Entrepreneur and Environmentalist Sandy Lerner Gives Talk at Goucher College

Release date: February 27, 2008 |

Sandy Lerner, an entrepreneur-turned-environmental activist and organic farmer, will give a free public talk titled "Wanted: A Replacement Biosphere" on Thursday, April 24, at 11:30 a.m. in Goucher College’s Buchner Hall.

Lerner will discuss destruction of the biosphere -- the part of Earth that supports life -- and what the future may hold for the planet’s ecosystems and inhabitants.

Lerner has demonstrated environmental consciousness throughout her career and other business and philanthropic ventures. After selling Cisco Systems Inc., the telecommunications company she co-founded with her then-husband Leonard Bosack, Lerner donated nearly $64 million from the sale to organizations that support animal welfare and scientific research.

When Lerner helped found the edgy cosmetics company Urban Decay in 1996, she made a commitment to develop products without animal testing.

At her 800-acre estate, Ayrshire Farm in Upperville,VA, Lerner devotes her time to organic farming and the humane treatment of farm animals. Keeping with these beliefs, she opened Home Farm, a butcher shop and grocery store devoted to locally grown organic produce and humanely raised meats, in Middleburg, VA, and the Hunter's Head, a tavern in Upperville, VA, that serves organic dishes.

She has also become a vocal proponent for the preservation of family farms and has worked at the state and national levels to change agricultural subsidy policies to benefit small farmers.

Lerner is also dedicating her time and resources to preserving literary history. She purchased and restored Chawton House, formerly owned by Jane Austen's family, in England and made it the headquarters for the Centre for the Study of Early English Women's Writing.

Goucher College made Lerner an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in 2007.