Press Releases

Jonathon Porritt to speak at museum's annual lecture

Release Date : 01 October 2007

One of Britain's leading environmentalists is to speak at the Museum of English Rural Life's annual lecture later this month.

Jonathon Porritt will deliver the lecture – entitled Exploring Tomorrow's Low-Carbon Countryside – bringing to a conclusion MERL's summer of events on the theme of sustainability.

Mr Porritt - former director of Friends of the Earth, Founder Director of the Forum for the Future and Chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission - said: "Climate change impacts on each and every one of us, but none more so than farmers and land owners.

"Looking ahead to 2025, I will explore the combined impacts of climate change and diminishing supplies of cheap oil on UK farming and on rural life in general, urging both the industry and Government ministers to rethink many of today's increasingly redundant assumptions about a globalised food economy, cheap food, and land use in general."

The sustainability theme, which has run since July, was inspired by the current exhibition at the Museum, Going Green: Sustainability Past and Present, which puts contemporary issues climate change, renewable energy, recycling, food miles and self-sufficiency in their historical context.

Roy Brigden, Keeper of the Museum, who is organising the event said: "This is a rare opportunity for the public to hear Jonathon Porritt, who many will know as the former Director of Friends of the Earth, speak about issues concerning the future of the countryside.

"We are delighted that Jonathon is giving this lecture at MERL. As a museum and research facility with nationally and internationally important collections relating to food, farming and the countryside, MERL is well placed to provide a forum for the discussion of issues relating to the environment. We hope to encourage a diverse audience to come to hear about a subject which affects us all in some way. "

Jonathon Porritt CBE is an eminent writer, broadcaster and commentator on sustainable development. Established in 1996, Forum for the Future is now the UK's leading sustainable development charity, with 70 staff and over 100 partner organisations, including some of the world's leading companies.

Mr Porritt was made Chairman of the UK Sustainable Development Commission - the Government's principal source of independent advice across the whole sustainable development agenda - in July 2000. He has also been a member of the Board of the South West Regional Development Agency since December 1999, and is Co-Director of The Prince of Wales's Business and Environment Programme.

He was formerly Director of Friends of the Earth between 1984 and 1990; co-chair of the Green Party between 1980 and 1983, of which he is still a member; chairman of UNED-UK between 1993 and 1996; chairman of Sustainability South West, the South West Round Table for Sustainable Development between 1999 and 2001 and a Trustee of WWF UK between 1991 and 2005. Jonathon was made a CBE in January 2000 for services to environmental protection.

The lecture will be held at the University of Reading's Great Hall on the London Road campus on October 10 at 5pm. It is free to attend but tickets must be booked in advance, through the Museum of English Rural Life, by calling 0118 378 8660 or emailing Merl Events.

Ends

Note for media: The lecture will be followed by a reception at the Museum of English Rural Life for invited guests. The Media are welcome to attend. If you wish to come along to the lecture and/or reception, please contact Alison Hilton, marketing officer, on 0118 378 8660.



More information about the Museum of English Rural Life

The Museum of English Rural Life, in Redlands Road, Reading, was founded by the University of Reading in 1951 to reflect and record the changing face of farming and the countryside. It houses designated collections of national importance that span the full range of objects, archives, photographs, film and books. Today, it forms part of the University's Museums and Collections Service. The Museum operates as a major resource and research centre for the history of food, farming and the countryside with links into the School of History and other academic departments at the University.

More information About the University of Reading

The University of Reading is one of the foremost research-led universities in the UK. Founded in the nineteenth century and gaining a Royal Charter in 1926, we offer a wide range of programmes from the pure and applied sciences to languages, social sciences and fine art. New research and the latest thinking continually feed into undergraduate teaching, with our academic staff working at the forefront of their fields of expertise.