Driven by Nature: Dr. Peter Raven’s Journey in Botany and Global Sustainability

Driven by Nature follows the globetrotting botanist from China to the American Midwest as he works to foster concern for a changing planet, further the cause of biological education, and build the Missouri Botanical Garden into the world-renowned haven for plant life it is today. Barbara Schaal, the Mary-Dell Chilton Distinguished Professor and a nationally recognized plant evolutionary biologist, will lead the discussion with Raven expanding on the autobiography and his relationship with WashU through his many years of work in Missouri and around the world.
 
More about Peter Raven
Peter H. Raven is one of the world’s leading botanists and advocates of conservation and biodiversity. Described by Time magazine as a “Hero for the Planet,” Raven champions research around the world to preserve endangered plants and is a leading advocate for conservation and a sustainable environment.

He joined the Department of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis in 1971 and two years later was appointed the George Engelmann Professor of Botany, a position that had been created in 1884 and has been held by subsequent directors/presidents of the Missouri Botanical Garden for more than 130 years. He held this position until 2010, chairing, co-chairing, or serving on the committees of some 30 PhD students, often jointly with Prof. Barbara Schaal. Now emeritus, he continue to encourage relationships between the university and the garden.