The 2021 Haig-Brown Lecture will feature Dr. Suzanne Simard, a world leading forest ecologist. Dr. Simard will address the complexity of our forest ecosystem and base her talk on her bestselling book “Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest”. This will be the 12th Annual Haig-Brown Lecture, created to honour the legacy of Roderick and Ann Haig-Brown. Roderick and Ann were early and leading voices in Campbell River for environmental and social issues.
Dr. Suzanne Simard is appearing virtually from her home.
FINDING THE MOTHER TREE: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest
From the world’s leading forest ecologist who forever changed how people view trees and their connections to one another and to other living things in the forest–a moving, deeply personal journey of discovery.
DR. SUZANNE SIMARD was born in the Monashee Mountains of British Columbia and was educated at the University of British Columbia and Oregon State University. She is Professor of Forest Ecology in the University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Forestry.
Suzanne Simard is a pioneer on the frontier of plant communication and intelligence; she’s been compared to Rachel Carson, hailed as a scientist who conveys complex, technical ideas in a way that is both dazzling and profound. Her work has influenced filmmakers (the Tree of Souls of James Cameron’s Avatar) and her TED talks have been viewed by more than 10 million people worldwide.
Now, in her first book, Simard brings us into her world, the intimate world of the trees, in which she brilliantly illuminates the fascinating and vital truths–that trees are not simply the source of timber or pulp, but are a complex, interdependent circle of life; that forests are social, cooperative creatures connected through underground networks by which trees communicate their vitality and vulnerabilities with communal lives not that different from our own.
- Why we should collectively change the way we see and think of trees:Forests are not simply the source of timber or pulp, they are a complex, interdependent circle of life and they communicate with each other through underground systems of fungi and roots. Learn how trees have evolved; how they perceive one another; learn and adapt their behaviors; recognize neighbors and remember the past; how they have agency about the future; elicit warnings and mount defenses; and compete and cooperate with one another.
- Forests and Climate Change: How are our forests being affected by climate change? What should we be doing to protect and save our forests? Suzanne’s research clearly proves why it’s essential to prioritize saving the trees and how the trees could save us.
- Stop, collaborate, and listen: Suzanne discusses why it’s important for the scientific community to adopt a symbiotic model that prioritizes collaboration over competition. She believes that only through collaboration can we face the global challenges of the environmental crisis, global warming, and deforestation boom we are currently living.
- Mother Trees: What is the mysterious, powerful force that connects and sustains others? The old large trees in forests are responsible for nurturing and connecting forests in the same profound ways that families and human societies do. Learn about the vital and inseparable bonds that enable all our survival.
Click here to access a PDF copy of the book.
Tickets: $15 In Person or Live Stream Admission (+applicable taxes & fees)