Michael Tobias, Ph.D., President of the Dancing Star Foundation, will address the current global prospects for saveguarding precious habitat and species, both in the United States and the rest of the world. Drawing upon his own field research in nearly eighty countries, over a period of forty years, Michael’s unique blend of persistently tapping into the last unexplored parts of the planet, the natural sciences, and the arts, will bring to this special lecture/discussion a wide-ranging look at those places where conservation biology and animal protection are working, from Suriname and Peru to Namibia and Yemen; from the Antarctic to parts of the Persian Gulf; from Borneo, Japan and Bhutan, to India, and regions across Europe and the United States. Focusing on key players, governments, NGOs and individuals, Dr. Tobias will examine remarkable strategies for large ecosystem protection that are both carbon neutral driven, but also happen to be common sense applications of prudent, sustainable ethics for all involved. Tobias’ unique approach to both animal rights and conservation are a major boost to the whole discussion of endangered species, and what it will take to save that which we are all equally connected to: the Earth.

Tobias and Jane Morrison, his co-author (and wife, and the Executive Vice President of Dancing Star Foundation) will sign copies of their latest coffee table book, Sanctuary -Global Oases of Innocence. With a Foreword by the Queen of the Bhutan, the book is being officially launched at the Smithsonian Institution in late June 2008, and looks at 24 of the last great vestiges of Eden on Earth, and what it will take to keep them protected.

Fee: $10.00 (Museum Members: $5.00)