José Maria Acero

Assistant Executive Officer – Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty

Today’s Date: 5 December 2007

1. What interaction with an animal and/or nature in your life has had the biggest impact on you?

I am a biologist and as such I worked several years in the northwest of Argentina and in Antarctica during 15 years. Therefore I had an important interaction with nature, but the biggest impact was produced by the Antarctic nature (penguins, seals, whales, etc.).

2. Did you have a favorite place in the great outdoors during your childhood?

Well, the zoo was one of my favorite attractions when I was a child

Now? I enjoy going to the mountains or to the sea on vacations

3. As a former zookeeper, I would love to know what your favorite animal is and why?

-In the wild, the emperor penguin, is a sort of hero- all what he does to survive and for his breed is admirable
-At home, the cat. I have a female and she is very intelligent, lovely, and is part of our family

4. What do you think is the greatest environmental challenge facing us now, and what do you think will be the greatest challenge in the future?

The “climate change”, no doubts. The present challenge is to learn to live with a better use of our resources. (mainly the developed countries)

5. If you could give one piece of advice regarding the environment and our natural resources, what would it be?

I would say that everybody should understand that the human being is part of Nature and, as such, its main preoccupation should be to keep natural resources available for the whole mankind and future generations.


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