Town Hall Seattle Science Series

The news about wildlife is dire — more than 900 species have been wiped off the planet since industrialization. Against this bleak backdrop, however, there are also glimmers of hope and crucial lessons to be learned from animals that have defied global trends toward extinction. Bear in Italy, bison in North America, whales in the Atlantic. These populations are back from the brink, some of them in numbers unimaginable in a century. How has this happened? What shifts in thinking did it demand? Drawing on compelling personal stories from the researchers, Indigenous people, and activists who know the creatures best, writer and professor Christopher Preston weaves together a gripping narrative of how some species are taking back vital, ecological roles. Observing different landscapes — farms, prairies, rivers, forests, oceans — Preston offers a philosophical shift in how humans ought to think about animals, passionately advocating for the changes in attitude necessary for wildlife recovery. Tenacious Beasts touch