Animal lovers beware. Jeff Corwin, host of “The Jeff Corwin Experience” on Animal Planet, will speak at the Humphrey Coliseum at 7 p.m. Monday.
The show is presented by the Delta Gamma Foundation to kick off the organization’s Lectureship on Values and Ethics series.
A graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Corwin is a well-known wildlife activist. He received a bachelor’s of science in both biology and anthropology from Bridgewater State College, and during his college years, Jeff became an activist working to protect the rain forests of Central and South America.
His efforts led to the establishment of the Emerald Canopy Rainforest Foundation, a grass-roots organization dedicated to protecting rain forests through educational outreach and habitat conservation. While working with Emerald Canopy, Jeff served as a member of a youth action committee for the United Nations Environmental Program. In 1994, Jeff joined the JASON Project as an expedition naturalist during its televised broadcast from the rain forests of Belize.
When Jeff is not in the field, he presents an outreach lecture series on wildlife, ecology and conservation to audiences throughout the United States. As a speaker, Jeff has addressed an array of organizations, including the United Nations Conference on Youth and the Environment, the Maui Earth Summit, the International Rainforest Conference, Explorers Hall at the National Geographic Society and convocation and commencement ceremonies for Bridgewater State College.
Corwin is also establishing an interactive museum and environmental education center called the Eco-Zone. The goal of the center will be to help build awareness about the wildlife and ecology unique to the wetlands of southeastern Massachusetts. He has since produced Jaguar Trax, a natural-history docu-drama filmed on location in the jungles of Costa Rica, and the popular television series “Going Wild with Jeff Corwin” on the Disney Channel. He has also begun developing a series of books that explore the natural history of endangered species.
Delta Gamma President Katie Lightsey and public relations director Adrian Howell say the reason DG chose Jeff Corwin is because of his personality and his stance on wildlife ethics and values.
“We knew Jeff Corwin would be a good speaker to kick off the series in a fun way,” Lightsey said.
“From a wildlife point of view, we feel Jeff will bring a new perspective to values and ethics, as they are related to environmental issues,” Howell said. Lightsey and Howell agree that the topics Corwin will be discussing are of great interest to many people in our community, and just to hear someone like Corwin speak will hopefully change people’s standpoint on wildlife and the environment.
“We hope that this series works for the betterment of not just DGs and Greeks, but of MSU, Starkville and our local communities as well,” Lightsey said.
Corwin will also be bringing some animals, donated by the Jackson Zoo, to the lecture.