Biodiversity and Climate Change Conference at American Museum of Natural History Focuses on Conservation in the Face of Uncertainty Friday, April 30 - Saturday, May 1, 1999

On April 30 and May 1, the American Museum of Natural History will convene conservation leaders, government policy-makers, and climate experts to discuss the dynamic history of Earth's climate, and describe how efforts to protect biodiversity, both locally and world-wide, must adapt to uncertain future conditions. The two-day conference, called Biodiversity and Climate Change: Conservation in the Face of Uncertainty, will take place in the Museum's Kaufmann Theater, and is open to the public.

Much is unknown of the exact nature of climate change. Yet many scientists contend that rising global temperatures could be one of the most serious environmental threats of our time. According to studies, the Northern Hemisphere has been warmer this century than for the past 1,000 years, and overall Earth's temperature has risen one degree Fahrenheit during the 20th Century. Because the implications of these changes are not clear, the American Geophysical Union warns that the current lack of knowledge should promote public concern for the future.

In many areas of the world, Earth's biodiversity is now under siege from human pressures, and global warming may exacerbate the current extinction crisis and present unprecedented conservation challenges. "Climate change is a significant threat to biodiversity," said Francesca Grifo, the director of the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation at the Museum. "A large body of scientific evidence is emerging which demonstrates the negative consequences of climate change on biodiversity in a world already so extensively transformed by humans."

The Biodiversity and Climate Change symposium will include presentations by U.S. Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere D. James Baker, and U.S Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs Frank E. Loy. In addition to panels moderated by Museum scientists, on Saturday, May 1, Ira Flatow of National Public Radio will moderate a program called "A Local Perspective: Climate Change and the Big Apple." This program will include discussions of biodiversity in the Big Apple, and the impact of climate change on urban life. Please note the attached agenda for more details on topics and presenters.

The entire conference will also be broadcast live on the Internet via the Museum's web site (http://www.amnh.org/biodiversity/Climate/Symposium99.html) to accommodate members of the general public and the scientific community who are unable to attend in person. Remote attendees can watch and hear the talks. In addition, participants will be able to ask questions via e-mail, and receive live answers as part of the webcast.

The American Museum of Natural History hosts this forum as a prelude to the opening of the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth, which will feature exhibits on climate and climate change, including an ice-core sample from Greenland that displays a detailed climatic history dating back 115,000 years.

Tickets for the Biodiversity and Climate Change conference, which include lunch, are as follows: For both days: $55 for the general public, $50 for Museum members, and $25 for students. For one day only: $35 for the general public, $30 for Museum members, and $20 for students. For reservations, call 212-769-5200, Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 6:00pm, EST; Saturdays 10:00am - 6:00pm, EST. Please use program code CBC99SS as a reference.

Friday, April 30: Earth's Changing Climate

8:15 a.m. Registration and Coffee

9:00 Welcome and Introduction

I. Part I. Climate Change: Understanding the Past
9:15 Moderator Michael Novacek, Provost and Senior Vice-President for Science, American Museum of Natural History

9:30 Surprise in the Greenhouse Wallace S. Broecker, Newberry Professor of Earth & Environmental Sciences, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University

9:50 Rapid Climate Change in the Holocene Dorothy Peteet, NASA/Goddard Institute for Space Studies/Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University

10:10 The Polar Ice Core Archive of Climate Change Edward Brook, Department of Geology, Washington State University

10:30 Questions from the Audience

10:45 Coffee Break

II. Part II. Climate Change and Extinction: What's the Connection?
11:00 Moderator Niles Eldredge, Curator, Department of Invertebrates, American Museum of Natural History

11:15 Mass Extinctions and the History of Life Paul E. Olsen Storke Memorial Professor of Earth & Environmental Sciences, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University

11:35 John Van Couvering, American Museum of Natural History

11:55 Vertebrate Extinctions and Quaternary Climate Change: No Connection, Bad Connection, or Missed Connection? Ross D. E. MacPhee, Chairman and Curator, Mammalogy, American Museum of Natural History

12:15 p.m.The Last Great Warming Scott Wing, Research Curator, Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution

12:35 Questions from the Audience

12:50 Lunch

III. Part III. Is the Earth Warming?: A Look at the Evidence
1:45 Introduction Ellen V. Futter, President, American Museum of Natural History

2:00 Keynote Presentation D. James Baker, Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, U.S. Department of Commerce

2:30 Questions from the Audience

2:45 Coffee Break

Part IV. The Impacts of Climate Change on Biodiversity
3:00 Moderator Rob DeSalle, Associate Curator and Co-Director of the Molecular Laboratories, American Museum of Natural History

3:20 Nowhere to Run: The Threat of Global Warming to Ecosystems and Species, Adam Markham, Director, Climate Change Program, World Wildlife Fund

3:40 Global Change and Plant Extinction: How Great is the Impact? Kent E. Holsinger, Professor of Biology, Director, Center for Conservation and Biodiversity, University of Connecticut

4:00 Insect Response to Climate Change: Evidence from the Quaternary Fossil Record Scott A. Elias, Fellow, Institute of Arctic & Alpine Research, University of Colorado

4:20 Unpredictable Effects of Global Climate Change: Coral Bleaching and Coral Disease in the Florida Keys James Porter, University of Georgia

4:40 Questions from the Audience

8:30 a.m. Coffee

Part V.: Conserving Biodiversity in the Face of Uncertainty
9:00 Moderator Eleanor J. Sterling, Program Director, Center for Biodiversity and Conservation

9:15 The Nature of Conservation: Managing the Dynamic John G. Robinson, Vice-President and Director, International Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Society

9:35 Reefs, Risk and Responsibility: Coral Bleaching and Global Climate Change Peter O. Thomas, Senior Conservation Officer, U.S. Department of State

9:55 David Wilcove, Environmental Defense Fund

10:15 Questions from the Audience

10:45 Coffee Break

Part VI.: A Local Perspective: Climate Change and the Big Apple
11:00 Moderator Ira Flatow, National Public Radio's Talk of the Nation: Science Friday

11:15 The Baked Apple Scenario, Douglas Hill, Consulting Systems Engineer, Regional Plan Association.

11:35 Keeping Cool Heads in a Hothouse World: Climate Change Impacts on New York City Cynthia Rosenzweig, Research Scientist and Head, Climate Impacts Group NASA/Goddard Institute for Space Studies

11:55 The Big Apple's Biodiversity: Prospects for Survival in the post-Eisenhowerian Era, Michael W. Klemens, Director, Metropolitan Conservation Alliance, Wildlife Conservation Society

12:15 p.m. Questions from the Audience

12:45 Lunch

Part VII. Where Do We Go from Here?
1:30 Francesca T. Grifo, Director, Center for Biodiversity and Conservation

1:45 Keynote Presentation Frank E. Loy, Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs

Panel Discussion

2:15 Linkages between Climate Change and Biodiversity Tony Janetos, Senior Vice President for Programs, World Resources Institute

2:35 Thomas E. Lovejoy, Chief Biodiversity Advisor to the President, World Bank

2:55 Peter Frumhoff, Director, Global Resources, Union of Concerned Scientists

3:15 Sir John Browne, Group Chief Executive, BP Amoco p.l.c.*

3:35 Questions and Concluding Remarks