6:00 PM–8:00 PM    Maison Française East Gallery, Buell Hall

Film/Panel Discussion:

The Bishnois, Ecologists Since the 15th Century  

Film screening and Q&A with Franck Vogel and Ruth DeFries

This documentary film will be screened and followed by a Q&A with French photographer-writer-director Franck Vogel, joined in conversation by Ruth DeFries, Denning Professor of Sustainable Development and Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology at the Earth Institute.

Presented as part of a series of events in anticipation of the 2015 Paris Climate Conference.

For over five centuries, the Bishnoi community of Rajasthan has been living in harmony with nature and wildlife in India. They have made wildlife conservation and environmental protection their life’s work, protecting trees and wildlife, in particular the Blackbuck antelopes. The age-old Bishnoi ethos, as presented in this documentary by award-winning French photographer Franck Vogel, points us toward new practices and innovative ways of treating our threatened world environment.

Franck Vogel is a photographer focusing on global social and environmental issues whose work focuses on the relationship between humanity and nature in an effort to illustrate that it's possible to live in harmony.  His photographs have won numerous awards and been featured in publications such as GEO Magazine, Le Monde, and Paris Match.  For more information see www.franckvogel.com

Event co-sponsored by the Columbia Maison Française, Alliance Program, and Earth Institute, with partial funding from the Cultural Services of the French Embassy.