DR. KIRSTY DUNCAN
Medical Geographer
Internationally-renowned Pandemic Influenza,
Global Warming, Environmental & Human Health Expert
Dr. Kirsty Duncan is an
internationally-renowned speaker who has consulted with and lectured for such organizations
as The Center for Disease Control (United States of America), National
Geographic (United States of America), the Japanese Government, the World Health Organization and the
Young Presidents Organization (Portugal).
Dr. Duncan is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto where she
teaches medical geography and also teaches corporate social responsibility
at the Rotman School of Management, as well as global environmental
processes at Royal Roads University.
Prior to this Dr. Duncan lectured at the University of Windsor where she
taught meteorology, climatology and climate change. She also helps
community groups, associations, organizations as well as Fortune 500
companies plan for a possible pandemic.
 Dr. Duncan led an international, multi-discipline scientific expedition to
exhume the bodies of a group of Norwegian miners - all victims of the 1918
flu epidemic - to discover the causal agent of the 1918 Spanish influenza
virus. This culminated in the writing of her 1st book
'Hunting the 1918
Flu: One Scientist's Search for a Killer Virus' which detailed the
ten-year history of the search as well as describing how she met with many
roadblocks, including "academic piracy." The book was published by the
University of Toronto Press in 2003 and was short-listed for the 2004
Canadian Science Writers Association awards.
She recently finished her 2nd academic book,
"Environment and Health:
Corporate Contributions to Our Common Future."
Dr. Duncan also completed work, regarding climate change and human health for North America, for the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a joint venture of the United
Nations Environmental Program and the World Meteorological Organization.
In addition to Dr. Duncan's academic and research work, she was elected
as the Liberal MP for Etobicoke North, during the Canadian Federal
Election on October 14th, 2008.
PRESENTATION TOPICS >>>
GLOBAL WARMING:
Canada in a Warmer World :
Over the next century, global mean temperature is predicted to rise
1.4-5.8 o C relative to 1990. Such a change may not seem significant, but a
temperature decrease of 2.0-4.0 o C is enough to bring on a near hemispheric
ice age.
The projected warming, which is likely to be without precedent during the
last 10,000 years, will profoundly affect the Earth and humanity. Sea levels
will rise, glaciers and permafrost will melt, and small island states might
be abolished through flooding.
This talk explores what warmer temperatures in Canada will mean in terms
of ecosystems, human health threats, such as emerging and re-emerging
diseases, human settlements, and water resources, and what we must do to be
prepared.
Corporate Contributions
to Our Common Future :
Corporate corruption has struck investor confidence hard in
the new millenium, and in the
wake of disgrace, calls to improve corporate citizenship echo in boardrooms
across nations -from Australia to Canada to the United States -and from
global organizations, such as the United Nations and the World Economic
Forum. But what is corporate citizenship, and what does it include?
This talk describes common responsibilities of corporate social
responsibility, and then focuses on crucial global environmental issues and
health concerns, and where business can make positive changes to society.
Specifically, this talk questions what contributions business can make to
shareholders, as well as to the preservation of our planet and humanity.
Emerging Human Health Threats -
Forewarned is Forearmed :
This talk explores emerging threats-such as bird flu (H5N1), Ebola
hemorrhagic fever in Africa, Variant Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease in the United
Kingdom, and West Nile virus in the United States-the possible reasons for
their emergence, and what can be done in the fight against these diseases.
Benefits to Business & Industries :
● to understand the current pandemic threat, and what it means to specific
businesses and industries;
●
to reduce economic impacts;
●
to reduce cases, hospitalizations, and deaths;
●
to help develop pandemic preparedness plans and business continuity.
Importance :
● today experts agree that a pandemic is inevitable and possibly imminent;
●
leading scientists believe that the world is closer to an influenza
pandemic than at any time since 1968, the year of the last pandemic;
●
the World Health Organization uses a series of six phases for a pandemic
alert system;
●
the world is presently in phase 3 -- meaning a new influenza virus
subtype is causing disease in humans, but is not yet spreading efficiently.
Hunting for 1918 Flu :
In 1918-19, the Spanish flu pandemic swept the world in three great waves
and killed an estimated 20-40 million people in just one year, more than the
number that died during the four years of the First World War.
Today, while the Spanish flu has faded in the public's memory, most
virologists are convinced that sooner or later a similar deadly flu virus
will return; and thus anything we can learn from the 1918 flu would be
invaluable.
This talk details Dr. Duncan's ten-year hunt for the Spanish flu virus in
frozen Spitsbergen - from the initial search for victims to putting together
a multinational, multidisciplinary team of experts, to spending twenty-two
months seeking permission from Norwegian authorities, to developing detailed
bio-safety protocols, to undertaking the expedition and exhumations, to
transporting and analyzing the tissues.
Client Comments >>>
"The feedback on her presentation was overwhelmingly positive!! The
delegates appreciated her engaging storytelling presentation style,
her compassion, and, her knowledge of pandemic flu. One delegate
wrote 'very interesting without scare mongering, it inspired me to
look at practical planning, realistically assessing our sites.' Dr.
Duncan was a GREAT keynote and really got the conference off to a
great start!"
-
Calgary Health Region
"You were clearly the star of our conference. The praise also
included that of senior local government managers who approached me
to describe their admiration of your presentation and the presenter.
We are indebted to you for the excellence of your presentation."
-
New York County Managers Association
"Thank you so much for this morning's talk - I've had at least 15
people come up to me and proclaim their enthusiastic approval. No
really, it's not just in glowing terms, the praise is ebullient!"
-
Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care
"Based on comments heard throughout the week, your presentation on Hunting the 1918 Flu as well as your follow-up discussion, were well received and contributed to making PCIH and educational success."
- Academy of Industrial Hygiene
"The feedback we received from your speech on March 11th was
astounding...you were able to affect every person within that
lecture room and inspire them to go out and make a difference."
-
Student Leadership Conference, University of Guelph
K&M
Productions represent
DR. KIRSTY DUNCAN
for Speaking Engagements.
For more information
and to book
Dr. Kirsty Duncan
simply contact us.
K&M PRODUCTIONS
- The ULTIMATE
Corporate Event Company
1626 Tawnberry St., Pickering, Ont. Canada L1X 2C2
www.kmprod.com
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