SoFo Talks Climate Change

The South Fork Natural History Museum is hosting a free panel discussion on Saturday, October 13, at 3 PM titled “Protecting our Sacred Land — Finding a Common Ground.” Part of the museum’s annual climate change event series, this panel discussion will also include a welcoming blessing by the Numasis Group, a screening of the Sacred Land Film Project, five guest speakers, and a cocktail and hors d’oeuvres reception.

“The panel will explore our relationship with nature, and the importance of preserving our sacred lands,” stated Diana Aceti, SoFo’s director of development. “We need to reinforce the importance of a strong relationship between us and the land. If we don’t get working and preserve it, it won’t be around for us in the future. What is most important to us as a museum is that we inspire and educate the stewards of our planet to the forever challenge we face. We are very excited that our event will focus on SoFo’s mission, and provide everyone with the tools to be stewards of our earth.”

“With a newly formed alliance with the Center for Humans and Nature and the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, SoFo was able to draw a whole different diverse group of people into the conversation,” Aceti said.

“There are sacred lands out west and Native Americans have been dealing with saving these lands in a changing environment. We have sacred lands here on Long Island. It’s a legacy that we have to deal with,” she added.

The guest speakers for the event include Brooke Hecht, president of the Center for Humans and Nature, and Ceara Donnelley, Vice Chair of the Center for Humans and Nature, Christopher McLeod, Project Director of Sacred Land Project, Shavonne F. Smith, Shinnecock Environmental Director, and Tiokasin Ghosthorse, member of the Cheyenne River Lakota Nation of South Dakota.

“The panel will discuss some of the current environmental issues including green architecture, saving energy, zero-energy building, and more. We are very excited to open this important conversation to our community,” Aceti said. New York Assemblyman Steven Englebright, of the Fourth District, has commended SoFo’s past climate change events. “I believe that the South Fork Natural History Museum is providing an enormous public service by organizing this event as a forum to raise awareness and talk about the implications of the climate change impact upon the natural world,” he said.

For reservations, call 631-537-9735, or visit SoFo’s website at www.sofo.org.

justin@indyeastend.com