Diamond's best-seller
inspires new exhibit
 BY
MEG SULLIVAN
UCLA Today
What would you give to travel back in time to discover why the
far-reaching and astoundingly advanced Maya civilization mysteriously
disappeared in the 9th century?
What if trip organizers threw in a visit to Japan, Australia and
Montana?
How about free? Would free work for you?
That’s what the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
is offering UCLA staff, faculty and students if they visit its newest
exhibition, “Collapse?” It’s inspired by the provocative
concepts outlined in a best-selling book, “Collapse: How Societies
Choose to Fail or Succeed,” written by Geography Professor
and Pulitzer Prize-winner Jared Diamond.
Each visitor with an active BruinCard will get in free to the exhibition,
which runs from May 1 through Jan. 15, 2006, when accompanied by
a visitor paying full adult admission. The gesture recognizes the
author’s links to the campus and his colleagues.
“The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County is proud
to share ‘Collapse?’ with the entire UCLA community,”
said Jane Pisano, the museum’s director and president.
The exhibit, the museum’s first to be inspired by a book,
explores why some civilizations decline in the face of environmental
challenges while others manage to persevere. Visitors will be able
to explore issues from a historical and contemporary perspective
by examining the forces that toppled ancient Maya civilization,
the progressive forestation policies of Tokugawa, Japan, and the
environmental challenges now facing Montana and Australia. They’ll
also be able to weigh the environmental choices facing Southern
California via a virtual newsroom.
“We want to engage the public in the debate over our own survival
and possible futures in the global community,” said Vanda
Vitali, the museum’s exhibit producer and vice president of
public programs.
Visit www.nhm.org or call (213)
763-DINO for more information.
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