Dr. Daniel Janzen, professor of biology, has been awarded the 1997 Kyoto Prize in basic research, one of Japan’s three most highly-valued private awards for lifetime achievement.
The award, which includes a cash prize of 50 million yen, or approximately $430,000, recognizes his contributions to the understanding and preservation of tropical biodiversity, particularly in Costa Rica. Janzen says that he plans to use the money to establish an endowment for the Guanacaste Conservation Area in Costa Rica, where he serves as a technical advisor.
“By destroying nature, you are removing the stimuli for a lot of your senses,” he warns. “We don’t want to live in a black-and-white world of human constructs. By removing wildlife, you are removing the complexity of nature — the stuff that moves, the colors, the sounds, the patterns, the interactions that are far more complex than anything humanity can or will produce or imagine.”
