Nancy Knowlton Discusses Coral Reefs and Climate Change at Elon University

by Kevin Clang

It is no secret that climate change is affecting every part of the world, from the North Pole to the Amazon Rainforest.  According to Nancy Knowlton, one of the species it has had a large effect on is right under our noses. Underwater, actually.  Though they are often ignored by humans, Knowlton thinks that coral reefs can actually serve as warning signs for climate change danger in the future.

Nancy Knowlton Speaks to Students

Knowlton, a renowned expert on coral reefs and the Sant Chair for Marine Sciences at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, visited Elon University on Wednesday, February 18, as part of the Voices of Discovery lecture series to speak to students and faculty about the impact of climate change on the planet’s reef systems.

“Coral reefs in the Caribbean have experienced an 80% decline in the past 30 years,” said Knowlton.  The main reasons for this degradation include disease, bleaching, and predators.  Most of these can be linked back to humans.  “Humans put carbon dioxide, nutrients, toxics, sediments, and aliens into the water, and take out any coral longer or taller than five centimeters.”

None of this was a worry when Knowlton began researching reefs in 1975.  In just a few years, habitats went from coral domination to being dominated by seaweed.  Thanks to the extra carbon dioxide in the water introduced by humans, temperature went up by one degree Celsius.  Because of this sea urchins, which act as “lawnmowers,” removing seaweed and other unwanted predators off of coral, began to die off.

Should this trend continue, the temperature of the ocean could rise by as much as six degrees Celsius by 2100, a fact that would be devastating to coral reefs.  Carbon dioxide makes water more acidic, and worst of all it is very persistent.  Once introduced, carbon dioxide can remain in the atmosphere for hundreds of years.

Knowlton views this issue as a global problem.  “Reefs aren’t disposable,” she says, adding as an example that to an island such as Hawaii, coral reefs are worth $18 billion annually.  Knowlton went as far to say that coral reefs are the rain forests of the sea, in that they can be home to thousands of different species.  “Coral creates structure that everything else depends on.”

Unfortunately, we may have already caused too much damage to save them. Unless humans significantly change their approach to underwater species in the next few years, our effects may be irreversible, and more species of coral could become extinct. Knowlton lists long-term cryopreservation as a possible solution. “Awareness is not enough,” says Knowlton, “we need to act.”

Thomas Mac Mahon Speaks About Recessions, Bailouts, and the Economy at Elon University

by Kevin Clang

Thomas Mac Mahon, Chairman of the Board and former CEO of Laboratory America (LabCorp) came to Elon University’s Love School of Business on Thursday, February 12, to discuss how to manage a public company during the current economic downturn with Elon business students and faculty.

Thomas Mac Mahon

Recession-Proof

LabCorp is a medical testing facility with over 40 offices across the country, but mainly based in North Carolina.  They are the largest Cancer testing facility in the world and the largest employer in the Piedmont Region of North Carolina with over 4,000 workers.  This makes them one of the top five employers in the state.

The corporation runs thousands of tests every hour and about two million a day.  About 90 percent of these tests are returned to doctors offices within 24 hours of completion.  LabCorp posted $850 million in earnings in 2008.

“Recessions are very good for the health care industry,” said Mac Mahon, adding that increased stress during economically trying times often leads to more visits to the doctor.  Mac Mahon went as far to say that the health care industry is “recession-proof.”

Cash Is King

But not every industry is so lucky.  The best way to survive, according to Mac Mahon, is to “have a lot of cash on hand.”  Obsessively crunching numbers and using the standby ‘revenue minus expenses equals profit’ equation will never go away.  “Manage your company by the metrics,” Mac Mahon stated, “there is value in appreciating numbers.”

With cash, Mac Mahon stated a midsized company can then show strength in a down market by investing in growth by buying out smaller companies or repurchasing shares.   “By buying back your own shares, there are then less shares in the market, making their value rise.”  he explained.

Mac Mahon particularly stressed the need for the process of risk management, a technique used manage a company’s uncertainties and threats.  “Anticipate the negative, believe the worst will happen,”  he stressed.  “The concept of risk management is more important than ever.”  Mac Mahon believed that a greater attention to risk management may have saved the banking industry from their collapse in late 2008.

Plenty of Blame to Go Around

In the late 1990s, people were signing up for loans “equal to more than the value of their home,” said Mac Mahon, a drastic change from the past process.  Everything is fine until people can not afford to pay their bills, which Mac Mahon says “really hurts us.”

Mac Mahon stressed that we need to loosen up the markets in Washington, and that President Barack Obama’s plan to regulate CEO pay was a “serious mistake.”  If someone does a good job, he explained, they should be rewarded.  If they fail they should be fired.  Under his philosophy, there is no need to regulate pay: “Compensation should be linked to appreciation of stock, with no maximums.”

It is up to CEOs and Chairmen to make sure stock appreciation increases.  Mac Mahon encouraged Elon students to work hard and be ambitious, and in the end they would be rewarded for their efforts.  “People look for confidence in their leaders,” he said,  “communicate to the people who need to hear your story.”