Lectures and Special Events, 2009
All events held at the North Carolina Botanical Garden's display gardens visitor center (the Totten Center) in Chapel Hill, unless otherwise noted. Please pre-register by calling the Garden at 919-962-0522.
MAY
Sunday, May 31, 2:00 pm
"Transformation in Australian Wetland Landscapes—a story of exotic invasive species"
The 10th Annual Evelyn McNeill Sims Lecture
Our guest speaker this year—Denise Lawungkurr Goodfellow—works in the Top End of Australia as a writer, birdwatching/natural history guide, and biological consultant. She has carried out surveys of fauna and flora across remote northwestern Australia and worked with indigenous peoples.
This lecture is FREE, but we request that you call to reserve a seat, as space is very limited: 919-962-0522.
Denise Goodfellow on her lecture:
"Plants, as food and medicine, have always been an important component of traditional Aboriginal life in the Top End of Australia. Their importance is reflected in the status given to some. For instance the Kunwinjku, Aboriginal people of Arnhem Land, call the native palm (Livistona inermis) 'mother palm.'
"With the formation of Top End floodplains about 1500 years ago, the role of fresh water plants in the diet of people such as the Kunwinjku, expanded. For instance water lilies (Nymphaea spp.), sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifer), wild rice (Oryza spp.), spike-rush (Eleocharis dulcis) were used. Indeed, the importance of wetlands to Kunwinjku is reflected in their name which means 'fresh water people.'
"However, plants, mostly introduced from Africa and Central/South America, are invading the Top End wetlands and/or affecting the hydrology of waterways that feed the floodplains, and the surrounding woodlands and forests. These weeds are known as 'transformers' as they have the potential to transform the landscape. Some were brought into Australia as pasture for cattle. Others came as ornamentals. Many of these weeds also affect the southern and southeastern United States.
"In the Top End, transformer weeds do the same damage as they do in other parts of the world. They crowd out native flora, creating vegetation communities of very low diversity, and affect hydrology. Eventually, they have a devastating effect on the fauna. Tens of millions of water birds that breed on the Top End floodplains are at risk.
"Yet because of the importance of the cattle industry, the growth in popularity of exotic ornamental plants, the reluctance of government to act decisively, and the huge areas involved, there is little chance of serious weeds being controlled. Such issues are global. I propose some solutions."
Return to the EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS page to find other public programs, such as Classes and Workshops, Art at the Garden, and Certificate Programs.
Last updated by Laura Cotterman on May 28, 2009 at 11:54:24 am.
