2008 Keynote Address

Peter H. Raven, Ph.D.

President of the Missouri Botanical Garden
George Engelmann Professor of Botany
Washington University, St. Louis

Photo credit: Kristi Foster Courtesy Missouri Botanical Garden

• Highlights of Dr. Raven's presentation at the plenary session

Dr. Peter Raven is one of today’s leading botanists and advocates for conservation and biodiversity. Described by Time magazine as a "Hero for the Planet," Raven champions research and support across the globe to preserve endangered plants and animals and build a sustainable environment. For more than 36 years, Raven has headed the Missouri Botanical Garden, an institution he has nurtured into a world-class center for botanical research, education, and horticulture display.

Born in Shanghai, China, and now a father of four, Raven has earned highest honors at the University of California, taught as a professor of botany and biology, and served as a trustee of the National Geographic Society and chairman of the society’s Committee for Research and Exploration. In recognition of his work, Raven is the recipient of numerous awards including the National Medal of Science, the highest award for scientific accomplishment in the United States. He has also held Guggenheim and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation fellowships and received honorary degrees from universities worldwide.

Dr. Raven was home secretary of the National Academy of Sciences for more than a decade and has been a member of academies of science in countries ranging from Argentina to the United Kingdom to Russia. He also served as the first chair of the U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation, a private, congressionally-chartered organization that funds joint research with independent countries of the former Soviet Union.

The professor has written and contributed to many books and publications, both popular and scientific, including Flora of China, a shared Chinese-American project that is leading to a contemporary, 50-volume account on the plants of China. He also coauthored an internationally best-selling textbook in botany, the seventh edition of which appeared earlier this year.

An authority on extinction, Raven will discuss the significance of plant life and the environment for sustaining our world as well as the threats ecosystems face today. Join us for the 2008 ESRI UC Plenary Session, which promises to be an engaging event.