Make a difference for our climate by taking action at our National Climate Action Call. You don’t have to be an expert to advocate for a just transition away from fossil fuels.
At a Mothers Out Front Climate Action Call, seasoned volunteers will provide background information and clear instructions for actions we will take together. Join this virtual event from anywhere! No experience necessary.
This National Climate Action Call will be offered at two times:
Tuesday, August 23 (12pm Pacific / 3pm Eastern) – Register Here
Thursday, August 25 (9am Pacific / 12pm Eastern) – Register Here
Rose B. Simpson’s Counterculture is installed along the horizon line of a Field Farm meadow that is visible from Sloan Road in Williamstown. The sculptural artwork consists of twelve cast-concrete figures that stand approximately ten feet tall. The figures are adorned with ceramic and found objects and include steel-posts rooted into the ground with cement.
Simpson’s most ambitious work to date, Counterculture honors generations of marginalized people and cultures whose voices have been too often silenced by colonization. The figures look across a post-apocalyptic vista, the vast homelands from which native peoples were forcibly removed. The artist imagines the figures as watchful presences, reminders that history and the natural world perpetually observe humanity. With hollow eyes that catch the morning sunlight, the feminine-bodied forms also suggest that Mother Earth shows us the way—that respect for the land and its original inhabitants are the honorable way forward.
Rose B. Simpson’s life work is a seeking out of tools with the potential to heal the damages of being human in our postmodern and postcolonial era. These tools manifest as artworks that function in psychological, emotional, social, cultural, spiritual, intellectual, and physical realms. The artist intends for these tools-cum-artworks to help build cures. In this sense, Simpson strives to imbue her artworks with poetic yet hard-working utilitarian concepts.
Rose B. Simpson (b. 1983, Santa Clara Pueblo) is a mixed-media artist from Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico. Her life’s work is a seeking out of tools with the potential to heal the damages of being human in our postmodern and postcolonial era. These tools manifest as artworks that function in psychological, emotional, social, cultural, spiritual, intellectual, and physical realms. She explores a range of creative disciplines to make the artworks, including ceramics, sculpture, metals, fashion, performance, music, installation, writing, and custom-car work. She holds an MFA in Ceramics from Rhode Island School of Design, an MFA in Creative Non-Fiction from the Institute of American Indian Arts, a BFA from the University of New Mexico, and a certificate in Automotive Science from Northern New Mexico College. Her work is collected by museums across the continent and exhibited internationally. She lives and works from her home at Santa Clara Pueblo in New Mexico.
Rose B. Simpson’s Counterculture is organized by Jamilee Lacy, guest curator of The Trustees of Reservations’ 2022 Art & Landscape program and is on view through Spring 2023 at Field Farm at 554 Sloan Road, Williamstown, MA 01267.
Harvard Alumni Travel, in conjunction with Carleton College, will sponsor a trip to view the next total solar eclipse on April 12 – 23, 2023.
Experience the riveting cosmic event of a rare total solar eclipse from the best possible vantage point, directly on the centerline, as the brilliance of the Coral Coast is plunged into darkness.
Cruise for 10 nights down the coast of Western Australia, home to some of the darkest skies in the world, allowing for incredible stargazing of the Southern Skies from the ease and comfort of the ship’s top deck.
Witness a variety of dazzling landscapes of Western Australia’s colorful Coral Coast, home to white sand beaches, oceans painted with azure blue hues, rugged red outback desert and the world’s longest fringing reef.
Snorkel pristine reefs and coral gardens including the World Heritage Sites of Ningaloo Reef and Shark Bay.
Encounter an abundance of wildlife – rare birds, land animals and marine life – including a chance to swim with mighty whale sharks and manta rays, two of the world’s largest harmless fish.
Engage with Indigenous Australians and learn about the world’s oldest living culture during visits to sacred Aboriginal sites.
The study leader is Joseph Henrich, Professor of Human Evolutionary Biology and Chair of the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard, along with Meg Urry, Israel Munson professor of Physics & Astronomy at Yale, and Joel Weisberg, Herman and Gertrude Mosier Stark Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Carlton College. The intimate Caledonian Sky will be your mode of transport, following one night at the Shangri-La Hotel in Sydney. Activity level 3. For pricing and more information visit https://alumni.harvard.edu/travel/trips/australia-eclipse-2023 For more information please email haatravels@harvard.edu or call our office at 800-422-1636 or 617-496-0806.
Learn how native plants enhance gardens and augment biodiversity. Study native herbaceous and woody plants: their identification, habitat, and culture. Hear about the significance of woodland soils, and how to promote a healthy environment to support spring ephemerals, summer perennials, shrubs, and trees. This New York Botanical Garden series of online lectures takes place Sundays, September 11 – October 2 from 10 – noon, taught by Kim Eierman. There are two required texts: Donald J. Leopold’s Native Plants of the Northeast: A Guide for Gardening and Conservation (Timber Press, 2005) and Douglas Tallamy’s Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants (Timber Press, 2009). The series is $215 for NYBG members, $239 for nonmembers. Register HERE.
