Paul Hawken said the Earth has never needed as much of our help as it does now.
Hawken, an author and environmentalist, spoke in front of about 250 people Monday about his work as the executive director of Project Drawdown, a nonprofit that researches how to reverse global warming. His talk was the first event of Campus Earth Week, hosted by Sustainable UF, a program that focuses on making campus more eco-friendly.
Director of UF Office of Sustainability Matthew Williams said there was a $25,000 speaker fee, however the money does not go directly to Hawken. The money went to Project Drawdown in order for Hawken and his team to continue their work with highlighting climate solutions.
The UF Office of Sustainability paid for the talk out of its donation foundation account, meaning the money did not come from tuition or taxes, Williams said.
The “drawdown” in Project Drawdown refers to the process of decreasing the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. He said the organization maps, measures and models the 100 most substantive solutions to stopping global warming.
Most of the plans focus on getting people to care about the issue, Hawken said.
“That is where we make a difference, and that is where we engage people,” Hawken said. “That is where people get involved. That is where people think about possibility.”
Sustainable UF picked Hawken because he’d bring a positive message of hope and teamwork, said Allison Vitt, a UF Office of Sustainability spokesperson.
“We want people to understand that it is not all doom and gloom,” Vitt said. “People can come together and work together to find solutions.”
Vitt said the event was an important way for the UF and Gainesville community to hear different narratives about climate change.
“Even just thinking about an issue differently is a big action,” she said.
Madison Smith, the agency head of Gators Going Green, a Student Government agency that acts to bring sustainable initiatives to campus, said she works closely with Sustainable UF.
The UF sustainability junior said she attended Hawken’s talk because she was eager to learn something new.
“Sustainability as a whole comes down to a lot of things that a lot of people don't know about, and it is interesting hearing a lot of people’s perspectives,” the 20-year-old said.
Paul Hawken, an author, environmentalist, activist and entrepreneur, spoke at the University Auditorium as the Campus Earth Week Keynote speaker. He talked about his work as the executive director of Project Drawdown, a nonprofit working to reverse global warming.
