Tim Flannery Opens Writers And Readers Week

Tim Flannery PIC CREDIT Adam Bruzzone

WRITERS AND READERS WEEK, Friday 9 – Wednesday 14 March 2012

Tim Flannery Opens Writers And Readers Week

“’Here on Earth’ is a letter from perhaps the world’s most thoughtful, and certainly most eloquent, environmental scientist on how we as a species might survive as chief stewards of planet Earth... is a must for optimists and pessimists alike.’’ New Scientist

Internationally acclaimed environmentalist, scientist and explorer Tim Flannery will give a keynote address to open Writers and Readers Week on 9 March at the Wellington Town Hall. During that day he will give an address for secondary school students, also at the Town Hall.

Tim Flannery is one of Australia’s leading thinkers and writers. He was the 2007 Australian of the Year and is chairman of the Copenhagen Climate Council. Flannery has written over a dozen books, including the award-winning bestsellers The Future Eaters, The Weather Makers and, most recently, Here on Earth, an extraordinary exploration of evolution and sustainability.

Flannery has also written accounts of his adventures in Papua New Guinea, Australia and the Pacific: Throwim Way Leg, Country and Among the Islands. As a field zoologist, he has discovered and named more than 30 new species of mammals and was awarded the Edgeworth David Medal for Outstanding Research.

The Weather Makers, which debuted on The New York Times’ bestseller list, traces the history and science of climate change and the likely effects on the planet. It has sold over a million copies worldwide, and has been hailed as one of the most pivotal and influential texts on global warming. Here on Earth charts the history of life on our planet and is an extraordinary exploration of evolution and sustainability.

Flannery is a regular presenter on ABC radio and the BBC and has edited and introduced many historical books. He was recently appointed Chief Commissioner of Australia’s Climate Commission. He is a professor at Macquarie University and lives with his family in a sustainable house on the Hawkesbury River.

WHEN: 6.30pm Friday 9 March 2012

WHERE: Wellington Town Hall

DURATION: 1 hr

TICKETS: $33/$28 Bookmark Pass & Friends

ENDS

Writers and Readers Week is supported by the Lion Foundation, Victoria University of Wellington, John F. Kennedy Memorial Fellowship, Unity Books, Museum Art Hotel, Australia Council for the Arts, Australian High Commission, Goethe Institut, Canada Council for the Arts, Embassy of Spain and the Embassy of the United States of America.