December 21, 2001
Contact: Janet Wiseman
802-443-5710
jwiseman@middlebury.edu
Posted: December 21, 2001
MIDDLEBURY,
VT -Mike
Dombeck, chief of the U.S. Forest Service from 1997-2001 and director
of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management from 1994-1997, will give a talk
titled “The Big Ten Conservation Challenges for a New Century: Where
Do We Go from Here?” at Middlebury College on Monday, Jan. 14, at
7.30 p.m. The event, the Scott Margolin Environmental Affairs Lecture,
will be in Dana Auditorium in the Sunderland Language Center on College
Street (Route 125). It is free and open to the public.
According
to Middlebury College Director of Environmental Studies Chris McGrory
Klyza, Dombeck’s tenure as chief of the Forest Service was an illustrious
one, during which he worked to refocus the agency’s mission on the health
of the nearly 200 million acres that it manages in national forests and
grasslands. His efforts included a specific focus on protecting roadless
areas, restoring and improving the health of watersheds, developing a
sound fire policy, and creating sustainable forest management.
“W
Dombeck outlines the 10 critical natural resource issues of the next century,
his list - ranging from mining law and loss of biodiversity to off-road
vehicle use and the incalculable value of water - will surprise some and
enlighten others. He provides a serious, thought-provoking challenge to
all, but with an air of optimism and hope,” said Klyza.
Dombeck
is currently the Global Environmental Management Pioneer Professor and
University of Wisconsin System Fellow of Global Conservation at the University
of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, his alma mater. In addition to his bachelor’s
degree in biology and general science, Dombeck also has a master’s in
biology and education from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point,
a master’s in zoology from the University of Minnesota, and a doctorate
in fisheries biology from Iowa State University.
The
Scott Margolin Environmental Affairs Lecture is organized and sponsored
each year by the environmental studies program at Middlebury College.
The lecture, like the program
itself, takes an interdisciplinary approach to the environment and human
interaction with nature. The lecture series began in 1989, and in 1999
was named in honor of Scott Margolin, a member of the Middlebury College
class of 1999 who died in 1996. Past speakers have included former Vermont
Governor Madeline Kunin, nature writer Terry Tempest Williams, former
president of the Society for Conservation Biology Dr. Reed Noss, and environmental
historian Dr. William Cronon.
For
further information, see or contact Janet Wiseman of the environmental
studies program at 802-443-5710 or jwiseman@middlebury.edu.