with
Bridget Stutchbury, York University
Migratory songbirds are experiencing one of
the most spectacular declines in numbers of all animal species.
It is a sobering thought that Rachel Carson's conservation
landmark book, Silent Spring, fingered agricultural chemicals
as a likely cause as far back as 1962. Yet in the ensuing
decades, pesticide use has continued to grow, especially
in the Third World where toxic chemicals are used that would
no longer be allowed in developed countries.
Professor Stutchbury will present the latest scientific
evidence for the many challenges that humans now present
to songbirds and their ecosystems, and specifically for
how chemicals and global food policies have become major
drivers of songbird declines. Implicit in her message and
the science is a blunt warning that the birds are not the
only ones at risk.
An internationally recognized expert on migratory
songbirds, Dr. Stutchbury holds the Canada Research Chair
in Ecology and Conservation Biology at York University.
Dr. Stutchbury has followed songbirds to their wintering
grounds in Latin America and back to the breeding grounds
in North America to understand their behaviour, ecology
and conservation. She is author of the book Silence of the
Songbirds, which was a finalist for the 2007 Governor General's
Literary Award for non-fiction.
Organized by: The Partnership Group for Science and Engineering
(PAGSE)
Sponsored by:
--the Speaker of the Senate
--the Speaker of the House of Commons
--Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)
Date: Thursday April 2, 2009 from 7:30 am - 9:00 am
Place: Room 200, West Block, Parliament Hill
Cost: No charge to Members of the House of Commons, Senators
and Media. All others $20
Registration: Please register by contacting Donna Boag,
PAGSE Coordinator: 613-991-6369, pagse@rsc.ca
Registration Deadline: Monday March 30, 2009
