Abstract: Tropical forests are important sources of timber, non‐timber forest products, and ecosystem services for approximately 1.6 billion people. Harboring more than half of the world’s plant and wild animal species, these ecosystems store about 247 billion tonnes of carbon. Illegal logging is a major cause of forest degradation and subsequent loss with an estimated 50‐90% of timber volumes from tropical regions illegally sourced. Stopping illegal logging worldwide could prevent up to US$100 billion of annual economic loss and associated environmental destruction, but law enforcement and timber traders themselves are hampered by the lack of available tools to verify timber legality. Professor Lowe will outlines how both established and recently developed scientific methods can be used to verify global timber supply chains, conserve and protect tropical forests. He will prove that current scientific methods are capable of supporting both enforcement and compliance, but that work is still required to provide the timber certification, policy and policing frameworks for effective routine implementation.
About the Speaker:
Professor Andrew Lowe is the Chair of Plant Conservation Biology and Director of the Centre for Conservation Science and Technology at the Abstract University of Adelaide. He is also Principal Advisor for Biodiversity Research Partnerships for the South Australian Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. His research aims to develop and apply ecological and genomic analyses, to understand, monitor and better manage biodiversity, particularly adaptation in the face of the anthropogenic threats of habitat fragmentation, invasive species and climate change. At the University of Adelaide, Prof. Lowe leads a group of 40 scientists, has leveraged over $100M funding over the last 10 years and has published over 200 scientific publications. He has collaborated with over 300 researchers, from nearly 100 institutes and 30 countries. He is passionate about communicating science to a general audience, particularly on the threats and solutions to biodiversity pressures.
For more information about the author: http://goo.gl/djle6v
For more information about the seminar, please download this announcement from this link or Contact
Dr. Nophea Sasaki
Associate Professor of Natural Resources Management,
School of Environment, Resources and Development (SERD)
Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 02 524 577
Title: Using DNA to Conserve and Protect Tropical Forests
Date: 29 February 2016 (Monday)
Time: 11:00 – 11:50 hours
Venue: Milton E. Bender Jr. Auditorium
Registration: https://goo.gl/EB75p4 (optional)
