Farley Mowat, who died on May 6th at the age of 92, was an environmentalist who penned 40 novels that eloquently speak to the overarching value of the natural
world. While climate scientists are absolutely essential to help us understand the
workings of our world, storytellers like Mowat weaved a narrative
that could transform people’s world view.
Mowat was one of Canada’s greatest raconteurs, he impacted the Canadian psyche as much as anyone ever has. His books are required reading in schools all across the country. Arguably no one has captured the spirit of what it means to be Canadian more than this man. However, Mowat’s influence was not confined to Canada. The themes in his books have global appeal and his writings were translated into more than 20 languages.
For almost 80 years Mowat was a passionate nature advocate. This is a theme that permeates all of his books. Although he won many awards his lasting legacy may be as a man who helped us to learn to live in harmony with the
natural world. If we fail to heed his teachings, he may be remembered as one of the people who tried desperately to pull us back from the brink of our own self destruction.
