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David
Suzuki
is a internationally known environmental
activist and scientist. Although he is
well known for his radio broadcasts in
Canada, he's become an international celebrity
through the television show The Nature
of Things. Suzuki also cofounded the David
Suzuki Foundation for the promotion of
living in balance with the natural world.
David
Suzuki was born on March 24, 1936 in Vancouver,
Canada to Kaoru Carr and Setsu Suzuki.
Suzuki and his twin sister Marcia were
grandchildren of Japanese immigrants who
came to Canada in the early part of the
20th century. Because of his ancestry,
Suzuki, along with his family, was sent
to an internment camp in British Columbia
during the Second World War. During that
time, the government sold the family's
dry-cleaning business and sent Suzuki's
father to a work camp in Slocan. The family
was released at the end of the war.
When
Suzuki and his family left the camps,
they were forced by the government to
move east of the Rockies. They chose Islington,
Leamington, and London as their homes.
It was during this time that Suzuki first
became aware of his interest in nature.
Once
the family settled in Lemington, Suzuki
attended Mill Street Elementary School
followed by London Central Secondary School
in London with the family's last move.
After finishing his preliminary education,
Suzuki left Canada to study at Amherst
College in Massachusetts where he earned
his BA followed by his Ph.D. in zoology
from the University of Chicago. He graduated
in 1961 and began his career by studying
genetics. In 1963 he returned to Canada
to teach with the zoology department at
the University of British Columbia. He
worked as a professor for almost forty
years.
Seven
years after beginning his professorship,
Suzuki started a children's television
show entitled "Suzuki on Science".
Four years later, in 1974, he started
Quirks and Quarks, a radio program and
also hosted a show on CBC Radio until
1979. He also hosted another program called
Science Magazine.
In
1979 Suzuki began hosting what would become
his most well-known program called The
Nature of Things. This television show,
run by CBC, was designed to help stimulate
broader interest in nature, wildlife,
and a more sustainable society. He also
hosted the PBS series The Secret of Life
and the 1985 series A Planet for the Taking
which won him a United Nations Environment
Programme Medal. In 2002 Suzuki created
a mini-series for Canada public television
called The Sacred Balance and continues
to promote sustainable practices and respect
for nature through his talks and media
outlets.
Suzuki
established the David Suzuki Foundation
in order to help promote sustainable development
and humans living in balance with nature.
In order to live by their own rules, the
foundation implements a carbon neutral
energy program by purchasing carbon offsets
from renewable energy and energy efficient
projects.
Suzuki
remains outspoken about the human-involvement
in climate change and society's lack of
action to change practices. At times he
has accused certain scientists of speaking
against climate change in order to lobby
for oil and energy companies. Although
some of his speeches have been controversial,
Suzuki has amassed a following of companies
and individuals who share in his work
and beliefs.
This David
Suzuki biography may not be reproduced
online.
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