"Art Can Save a Panda: Reconnecting the Arts and Sciences" Dr. Lucy Spelman, a wildlife veterinarian who teaches in the Liberal Arts Division at RISD, makes the case for bringing artists and scientists together to foster sustained and informed public support for animal conservation. The need for a new, more creative approach to saving animal species is urgent. Using examples including work by her students at RISD, she shows it is possible to reconnect the arts and sciences to make the problems facing the animal kindom, as well as the solutions, more accessible, meaningful and relevant. Dr. Spelman is board certified in zoological medicine. Her work experience includes 10 years with the Smithsonian's National Zoo, half as clinical vet and half as zoo director, when she brought two giant pandas from China to the U.S. She ran the field program for Gorilla Doctors in Africa, treating sick and injured mountain gorillas. She is author of the National Geographic Animal Encyclopedia and co-editor of The Rhino with Glue-on Shoes. She founded Creature Conserve to provide ways for artists and scientists to work together for the benefit of all animals, including humans. The event will also include a brief overview of the Tiverton Land Trust's recent work, and the TLT Volunteer of the Year award.  Free and open to the public.