HARVARD UNIVERSITY'S 150 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR WITH THE BIODIVERSITY OF ASIA

The Arnold Arboretum, Harvard’s tree museum, is among the most distinguished collections of trees and shrubs in the world. Its history is deeply steeped in a century-and-a-half long relationship with the plants and peoples of Asia. Come learn about this natural laboratory of biodiversity and its role in conservation efforts in Japan and throughout the world. 

William (Ned) Friedman will discuss the diverse roles that botanical gardens can play at local and global scales through an examination of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University – a magical place where plant lives are measured in decades and centuries, but (like our own lives) are also comprised of a never-ending series of ephemeral “moments.”

With camera in hand, Dr. Friedman will reveal some of the amazing subtleties of nature and discuss the local and global ambitions of the world’s most wonderful collection of woody plants.

DATE and TIME:   May 24 (Friday), 19:00 pm to 21:00 pm (Doors open at 18:30 pm)

PLACE:  Roppongi Hills Club  https://www.roppongihillsclub.com/visitor/dfw/rhc/jp/access.html

ADMISSIONS:   6000 yen per person and 4000 yen for current Harvard students and interns.  

This includes buffuet dinner.  Payable at the door.   Cash bar available. 

REGISTRATION:  Please use the form below.  

Please note that current Harvard students and interns need to fill in the box Degree/Year if applicable at the time of registration. 

For example, a student graduating from college in 2020 may put AB '02. 

ENQUIRIES: Please contact  jonathan@jonathanharlow.com

BIOGRAPHY: 

William (Ned) Friedman is an organismic and evolutionary biologist who studies the origin and early diversification of flowering plants. Friedman’s studies have fundamentally altered century-old views of the earliest phases of the evolution of

flowering plants, Darwin’s so-called “abominable mystery.” He is also deeply interested in the history of early (pre-Darwinian) evolutionary thought. 

As Director of the Arnold Arboretum, Friedman has worked to expand the Arboretum’s societal impact through diverse initiatives in public programming, enhanced communication between scientists and the public, and a reinvigoration of the long-standing relationship between the Arboretum and the biodiversity of Asia. In early 2016, after four years of extensive planning, a ten-year initiative was launched to shape and augment the living collections of the Arnold Arboretum for the next century. Plant exploration around the globe will bring 400 species of woody plants, including many threatened with extinction, to this Frederick Law Olmsted-designed botanical garden in Boston.