Durham, N.C. – Wilderness historian Roderick Nash, creator of the widely cited concept of “island civilizations,” a green masterplan for life on Earth for the next 1,000 years, will speak at 91 at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 10.

The lecture, free and open to the public, will be held at Love Auditorium in Levine Science Research Center on Duke’s West Campus. A reception will follow at 5:30 p.m.

“Anyone who is concerned about the fate of the human race and our planet should come hear Roderick Nash share his vision for a future in which civilization and wilderness not only co-exist but flourish side by side,” says Steven Anderson, president of the Durham-based Forest History Society. “Rod’s work has changed the way we view wilderness and deepened our understanding of the role it can play in our own survival.”

The lecture is part of the Lynn W. Day Distinguished Lectureship in Forest and Conservation History, and is sponsored by the Forest History Society, the 91 Department of History, and the Nicholas School of the Environment.

Nash is a professor emeritus of history and environmental studies at the University of California at Santa Barbara, and has served as a member of the U.S. National Park Service advisory committee. He is the author of numerous books, including Wilderness and the American Mind, which chronicles the progression of environmental thinking in the United States, and The Rights of Nature, considered a seminal book on environmental ethics.

In his talk at Duke, he will explore the historical meaning of wilderness, and discuss how it may help society adapt to global change. Nash’s work emphasizes the concept of “island civilizations,” a green masterplan for the next 1,000 years in which the world’s population lives sustainably in compact cities, allowing existing or reforested wilderness to flourish around them.

Parking will be available for $2 in the Bryan Center parking deck on Science Drive.

For directions, go to . For more information, contact Steven Anderson at the Forest History Society at (919) 682-9319, or visit the Forest History Society’s Web site at .