Fort Worth, TX — The Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT), a nonprofit international botanical resource center, will present its 2008 International Award of Excellence in Conservation to Peter H. Raven, Ph.D., at a dinner here on Thursday, May 15, 2008. One of the world’s leading botanists, Dr. Raven is president of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

“Peter Raven’s lifework makes him a deserving recipient of this award,”� said S. H. Sohmer, Ph.D., BRIT’s director and president. “He has championed research around the world to preserve endangered plants and animals.”�

Dr. Raven, once described by TIME magazine as a "hero for the planet," is a leading advocate for conservation, biodiversity, and building a sustainable environment. In 2001, he received the National Medal of Science, the highest award for scientific accomplishment in the United States. For more than 36 years, he has headed the Missouri Botanical Garden, an institution he has nurtured to become a world-class center for botanical research, education, and horticultural display. During this period, the Garden has become a leader in botanical research in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and North America. Raven is the George Engelmann Professor of Botany at Washington University in St. Louis and chair of the National Geographic Society's Committee for Research and Exploration.

Raven received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1960 after completing his undergraduate work at the University of California, Berkeley. Universities throughout the world have awarded him a number of honorary degrees.

BRIT created the International Award of Excellence in Conservation in 1995 to honor individuals and organizations that exemplify the ideals expressed in its mission: to conserve our natural heritage by deepening our knowledge of the plant world and achieving public understanding of the value plants bring to life. Recipients have included Jane Goodall, Mrs. Lyndon Baines (Lady Bird) Johnson, Sir Ghillean Tolmie Prance, Richard Evans Schultes, Russell E. Train and Ruth Carter Stevenson.

Approximately 500 people are expected to attend the award dinner at the Renaissance Worthington Hotel, 200 Main Street. A reception at 6:45 p.m. in honor of Dr. Raven will precede the award dinner, which begins at 7:15 p.m.

For ticket information, call Amanda Morris, 817.332.3441, ext. 15, or email her at amorris@brit.org. For more information about the award go to www.brit.org.

Established in 1991, BRIT has a collection of more than one million dried plant specimens representing most of the Earth’s plant families. It has one of the largest herbaria in the United States, the largest independent herbarium in the Southwest, and one of the world’s best collections of Texas plant specimens. Its botanical library houses more than 95,000 volumes of books, periodicals, and journals from more than 90 countries.

BRIT has conducted extensive research in tropical rainforests in the Philippines, Costa Rica, and currently in Peru and Papua New Guinea. Its plant research programs help to preserve those forests and allow us to understand the impact that mankind has on rainforests through mining and other destructive operations. BRIT also closely studies the flora/fauna connection inside the rainforests to track the migration of plant species as well as identifying new ones.

BRIT is open to the public. Its staff presents workshops and educational programs and provides consultation to research scientists, vineyard owners, ranchers, veterinarians, farmers, students, teachers, artists, plant enthusiasts, homeowners, gardeners, lawyers, physicians, businesses, government agencies, museums, schools, arboreta, hospitals, and poison control centers.

Contact Info: Bill Lawrence,
Lawrence&Associates,
phone: 817.879.0515,
email: lawprmrk@flash.net Web site: www.brit.org

Website : Botanical Research Institute of Texas