Darwin's Ark

 A nice desk, some pictures and an expert panel- all sorted

The view on the walk back

Interesting debate yesterday evening at the Linnaen Society hosted LERN annual debate- 'Darwin's Ark; Should Evolutionary History Inform Species conservation?'. A handful of the usual suspects were there discussing biodiversity decline, what it means and what to do about it (that old chestnut). Reps from the Zoological Society London, Kew Gardens, Greenpeace and the University of Oxford were debating various aspects to species conservation in an event organised by a not so usual suspect to me-The London Evolutionary Research Network (Yay! another denomination of thinking conservation- just what we need- more replication, recycling, re-wording, re-use, re-packaging of the same old arguments- it's a good example of a closed system- granted) .

Everyone had a good time, lively debate, a few new buzzwords (De-extinction was a good one; bringing species back Jurassic park style (new name ((from my end of the line)), old idea), Proxy ideology; using a retarded linear simple message e.g. 'Save the Arctic' to engage people into a more complex ideology of climate change and on and on e.g. eventually get to philosophical debate (about the meaning and purpose of human existence ) and then wine and tasty tit bits to follow. Fucking love it.

PS. Nobody worked out what to do about the unfolding sixth extinction, the collapse of global ecosystems and the shrinkage of global biodiversity.  I was going to put my hand up and say maybe people should start talking about the ultimate question, the meaning and purpose of human existence which all these proxy issues are about or perhaps a look at the fundamental flaws of the social system that we live in and how to change that? Maybe the conservation crisis is a crisis of perspective or consciousness. Nahhh-hostile crowd I predict. Could possibly begin to undermine the whole culture of inequality, the paradox of an elite intelligentsia and dependence on the scraps of fundamental capitalism that the conservation community depends on. Might put a few of them out of 'work' if you went down that road too long.

So onwards to the bottom, where maybe the answers are waiting? Who knows, one thing for certain is that answers are not just confined to the conservation community (a warped paradox infested with the very disease it claims to afford solutions).

The funny thing about Darwin's ark- it's bloody sinking!