Wade Davis and the Fall Speaker Series

Published by Peter Robinson on 01/07/2025 02/07/2025

Explorer, writer, and anthropologist, Wade Davis, spoke at the Mayne Island Agricultural Hall on December 15. His talk was the last in the Conservancy’s fall speaker series, which included Rob Butler and John Vaillant. All the speakers donated their time to come to SḴŦAḴ | Mayne Island for this series, and all the events were sold out. Revenues from the talks are going towards the Conservancy’s new Land Protection Program.

Wade is a passionate and articulate presenter, which was evident from his talk. He spoke from his latest book, Beneath the Surface of Things, a far-ranging collection of essays covering topics such as American politics, racism, the first ascent of Everest, conflicts in the Middle East, and climate change.

Central to his arguments, and no doubt arising from his anthropological background, is the idea that we need to see issues from multiple perspectives when analysing them. Such a position can be controversial, and his talks often provoke reactions both for and against his positions. But what was certain here was that the audience was engaged by his talk, and continued to think about his presentation for some time afterwards.

The Conservancy was very happy with this, our first speaker series, so you can count on us doing this again in 2025!

Peter Robinson

Director, Mayne Island Conservancy