About The Lost Continent:
The Lost Continent: Coral Reef Conservation and Restoration in the Age of Extinction is a nonfiction investigation of disappearing coral reef ecosystems. Part travel narrative and part scientific exploration, it takes readers on a global journey that traces the history of our discovery of the wonder of coral systems at the very moment in history when we’re losing them. From Polynesia to South American, and from Florida to Saudi Arabia, the book offers views into people and places facing this daunting issue. The more we learn about corals and their decline—and how humans are responding to that devastation—the more we understand about ourselves and the hope, despair and courage that unites our own species. With over 60 breathtaking photographs of coral reefs spanning from Colombia to Australia to the Florida Keys readers will be moved both by the majesty of nature and the urgency to preserve and restore these great cities of the seas.
Baker has spent the last eight years documenting the decline of the world’s coral reefs and searching for glimmers of hope amid the grim statistics. In this talk, he’ll share some of his experiences and photographs, highlighting reefs from Florida to Hawai'i, and Colombia to Saudi Arabia that walk the tightrope between hope and desperation, and that inspired the writing of The Lost Continent. The presentation will touch on the natural history of corals and how humans have interacted with them over the millenia, and why they’ve become critical sentinels in the face of an ongoing climate and biodiversity crisis.
About the author:
David Alexander Baker is a writer and documentary filmmaker living in the Pacific Northwest. His novel Vintage was released in 2015 by Simon & Schuster. He has written fiction and nonfiction for publications ranging from Failbetter.com to Hair Trigger, MSN, The Briar Cliff Review, Narrative.ly and Terra Magazine.Baker directed the film American Wine Story and co-produced and directed Saving Atlantis with Justin Smith, a film about the devastating decline of the world’s coral reefs. He also co-produced and directed Three Days of Glory with Scott Wright, an award-winning deep dive into Burgundy and winemakers surviving in the face of climate change and corporate greed.
Baker also teaches documentary film studies in the School of Writing, Literature and Film at OSU. He lives in the spectacularly beautiful state of Oregon on the rainy side of the mountains with his wife and daughter.