Around the world, coral reefs are being devastated by pollution, global warming and ocean acidification. Scientists are racing to learn if these vital organisms can adapt to rapidly changing environmental conditions, while artists are responding with innovative visual and socially engaged strategies. In this event at the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute, IFF director, Margaret Wertheim, co-creator of the Crochet Reef project, is joined by cultural critic Lawrence Weschler and coral scientist John Burt to discuss how science and art can work together to enhance our ecological consciousness. On the heels of major climate-change-action rallies (in New York, London and elsewhere), this wide-ranging interdisciplinary discussion frankly asks how we as individuals, and as societies, can respond to the most pressing environmental issue of our time. Event moderated by Alexis Gambis.
Presented in conjunction with the NYUAD Institute’s exhibition of the Crochet Coral Reef.
Coral outcrop at Flynn Reef, Queensland, Australia. Photo © Tony Hudson.
Margaret Wertheim: Co-creator Crochet Coral Reef project; director Institute For Figuring.
Lawrence Weschler: Director emeritus, NYU Institute of the Humanities, New York University NY.
John Burt: Expert on Middle Eastern corals; Professor of biology, New York University Abu Dhabi.
Moderator: Alexis Gambis: Visiting Professor of Biology, and Film and New Media, New York University Abu Dhabi.
Margaret Wertheim at “Crochet Coral Reef” exhibition at the New York University Abu Dhabi Institute, Sept 2014.