ECU welcomes Pirate Read author Richard Louv to campus

East Carolina University will host Richard Louv, journalist and author of “The Nature Principle,” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5, in the Mendenhall Building’s Hendrix Theatre.

“The Nature Principle” is the 2019-2020 Pirate Read selection and focuses on reconnecting with life in a virtual age. The Pirate Read is a common book read by all incoming students prior to their first year at ECU.

The selection is chosen by a committee of faculty and staff to orient first-year students to the academic community by encouraging intellectual dialogue and critical thinking, preparing for the college-level environment, and facilitating discussion of ideas from the book across the curriculum.

“The future will belong to the nature-smart – those individuals, families, businesses and political leaders who develop a deeper understanding of the transformative power of the natural world and who balance the virtual with the real,” Louv said. “The more high-tech we become, the more nature we need.”

Louv speaks internationally on nature-deficit disorder, a concept he first introduced in “Last Child in the Woods” on the importance of children’s and adults’ exposure to nature for their health, and on the need for environmental protection and preservation for greater access to nature and the health of the Earth.  He is co-founder and chair emeritus of the Children & Nature Network, an organization helping build the movement.

This event is free and open to the ECU community and general public. Louv will sign books in the Mendenhall lobby following his presentation.

For additional information, contact Karen Smith, Office of Student Transitions, at 252-328-4173 or visit https://pirateread.ecu.edu.

Note to the Media: Richard Louv will be available to speak to the media prior to his presentation. All requests should be submitted in writing to Karen Smith no later than Nov. 1.

###

ECU News Services
Howard House, 1001 E. Fifth Street
Greenville, NC 27858
ecunews@ecu.edu
Phone: 252-328-6481
news.ecu.edu

Contact: Karen Smith, associate director, Office of Student Transitions, smithka@ecu.edu  

Telephone: 252-328-4173

Event Date: Nov. 5, 2019