Boston College biology professor Eric Strauss recently spoke to a gathering of graduate and professional students in the Fulton Honors Library, sharing his experiences and offering his thoughts on issues ranging from discovering one’s passion to the differences between science and religion.

Strauss’s lecture was part of the Veritas et Vinum series, which is organized by Boston College’s Church of the 21st Century Center.  One Thursday each month, the program brings together graduate and professional program students with Boston College faculty and leaders. The guest speakers present their experiences in higher education, the outcomes of their career choices, and the influence of a Jesuit university on their work.

Strauss is currently the Director of Boston College’s Environmental Studies program and the Urban Ecology Institute.  But he told his audience that his journey through education and career was a rather unusual one.

Growing up, Strauss was an only child to a single mother, and financial difficulties forced him to leave school at sixteen, taking a job as a motorcycle mechanic.  He said he had “little desire to return to school,” but his life changed when a high school teacher introduced him to ecology, which he defines as “spending time outside . . . and engaging nature in new ways.”

Peter Auger would become Strauss’ mentor, and through him, the environment captured Strauss’s interest.

Inspired by his new passion and heeding the wishes of his mother, Strauss returned to school the next year and proceeded from a community college on Cape Cod to Emerson College.  At this point, he said, “I was still interested in science, but technology was what really interested me.”  He became involved with the college radio station and decided that he would pursue a career in communications and broadcast journalism.

“I loved the concept of telling stories,” said Strauss.  But he began to experience unhappiness with his studies.  He attended an animal behavior lecture series at Tufts University given by E. O. Wilson, whose rising field of sociobiology combined “animal behavior and human behavior from a genetic perspective.”

Strauss realized that this was the field he wished to pursue.  He now had to return to college, however, to take science courses before he could attain the biology Ph.D. he wanted.  For three years, Strauss took courses while working as a police officer and conducting field research on shorebirds on Cape Cod.  Accepted to the Ph.D. program at Tufts, Strauss realized his love of “story-telling” could be translated to teaching.

He said his life had “moved sideways and unpredictably into the world of academics.”  From working in environmental consulting to teaching for six years at UMASS Boston, Strauss eventually found himself at Boston College.

He began the Environmental Studies Program in 1997, and he said of the program, “We now had field research opportunities . . . What was missing was the policy side, and the community side in an urban context.”  These elements were added, and Strauss moved on to his next project.

“There was no department that did ecology. . . . So we started a non-profit: the Urban Ecology Institute,” he said.  The organization is dedicated to “improving the health of urban ecosystems through research, education, and community action.”  Strauss has also co-authored the first national textbook on urban sciences.

At the end of this year, Strauss will accept a new position at Loyola Marymount University, where he hopes to initiate programs that will focus on urban ecological issues and research.

Strauss told the group, “Think of success not in the concept of happiness, but the concept of great work to be done.”  His untraditional route brought him happiness, and he says it “gave me opportunities to do things I never thought I’d be able to do.”

Strauss answered his audience’s questions, providing insights on topics such as balancing family and career and setting goals.  He examined the progression of science from the Church’s perspective, and concluded that science and religion should come together in the advancement of humanity.  “I’ve learned so much being in a Catholic institution,” he said.  “Right now, our intellectual evolution outpaces our physical evolution.”

The graduate and professional students were truly engaged in Strauss’ lecture. Strauss concluded, “We need to find the things we love, and do them until we can’t get up anymore. . . . Keep your heart open, so really important opportunities don’t pass you by.”

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