Famed oceanographer Sylvia Earle to lecture April 30
Famed oceanographer and explorer Sylvia Earle will present “Exploring the Ocean in the 21st Century” April 30 at the University of Maine.
The public lecture, from 4:30–5:30 p.m. at the Collins Center for the Arts on campus, will include underwater film of her research and conservation efforts in many coastal and deep areas of the global ocean.
Doors open at 3:30 p.m. Maritime folk music about the sea will be provided by the New Brunswick folk duo “Frantically Atlantic” from 3:50–4:20 p.m.
Tickets are free but must be reserved by contacting the Collins Center for the Arts box office, 207.581.1755. The box office also can assist with requests for disability accommodations.
Earle is a National Geographic Society Explorer-in-Residence, and founder and chair of the nonprofit Mission Blue, focused on raising public awareness, access and support for a worldwide network of marine protected areas. She has been called a Living Legend by the Library of Congress and first Hero for the Planet by Time Magazine, and was the first woman to become Chief Scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Earle’s career achievements include leading more than 100 expeditions and logging more than 7,000 hours underwater. She led the first team of women aquanauts during the Tektite Project in 1970.
Her research focuses on marine ecosystem conservation, and the development and use of new technologies for access and effective operations in the deep sea and other remote environments, according to her biography.
Earle is committed to developing a global network of areas in the ocean — “Hope Spots” — to safeguard the living systems that provide the underpinnings of global processes, from maintaining biodiversity and yielding basic life support services to providing stability and resiliency in response to accelerating climate change.
Co-sponsors of the event include the UMaine School of Marine Sciences, and the University’s Cultural Affairs and Distinguished Lecture Series.