Humans must take responsibility for their future and the futures of other species.
That was the theme of world-renowned Kenyan anthropologist and activist Richard Leakey’s lecture Monday afternoon, part of Auburn University’s Littleton-Franklin lecture series.
People filled the College of Science auditorium and overflow classrooms, lining the hallway outside and listening to Leakey over the sound system.
“Although I can see that many people are thoroughly fed up with hearing about climate change… I don’t think there’s any question that it’s not something we should dismiss because we’re fed up with hearing about it,” he said.
Humans would suffer from the extinction of other species, Leakey said. By “snipping” one species out of a food chain, such as the ocean, humans could see extinction of other organisms in that chain.
The human species might not be victims of extinction themselves in the coming decades, but their current ways of life would likely be extinct, he said.
Leakey suggested that instead of attempting to raise thousands of dollars at a time for preserving wildlife, if everyone could give $1 to $5, it would add up.
The Earth is showing signs similar to those in the past when many species went extinct, he said. But Leakey was optimistic about humankind’s chances of making changes.
“It may be we are on the edge of a mass extinction,” Leakey said. “…Whether we are part of it, whether we caused it, whether we are contributors is not the issue. It’s the only time in the Earth’s history that there was a species who may be able to do something about mitigating it.”
After the lecture, Catherine Priester, an environmental science freshman, said she enjoyed the lecture and was impressed by Leakey’s experiences and ideas.
Kevin Lippincott, a junior in civil engineering, said he has attended several of the lectures in the series, but this was unlike any other.
“I was kind of honored to sit in his presence,” Lippincott said.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement