Internationally acclaimed scientist and environmentalist Tim Flannery is set to deliver the inaugural Mick Dark Talk for the Future in the Blue Mountains in September.
As Mr Flannery sees it, we are perched on the knife-edge of irreversible climate change. However there is still room for hope.
In his new book, Atmosphere of hope: Searching for solutions to the climate crisis, Mr Flannery explores exciting potential "third way'' technologies that work with nature to absorb excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and could provide the missing piece of the climate change puzzle. He also looks at how communities around the world are instigating innovative action on climate change.
Mick Dark, who died recently after living with Parkinsons for some years, was well-known in the Blue Mountains for his significant contribution to the conservation movement. He was also known as a patron of Australian writers and writing, having gifted Varuna, the home he grew up in with his parents Eleanor and Eric Dark, to the nation as a residential writers' centre.
Varuna has established the annual Mick Dark Talk for the Future in partnership with the Blue Mountains Conservation Society to honour Mr Dark's spectacular generosity and legacy. The talk is designed to inspire community discussion of environmental issues of local and global significance.
In this inaugural talk, "When mice turn on giants: How communities are defeating climate change," Mr Flannery will explore the power of individuals and local communities to take action and effect change. The talk will be held on Saturday, September 19 at 3pm at the Wentworth Falls School of Arts, 217-219 Great Western Highway, Wentworth Falls.
For more information, visit www.varuna.com.au.
Tickets for the lecture can be booked by going to www.trybooking.com/IMKY. $25 general, $20 concession. If available, tickets may also be sold at the door.