities where they live. This panel will discuss aspects of citizen science, experiential learning, and other opportunities that kindle a passion for environmental stewardship and citizen action.
Invited Moderator:
Kirk Anne Taylor, Director of Community Engagement, Ten Strands
Invited Panelists:
Alison Young, Co-Director of Citizen Science, California Academy of Sciences
Joe Grabowski, Exploring by the Seat of Your Pants, National Geographic Fellow
Laura Rodriguez, Director of Programs, Youth Outside
Building 10: Garden Room & Patio
Description:
This session will provide a detailed look at California as a case study for the science and decision-support needed for effective species conservation in diverse and changing environments. Speakers will present research and perspectives on the importance of reserves, and their connectedness and integration with the larger landscapes, for the conservation of species. A panel discussion of scientists and government representatives will explore the opportunities for linking research on spatial conservation priorities with policy and on the ground implementation.
Moderator:
Walter Jetz, Yale; Scientific Chair, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation
David Ackerly, Dean of the College of Natural Resources (CNR) and Professor, UC Berkeley
Presenters:
2:00pm, David Ackerly & Walter Jetz: Brief intro
I. Science in support of California biodiversity conservation: brief presentations (2.02 – 3.06pm)
2:02pm, Matthew Kling, Berkeley: California plant conservation gaps
2:10pm, Sam Young: California Important Plant Areas
2:18pm, Steve Beissinger, Berkeley: A Century of Climate and Land-Use Change on California’s Birds and Mammals
2:30pm, Lauren Ponisio, UC Riverside: Conserving California pollinators
2:42pm, Adina Merenlender, Berkeley: Climate-wise landscape connectivity and reserve design
2:54pm, Justin Brashares, Berkeley: Challenges and opportunities for California’s recovering predators
II. From Science to Policy and Action: remarks and reactions (3.06 – 3.50pm)
General remarks and reactions to presentations by Chuck Bonham and Wade Crowfoot, followed by Dan Ashe, and Dan Gluesenkamp.
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
Description:
How would you explain a ‘wireframe’ to a scientist? How would you explain ‘alpha-diversity’ to a designer? Did you know a ‘slug’ is both a gastropod and the unique identifying part of a web address? These are some examples of situations of life behind the Half-Earth Map where design and technology join to raise awareness on the current biodiversity crisis. Designers, writers, developers and scientists come together to share their technical and emotional experience of building the map ranging from frustration to joy in different human and computer languages. We unveil the work of an interdisciplinary team in connecting people to the highest level of biodiversity science discoveries.
Presenters:
Estefanía Casal, Designer, Vizzuality
Greta Carrete Vega, Scientist, Vizzuality
Simão Belchior, Project Manager, Vizzuality
Conference Center: Sargent Johnson (Room 203)
Presenter:
Piotr Naskrecki, Associate Director, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Laboratory, Gorongosa National Park
A comprehensive understanding of the biological composition of areas that we are trying to protect is prerequisite to their effective conservation. Piotr Naskrecki will present the results of the implementation of this strategy in Gorongosa National Park, which has adopted an ambitious goal to document and map the complete species diversity of its habitats, and use this knowledge in a the management of the conservancy.
Conference Center: Warring Wilkinson (Room 204)
There’s a growing sense of urgency regarding awareness and education concerning our environment and natural heritage. Understanding key environmental principles and concepts is foundational to building consensus and taking action. Environmental topics in education are interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary, incorporating themes, ideas, and content in ecology, literacy, geography, social studies, conservation biology, civics, earth science, and history to name a few. California is a leader in the arena of environmental education. California’s Blueprint for Environmental Literacy will be discussed in the context of its broader meaning for education in the state and nationally. Important aspects of implementation and impact will be discussed including issues of equity and inclusion in diverse community contexts.
Invited Moderator:
Karen Cowe, Chief Executive Officer, Ten Strands
Invited Panelist:
Katie Kriscunas, Assistant Principal, Aptos High School
Amity Sandage, Environmental Literacy Coordinator at Santa Cruz County Office of Education
Craig Strang, Associate Director for Learning and Teaching, Lawrence Hall of Science
Building 10: Garden Room & Patio
Description:
This session will provide a detailed look at California as a case study for the science and decision-support needed for effective species conservation in diverse and changing environments. Speakers will present research and perspectives on the importance of reserves, and their connectedness and integration with the larger landscapes, for the conservation of species. A panel discussion of scientists and government representatives will explore the opportunities for linking research on spatial conservation priorities with policy and on the ground implementation.
