Nov. 11, 2013
For Immediate Release

By Linda Waggener, marketing and media relations coordinator

CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. — Dr. Richard Kessler, associate professor of biology and environmental studies Program coordinator at Campbellsville University, announces that Dr. Akira Miyawaki, a respected Japanese authority on forest ecology and conservation, will be the guest speaker on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 11 a.m. in
the Banquet Hall in the Badgett Academic Support Center, 108 University Drive, Campbellsville.

Miyawaki consults with TGKY in Lebanon, Ky. on a global reforestation Project, and he and his team have visited CU's Clay Hill Memorial Forest.

He is co-author of the book “The Healing Power of Forests, The Philosophy Behind Restoring Earth's Balance with Native Trees” with Elgene O. Box. The book describes the successful techniques in recreating depleted forests on the basis of environmental studies. The book challenges citizens to plant “native forests of native trees” to increase the chances for achieving a sustainable way of life “before it is too late.”

Miyawaki, a vegetation ecologist and professor emeritus of Yokohama National University, is the director of the IGES-Japanese Center for International Studies in Ecology.

He promotes forest regeneration by using the local potential natural vegetation (PNV), a concept used to investigate and evaluate the theoretical potential of the natural environment of an area that may have had its environmental and geographical conditions modified by human activities over time.

Creating a forest by closely planting together different types of natural vegetation of the land, using the PNV concept, is referred to as the Miyawaki Method.

Campbellsville University is a widely acclaimed Kentucky-based Christian university with more than 3,600 students offering 63 undergraduate options, 17 master's degrees, five postgraduate areas and eight pre-professional programs. The website for complete information is campbellsville.edu.