Margaret Atwood speaks at animal extinction symposium

Scientists andphilosophers from all over the world will take on the weighty topic of extinction atathree-day conference at Laurentian University in Sudbury.

But for ecologist and Laurentian University professor Charles Ramcharan, the speaker hes most looking forward to isnt a scientist, butwell-known author Margaret Atwood.

Shes a heroine of ours Her stuff is sci-fi [and] often its about projections into the future, he said.Its fascinating to see how she interprets ecological change. Its cool.

Ramcharan added the conference, called Thinking Extinction,is especially important in light of the recent changes to Ontarios endangered species act.

I think we need this kind of oversight when it comes to things that are this important," he said.

The symposium is being hosted by Dr. Brett Buchanan, Dr. Gillian Crozier, Dr. Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde, and Dr. Jacqueline Litzgus, members of LUs new research centre, the Centre for Evolutionary Ecology and Ethical Conservation.

This might be the first conference of its kind to bring together scientists and philosophers to talk about extinction, organizers said.

Involves all of us

A landscape architect at Laurentian said extinction is an issue everyone should think about.

Its not necessarily a scientific problem, Jennifer Harvey said.It involves all of us. While science can provide facts and information, maybe it is a humanities problem.

Atwood is participating in a panel, The Future of Endangered Species, on Fridayat Laurentian.

The conference concludes on Saturday with speakers from the Toronto, New Zealand and the United States.