Soils, Climate Change and Global Food Security Subject of Earth Day Lecture at Colorado State University

Rattan Lal, professor of soil physics and director of the Carbon Management and Sequestration Center at The Ohio State University, will speak at Colorado State as part of the university’s annual Earth Day celebration. Lal will be the featured speaker during the Gary A. Peterson and Dwayne G. Westfall Annual Lecture from 2-3:30 p.m. Thursday, April 22, in the Lory Student Center North Ballroom.

Lal’s lecture, titled “Soils, Climate Change, and Global Food Security,” is free and open to the public. A reception will follow the lecture from 3:30-4:40 p.m. in the North Ballroom.

Lal is recognized as an international authority on natural resource management, climate change, and global food security. He has made numerous contributions to the understanding of soils in global environmental management including the strong relationship between soil degradation and its impact on past civilizations. Lal believes that political stability and global peace are threatened because of soil degradation, food insecurity, and desperation.

Lal is a member of the Soil Science Society of America, American Society of Agronomy, International Union of Soil Scientists, and World Association for Soil and Water Conservation. He has been honored with numerous national and international awards including a 2007 Nobel Peace Prize Certificate for his work on climate change.

The Gary A. Peterson and Dwayne G. Westfall Annual Lecture is in conjunction with Earth Week activities at Colorado State. The four-day event, scheduled from April 19-22, will offer a variety of events including lectures, movies and other activities that stress the importance of protecting the environment.

Established in 2007 by the Department of Soil & Crop Sciences, the Peterson Westfall lecture promotes awareness of critical and emerging issues related to soil and water resources. It was named after Peterson and Westfall because of their dedication to the understanding of soil and water resources in Colorado.

For more information, contact Neil Hansen at (970) 491-6804 or Neil.Hansen@colostate.edu or the Department of Soil & Crop Sciences at (970) 491-6517.

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