Dr. Luisa Maffi, Language, Culture, and the Environment: Thinking Out of the Silos

Please join us as we welcome Dr. Luisa Maffi, co-founder and Director of Terralingua for her talk Language, Culture, and the Environment: Thinking Out of the Silos. For over two decades, Maffi has spearheaded the efforts of Terralingua, the internal NGO that promotes biocultural diversity of life, including language diversity. 

Update November 15: This event will be made accessible via livestream here: CK Choi - Language Science Speaker Series - Nov 20, 2018. Please review the media viewing requirements here. 

Abstract

"What do language, culture, and the environment have to do with one another? Popping up in my mind twenty-five years ago as I was completing my doctoral studies, that question sent me on a quest for connections that, I soon realized, could not easily be found within the silos of individual disciplines. Thinking out of the silos meant stepping out of academia to pursue a path beyond established disciplinary boundaries. That unorthodox path led to the emergence of the idea of biocultural diversity—the interconnected and interdependent diversity of life in nature and culture—and of a nonprofit organization, Terralingua, devoted to fostering understanding of that idea and of its value for the future of life on earth.

Today, the idea of biocultural diversity has given rise to an integrative field that combines knowledge and action, research and public engagement not only to advance science, but also, and above all, to promote a radical shift in our way of thinking: a shift away from the disconnected view of humans as separate from (and often as dominant over) nature and from the misplaced belief that cultural and linguistic diversity are a hindrance to human progress; and toward recognition of the “inextricable link” between people and the environment and of biocultural diversity as vital to the health of the planet and to the resilience of human societies. Conceived outside of academia, the idea has now filtered into it while maintaining a solid footing in policy and practice and in the broader arena of public communication.

We will explore the concept of biocultural diversity and some of its “real-life” applications that are helping make a difference in how we view our place and purpose in the world."

All are welcome! Light refreshments will be served following the talk. Please RSVP at https://bit.ly/2yQIlDh.