Lezing
Openingslezingen Lorentz Center: Biodiversiteitsbehoud en samenwerkende soorten
- Datum
- vrijdag 31 januari 2025
- Tijd
- Bezoekadres
-
Gorlaeus Gebouw
Einsteinweg 55
2333 CC Leiden - Zaal
- CM.1.26
15:00 – 15:45 Mwazvita Dalu, University of Mpumalanga, South Africa
Living Within, Not Aside: Rethinking Global Biodiversity Conservation
To address the accelerating biodiversity loss driven by overexploitation, habitat destruction, pollution, and climate change, a shift towards a pro-environmental global society is essential. This society would emphasize reduced consumption and greater integration with nature. Biodiversity itself plays a pivotal role in fostering subjective well-being, which, in turn, encourages pro-environmental behaviours. Current global conservation narratives often focus on preserving pristine ecosystems with minimal human interaction, primarily spotlighting charismatic species. This approach neglects less visible, yet equally vital, biodiversity. Additionally, conservation programs often prioritize objective well-being, such as economic livelihoods, over the subjective well-being benefits derived from biodiversity, especially in the Global South. A global approach to biodiversity conservation must broaden its focus to include all species and recognize the intrinsic link between human well-being and biodiversity. By fostering inclusive, globally resonant strategies, we can nurture a collective, sustainable coexistence with nature, where conservation is a shared human endeavor rather than a separate domain.
15:45 – 16:30 Rob Dunn, North Carolina State University, USA
The Role of Mutualisms in Natural Histories of the Future
To ecologists, mutualisms are relationships in which two species interact in ways that both benefit. Mutualisms have been fundamental to human evolution and history, albeit relatively neglected by scholars. In this wide-ranging talk--spanning from honeyguides to dogs to bacteria that live in the mouths of ants-Dunn will explore the prehistory of human mutualisms as well as the radical transition that occurred as some human populations began to collaborate (or, should it be, began to be domesticated by) yeasts and grains. Radical new, transformative mutualisms with pigs, goats, sheep and, eventually, chickens would follow. The units evolutionary biologists and ecologists use to measure these ancient mutualisms are units of evolutionary fitness. But as we consider the mutualisms of the future, we can make choices about how we measure our partnerships with other species and whether they are mutually beneficial. We can also make choices about the species with which we partner. Dunn concludes by considering the ways in which we might imagine different kinds of futures in which we partner with far more species on new terms. He focuses particular attention to the role of pleasure in general and flavor in particular in these relationships.
This Lorentz workshop aims to develop a transdisciplinary approach to biodiversity loss while identifying emerging principles related to synergies and mismatches among scales (e.g., temporal, spatial, taxonomic, disciplinary), in line with a new understanding of how ecological and social processes interrelate with each other. Together, we seek to delve into the transition from the scientific understanding of scales to concrete actions or solutions that foster a biodiverse and sustainable transformation, all the while considering culturally sensitive connotations.
To mark this occasion, together with the Leiden Biodiversity Network, we invite you to the opening public lectures by Professors Dalu and Dunn.
The lectures will be followed by drinks with our invited speakers.