[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 150 (Tuesday, November 19, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO MR. RAYMOND F. DASMANN

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 19, 2002

  Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life 
of Mr. Raymond F. Dasmann, a founder of international environmentalism 
and a tireless proponent of increased efforts for sustainability on a 
planet with limited resources. Mr. Dasmann, a UC Santa Cruz professor 
emeritus of ecology, passed away on November 5, 2002, and is survived 
by daughters Marlene, Sandra, and Lauren, five grandchildren; and one 
great-grandchild. His wife of 45 years, Elizabeth Sheldon, passed away 
in 1996.
  Raymond was fascinated with our living Earth from an early age. His 
undergraduate education in biology was interrupted by World War II; he 
served in Australia and New Guinea. Upon his return he enrolled at UC 
Berkeley, where he studied zoology under the famed wildlife biologist 
Starker Leopold.
  Mr. Dasmann began working as a conservation biologist in the 1950s, 
when the field was in its infancy. His early research documented 
threats to the environment from population growth and pollution. 
Raymond wrote over a dozen influential books in his lifetime, on 
subjects ranging from endangered species to the loss of irreplaceable 
wildlands to environmental decline. Mr. Dasmann's works were must-reads 
for national researchers concerned about the environment.
  Raymond did pioneering work in the 1960s with the United Nations 
Educational Scientific, and Cultural Organization, where he helped 
launch the Man and the Biosphere program. During the 1970s he worked in 
Switzerland as a senior ecologist for the International Union for the 
Conservation of Nature.
  Mr. Dasmann was recognized many times for his work. He was honored by 
the World Wildlife Society and the Smithsonian Institute. The 
prestigious Order of the Golden Ark, which recognizes internationally 
distinguished conservationists, honored Raymond in 1978. He became an 
elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of 
Science in 1984 and received the Distinguished Service Award from the 
Society for Conservation Biology in 1988. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor 
to recognize the life and achievements of Raymond Dasmann.

                          ____________________