Carl Safina: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe

Species Unite

elizabeth novogratz

Society & Culture, Philosophy

5 • 911 Ratings

🗓️ 5 March 2024

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

“We live so disconnected from the natural world, and many people live much more disconnected than I am because I've made the natural world my life, my work. But if it's still surprising me and we live so disconnectedly, why is that? Because these owls have been here, all these other creatures have been here since before we got here. They're a normal part of the world. And yet what they do and what they can do, what they're capable of, is so surprising. Why is it so surprising? Why don't we know? Is it a limitation of our human intelligence and our human emotional capacity, or are we taught our disconnection?” - Carl Safina

Carl Safina is an ecologist and author who writes extensively about our human relationship with the natural world and what we can do to make it better.

His most recent book is called, Alife and Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe. It’s about rescuing a baby owl, watching her grow up, and what he learned from her and himself in the process. And, it's about our relationship with nature and the beauty and the magic that surrounds us.

His writing has won several awards, including a MacArthur Genius Prize, Pew and Guggenheim fellowships, and the John Burrows, James Beard, and George Rabb metals.

He is the first Endowed Professor for Nature and Humanity at Stony Brook University and the founding president of the not for profit, The Safina Center.

Transcript

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0:00.0	We live so disconnected from the natural world and many people live much more
0:21.5	disconnected than I am because I've made the natural world my life my work
0:27.2	but if it's still surprising me and we live so disconnectedly, why is that?
0:36.0	Because these owls have been here,
0:38.2	all these other creatures have been here
0:40.4	since before we got here.
0:42.4	They're a normal part of the world and yet what they do and
0:46.2	what they can do, what they're capable of is so surprising. Why is it so surprising? Why don't
0:51.8	we know? Is it a limitation of our human intelligence and our human emotional capacity or are
0:59.6	we taught our disconnection. Hi, I'm Elizabeth Novigrats. This is Species Unite. We have a favor to ask if you like today's episode and you have a spare minute.
1:20.0	Could you please rate and review Species Unite on Apple Podcast or wherever you listen to Podcast?
1:27.0	It really helps people to find the show. This conversation is with Carl Safina.
1:35.0	Carl is an ecologist and an author who writes about the natural world,
1:42.0	our human relationship with it, and what we can do to make it better.
1:47.8	Carl's most recent book is called Alfie and me, what owls know, what humans believe.
1:54.4	It's about rescuing a baby owl,
1:56.2	watching her grow up, and what he learned from her
1:59.2	and himself in the process.
2:01.6	We met at his office, the Safina Center, a 300-year-old house on Long Island. Hi Carl.
2:23.4	Hi. Hi.
2:24.4	It is great to be here at the Safina Center.
2:26.6	This place is unbelievably cool.
	...

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