Dr. Richard Primack

• In-person event
• 4440Q, Carleton Technology and Training Centre, Carleton University
• 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON, K1S 5B6

• Contact
• Root Gorelick, root.gorelick@carleton.ca

Walden Warming: the Impact of Climate Change on the Plants, Birds and Butterflies of Thoreau’s Concord

Dr. Richard Primack, Boston University, USA

Faculty Host: Root Gorelick

Conservation Biologist • Climate change • Leaf senescence

Thoreau was a climate change scientist! For the past 10 years, Professor Richard Primack (Boston University) and his colleagues have been using Thoreau’s records and other data sources to document the dramatically earlier flowering and leafing out times of plants, the earlier ice out at Walden Pond, and the more variable response of migratory birds. And most noteworthy, plants in Concord are also changing in abundance due to a warming climate. While primarily a scientific study, Primack’s talk will be supported by beautiful photos and numerous quotes from Thoreau.

This work has received exceptional wide attention in the popular media ( http://people.bu.edu/primack/news.html ), most recently in the New York Times, and demonstrates the relevance of Thoreau’s legacy to contemporary issues.