William McDonough will be featured speaker at California Academy Big Bang event on April 18

The California Academy of Sciences will host its 27th annual Big Bang Gala on April 18, 2013. Attendees will mingle with visionary leaders in environmental conservation and sustainability, critical topics at the core of the Academy’s mission, while reveling in a sensational atmosphere set inside the greenest museum on the planet.

The evening begins with a cocktail reception at 6:00 pm, followed by guests’ choice of two Insightful Conversations. The Art and Science of Chasing Ice features renowned nature photographer and founder of the Extreme Ice Survey (EIS), James Balog, whose documentation of the world’s receding glaciers was recently featured in the award-winning documentary Chasing Ice. The Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability—Designing for Abundance features architect William McDonough, recipient of the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development, the nation’s highest environmental honor, and champion of the Cradle to Cradle design philosophy which considers a product’s full life cycle. The conversations will be followed with a seated dinner by McCalls, presenting a menu of locally sourced, sustainable fare.