Lovejoy (second left) is briefed by Oswald (left) during a tour around Semenggoh Wildlife Centre.
KUCHING: Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) hosted American science envoy Dr Thomas Lovejoy at the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre yesterday.
He was accompanied by US Department of State Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental Scientific Affairs (OES) and Office of Science and Technology Cooperation (STC) bilateral division chief Beverli Dewalt and US Embassy in Malaysia environment, science, technology and health officer Tod Hannah, a press statement said.
The visitors witnessed the feeding of orangutans and were later briefed by SFC deputy general manager Oswald Braken Tisen on the state’s conservation initiatives.
Lovejoy, who is a renown conservation biologist also expressed his thoughts after the briefing noting: “The things you do in Sarawak for biodiversity conservation are impressive.”
He is currently in Sarawak as part of his visit to Malaysia to learn first-hand efforts taken to protect the environment and conserve biodiversity in the country. The other two destinations on his itinerary are Sabah and Kuala Lumpur
Also present during the visit were centre manager Chong Jiew Han and SFC corporate communications manager Francis Gombek.
Lovejoy is known as the ‘Godfather of Biodiversity’ since he coined the term ‘biological diversity’ in 1980.
He is a professor at George Mason University, USA and a senior fellow at the United Nations Foundation. He has served on science and environmental councils under the Reagan, Bush and Clinton administrations.
Lovejoy is also the founder of the public television series ‘Nature’ and has served in many established scientific and conservation boards and organizations in various capacities over the years, including as the former president of the Heinz Centre for Science, Economics and the Environment; senior advisor to the president of the United Nations Foundation; chief biodiversity advisor and lead specialist for the environment for the Latin America region for the World Bank and executive vice president of World Wildlife Fund-US.
Lovejoy and four other eminent scientists – Dr Linda Abriola, Dr Mark Hersam, Dr Daniel Kammen and Dr Margaret Leinen – began serving as US science envoys in Feb. His works focus on biodiversity and wildlife conservation in Latin America and East Asia and the Pacific.