An eye-opening account of the global ecological transformations wrought by roads, from the award-winning author of Eager.
This is a Northwest Passages event with Ben Goldfarb for his upcoming book, Crossings: How Road Ecology is Shaping the Future of Our Planet.
Thursday, September 21st at 7pm at The Bing Theater (901 W Sprague Ave). Doors open at 6pm.
Auntie's will be there with copies of Crossings for purchase, (and Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers!).
General Admission tickets are $7. Doors open at 6pm.
VIP tickets are $40 and include an autographed copy of the book, reserved premium seating, one drink ticket, and author reception ahead of event at the top of The Spokesman-Review Tower at 5:30pm.
Pair of VIP tickets for $55 that includes TWO tickets, ONE autographed book, reserved premium seating for two, two drink tickets, and author reception ahead of the event at the top of The Spokesman-Review Tower at 5:30pm.
Tickets are limited, so act fast!
Tickets can be purchased online at https://spokane7tickets.com
About the book
Some 40 million miles of roadways encircle the earth, yet we tend to regard them only as infrastructure for human convenience. While roads are so ubiquitous they’re practically invisible to us, wild animals experience them as entirely alien forces of death and disruption. In Crossings, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb travels throughout the United States and around the world to investigate how roads have transformed our planet. A million animals are killed by cars each day in the U.S. alone, but as the new science of road ecology shows, the harms of highways extend far beyond roadkill. Creatures from antelope to salmon are losing their ability to migrate in search of food and mates; invasive plants hitch rides in tire treads; road salt contaminates lakes and rivers; and the very noise of traffic chases songbirds from vast swaths of habitat.
Yet road ecologists are also seeking to blunt the destruction through innovative solutions. Goldfarb meets with conservationists building bridges for California’s mountain lions and tunnels for English toads, engineers deconstructing the labyrinth of logging roads that web national forests, animal rehabbers caring for Tasmania’s car-orphaned wallabies, and community organizers working to undo the havoc highways have wreaked upon American cities.
Today, as our planet’s road network continues to grow exponentially, the science of road ecology has become increasingly vital. Written with passion and curiosity, Crossings is a sweeping, spirited, and timely investigation into how humans have altered the natural world—and how we can create a better future for all living beings.
About the author
Ben Goldfarb is the author of Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter, winner of the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award. His writing has appeared in the Atlantic, National Geographic, the New York Times, and many other publications, and has been anthologized in The Best American Science and Nature Writing. A recipient of fellowships from the Alicia Patterson Foundation and the Whiting Foundation, he lives in Colorado.
An eye-opening account of the global ecological transformations wrought by roads, from the award-winning author of Eager.