Nicholas School Holds 2003 Recognition Ceremony

2003 Nicholas School Graduation
Dean Schlesinger's Remarks

Presentation at the Graduation Ceremony
The Nicholas School
10 May 2003

William H. Schlesinger
James B. Duke Professor of Biogeochemistry,
and Dean

Welcome to the graduation ceremony for the Nicholas School, 2003. We have a new tradition this year—a tent.

Graduation ceremonies carry mixed emotion: joyous in the sense of realizing a goal and finishing a journey, which you set out on several years ago, and in commencing an even bigger adventure—your career with all the anticipation and trepidation that accompanies that moment. But, graduations are also bittersweet in the sense that as we celebrate today, we know that we will leave a company of friends and memories of times together—somewhat carefree times inasmuch as, while it may not have seemed that way at the time, what you accomplished here was perhaps less important than how you prepared yourselves for the real job ahead.

Today: let’s focus on the joy. Several years ago, you came to the Nicholas School because you realized that the Earth’s biosphere is threatened by the impact of the dominant species on our planet—ourselves. You came here because you realized that there are things that you can and must do to ensure a sustainable future for life on Earth. You appreciated the need for interdisciplinary training to offer a solution to environmental problems—that a mix of science and policy like that found in no other curriculum was essential to your goal.

I hope we have provided you with that training and that while the task before you is daunting, that you will approach your future career in environmental science and policy with the enthusiasm, commitment and confidence that you brought to Duke and with the skills and experiences that we tried to share with you here. You were the first class to matriculate during my tenure as Dean, and you will remain a very special memory for me.

The past two years have not always been easy. Shortly after your arrival, the World Trade Center was attacked—as if to tell all of us that we are not safe even in the artificial environments that we build around us. This year Maggie Schneider died in a tragic accident while returning to the Marine Lab, and Ronie Garcia-Johnson was taken from us much too young, depriving the world of what would have been wonderful contributions to a better understanding of international environmental issues. Today we focus on the joy, but we will not forget the sadness that each of these events has cast into your years at Duke.

Today, you head to the world full of ambition and enthusiasm to make a difference that will leave the world with a better environment. You’ve been a wonderful group of students here and we know that you will bring great things to our future. You will always be welcome here: to use our career services office, to participate in continuing education programs, to return to field day, or just to say hi. And, we have exciting plans for the future of the Nicholas School that I hope you will want to support, so that students like you can benefit from what we have to offer.