Environmental activist Lou Gold will speak about the Klamath-Siskiyou wilderness region — and about environmentalists’ contention that the area is endangered — in his presentation, “Lessons From the Ancient Forest,” today at 7 p.m. in 100 Willamette.
Gold will be showing a slide show and speaking about the ecology of the ancient forests of the Pacific Northwest. He will also address the history of citizen efforts to save the wilderness area from logging, mining and habitat destruction.
Gold helped found the Siskiyou Project, a grassroots environmental group that is dedicated to protecting the Klamath-Siskiyou wilderness region, located along the border between Oregon and California.
The region has garnered the interest of environmentalists activists like Gold because of its biological diversity and ecological significance. In 1992, the Klamath-Siskiyou region was identified as one of seven areas in North America of global botanical importance by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
Ashlee Harrison, a co-coordinator at the University Survival Center, said students should attend Gold’s lecture because it will educate them on threats to the valuable wilderness region.
“He’s a leader in protecting wildland areas in Oregon,” Harrison said. “It’s really an interesting way to find out about wilderness and forest issues.”

— Jennifer Bear