Moderator:
Walter Jetz, Yale; Scientific Chair, E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation
David Ackerly, Dean of the College of Natural Resources (CNR) and Professor, UC Berkeley
Presenters:
2:00pm, David Ackerly & Walter Jetz: Brief intro
I. Science in support of California biodiversity conservation: brief presentations (2.02 – 3.06pm)
2:02pm, Matthew Kling, Berkeley: California plant conservation gaps
2:10pm, Sam Young: California Important Plant Areas
2:18pm, Steve Beissinger, Berkeley: A Century of Climate and Land-Use Change on California’s Birds and Mammals
2:30pm, Lauren Ponisio, UC Riverside: Conserving California pollinators
2:42pm, Adina Merenlender, Berkeley: Climate-wise landscape connectivity and reserve design
2:54pm, Justin Brashares, Berkeley: Challenges and opportunities for California’s recovering predators
II. From Science to Policy and Action: remarks and reactions (3.06 – 3.50pm)
General remarks and reactions to presentations by Chuck Bonham and Wade Crowfoot, followed by Dan Ashe, and Dan Gluesenkamp.
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
Behind every great map is a collection of content and analytics that transform our understanding of any topic. Where are the best places to intervene and protect biodiversity? What are the underlying physical characteristics of a species range or place? This session will inform as to how GIS is creating opportunities for the conservation sector and the private sector to partner in fostering sustainability at many levels. Be part of the conversation as to how the Half-Earth Project Map can best engage local communities to make better decisions about managing and prioritizing various land uses.
Presenter:
Dawn Wright, Chief Scientist, Esri
Co-Presenters:
Sean Breyer, ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World Program Manager, Esri
Kevin Butler, Spatial Statistics Product Engineer, Esri
Conference Center: Sargent Johnson (Room 203)
The decline of pollinators, from bees and wasps to butterflies, beetles, bats and others, has been well documented. The threats created by the decline of these species are far ranging, posing a threat to ecosystems that depend on these keystone species, to the world food supply that is suffering from the decline or absence of once abundant pollinators. Individuals, scientists, communities, corporations and many other groups are taking action to reverse this trend. There are many actions underway, all directed toward one goal: Protecting Pollinators. Bee there for what promises to be a lively discussion of approaches to mitigating this pollinator crisis.
Panelists:
Laurie Davies Adams, President and CEO, Pollinator Partnership
Peter Nelson, The Pollinators Documentary
Gordon Frankie, Professor and Research Entomologist at the University of California, Berkeley
Gretchen Le Buhn, Professor of Biology, San Francisco State University and Director, Great Sunflower Project
Conference Center: Warring Wilkinson (Room 204)
“The Importance of Science and the Humanities” will begin with a short presentation by Island Press President David Miller celebrating the 25th anniversary re-release of E.O. Wilson’s autobiography “Naturalist,” and featuring a sneak peek of a graphic adaptation to be released in 2020. Following this glimpse into his life and inspirational thinking, E.O. Wilson will take the stage, and Esri Co-founder and President Jack Dangermond will moderate a discussion about the importance of a consilience between science and the humanities to a Half-Earth future, and the important role we all play in achieving the goal of Half-Earth.
Conference Center: Krutch Theatre
The Horace M. Albright Lecture and James M. And Cathleen D. Stone Foundation Distinguished Lectureship in Biodiversity
“It is…our nature to choose large goals that while difficult are potentially game-changing and universal in benefit. To strive against odds on behalf of all of life would be humanity at its most noble.”— E.O. Wilson
Half-Earth is a clarion call to protect half the land and sea in order to safeguard the bulk of biodiversity, and ourselves. At this critical moment for our planet, the Half-Earth Project is bringing together the unique expertise and experience of scientists and thought leaders from around to world to achieve this important moonshot and solve the current environmental crisis.
Join visionary biologist and naturalist E.O. Wilson and other special guests for a discussion moderated by Sally Jewell about the core science and common humanity that is driving the success of Half-Earth, and how we can all work together to save the natural world. Introduction by Paul Alivisatos, Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost for the UC Berkeley campus. Opening talk: Framing the Problem, by Stephen H. Lockhart. Presentation: The Science Behind the Solution, by Walter Jetz, Yale University and Scientific Chair of the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation.
Download the full day’s schedule here.
Additional hotel options can be found at www.visitberkeley.com
Half-Earth Day is Co-hosted By
Half-Earth Day Sponsors
Support for Half-Earth Day provided by E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation partner Burt’s Bees.
Additional Support Provided by
The Horace M. Albright Lecture in Conservation
The James M. And Cathleen D. Stone Foundation
Questions about Half-Earth Day? Contact Chris Heltne at (919) 219-2279, cheltne@eowilsonfoundation.org, or the UC Berkeley College of Natural Resources at (510) 642-4902, cnr@berkeley.edu.
