Fall 2022 Distinguished Professor - Dr. John Vucetich | Michigan Tech Research Forum

|December 1, 2022|Theme: What is an endangered species?|

John Vucetich

Lecturer

Distinguished Professor Dr. John Vucetich

Topic

What is an endangered species?

Research Statement

We know that red squirrels and raccoons are not endangered, and that pandas and tigers are endangered. But, if an endangered species is one that deserves special protections, like those afforded by the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA), then it is fair to say we have a disturbingly inadequate sense for what an endangered species is. The ESA provides a legal definition of an endangered species. That is, one that is “in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range.” That definition has been interpreted through five different policies advanced over the past 20 years. Through a series of about 15 federal court cases, each policy has been rejected by the courts. The Fish and Wildlife Service is expected to develop a new policy in the near future. In this talk, I’ll review far-reaching concerns of this problem, including its ecological, philosophical, and political dimensions.

Six Questions With Dr. John Vucetich

You focus your work on the synthesis of ecological science and environmental ethics. How did you come to choose this path? Or, did it choose you?

My native discipline is ecology, as a young scholar, people kept asking me whether we should hunt wolves. I was struck by the tendency for people to look to scientists for guidance on ethical questions. I figured that I’d better become knowledgeable about ethics.

How do your research and teaching complement each other?

My research is – in a broad sense – about figuring out what’s happening in the world. My teaching is – in that same broad sense – about teaching students what’s happening in the world. I use my research to keep my teaching as relevant as possible.

What has changed the most in your field over the past decade (or two)?

Sadly, the state of the natural world is worse. Habitat loss, overexploitation of wildlife, climate, and the inequitable distribution of nature’s benefits – they all seem, on balance, worse now than twenty years ago.

What is the biggest challenge in your fields of expertise?

We may know plenty, but that knowledge is inadequately applied. I think basic obstacles include two facets of communication. First, the need for experts to better express themselves to nonexperts. Second, the need for experts to better understand what other experts and lay people tell us when they respond to our knowledge.

How does Michigan Tech work for you as a home base?

Michigan Tech has marvelous assets – institutionally and with respect to our scholarly community. Those assets have been an invaluable part of my life. But the asset that really makes MTU most special for me is the natural environment into which we are embedded. Incalculable meaning in my life has come from the lake and forests.

What's next in your research?

In 30 years of researching, I’ve never been able to answer that question.