Kim Eierman earned a Certificate in Horticulture from the Botanical Garden and is the founder of EcoBeneficial!, a horticulture communications and consulting company promoting ecological landscapes and the use of native plants. Kim is a Certified Horticulturist through ASHS, an Accredited Organic Landcare Professional, a Master Gardener, a Master Naturalist and a member of the Native Plant Center Steering Committee.
In the Dutch city of Leeuwarden, 1,000 trees are on the move through the city, pulled by volunteers, helping residents envision a greener future. In a fascinating article in The Guardian this month – https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/04/walking-forest-of-1000-trees-transforms-dutch-city-aoe – the project is described, and is designed to lower ambient temperatures in a rapidly heating world. We highly recommend this essay. “The 1,000 trees are made up of 60-70 native species, including alder, ash, elm, maple, oak and willow, planted in 800 wooden containers. Each has a QR code providing details such as species, average lifespan and preferred soil type. A soil sensor alerts the city’s gardening team when the trees need water.” This could be an interesting solution for parts of Boston. At the end of 100 days, the trees will be planted in low income neighborhoods where tree cover is scarce.
Plan to join The Preservation Society of Newport County on September 16 – 18 for a celebration of all things food and wine at Rosecliff. A Friday evening event is the Vintner Dinner on Friday, an evening celebrating delicious Italian foods & wines. Italian vintners will lead guests through each course and the paired wines specially selected by Kobrand. What’s not to love? Seminars include a Rosé Journey with Chateau d’Esclan, a “Swirlwind” Tour of the Great Wines of Spain, the Wines of South Africa, The Regal Reservas and Gran Reservas of Rioja, A Voyage through Pinot Noir, Discover Chile, Israeli Wines, The Art of Montelobos Mezcal, The Curious Journey of Drumshanbo Gunpowder Gin, and so many more. A complete list with descriptions can be found at https://www.newportmansions.org/events/wine-and-food-festival/2022-tickets-events
Join Moderator Dr. William (Ned) Friedman, Director, Arnold Arboretum, and Panelists Dr. Yota Batsaki, Executive Director of Dumbarton Oaks, Dr. Michael Dosmann, Keeper of the Living Collections, Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, and Andrew Gapinski, Director of Horticulture, Arnold Arboretum, Harvard University, for the annual Director’s Series. To celebrate the Arboretum’s sesquicentennial, this year’s series will explore the Magic and Meaning of a Garden of Trees. Over the course of four sessions, we will trace the Arnold’s significance in the landscape architecture movement, value for the people of Boston, and leadership in creating global connections between plants and people. This session will include brief presentations and a moderated panel. The program is free and is offered both in person and livestreamed. This event will also be presented in-person at the Arboretum’s Weld Hill Research Building at 1300 Centre Street, Boston, MA 02131. To sign up for the in-person event, click here.To register for the online stream, click here.
Did you know that you can bird in your own backyard? There are birds all around us in the most likely places, just grab your journal and binoculars and go exploring. Join GBH and Mark Faherty, host of Weekly Bird Report on CAI, GBH’s Cape, Coast and Islands radio service, to talk about late summer birds and their fascinating behaviors. Bring your questions to ask Mark. The Zoom takes place August 19 on Zoom at noon EDT. Get tickets at www.wgbh.org
The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF) in conjunction with the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Conference on Landscape will host a daylong excursion on Friday, November 11, in Sonoma, California. TCLF’s annual, curated excursions to exceptional examples of landscape architecture and design are eagerly anticipated, extremely popular, and always sell out months in advance.
TCLF’s annual excursion in Sonoma will be memorable for its sweeping historic narrative of the region’s most significant cultural landscapes and the depth of knowledge that visitors will be afforded by guides. Complementing the excellent destinations will be exquisite food and wine.
The day begins at the Donnell Garden, a postwar masterpiece of Modernism that architectural historian Marc Treib suggests is “the most famous garden of the twentieth century.” We will be hosted by the owners Sandra Donnell and Justin Faggioli. Designed by landscape architect Thomas Church, with Lawrence Halprin and architect George Rockrise, the garden, with its iconic kidney-shaped pool, came to define California living. Completed in 1948, the garden was soon famous for its unusual, abstracted forms, and remains one of the best-preserved examples of its time. Frequently photographed, it came to stand for a modern style of California living that took place both indoors and outdoors, with fluid transitions between these equally important places.
Fourth generation Californian farmers and brothers Adam and Andrew Mariani founded Scribe Winery in 2007 on a 200-acre property that they say, “pioneered pre-prohibition Sonoma Valley winemaking,” but had been abandoned for 20 years. The brothers brought in Alain Peuroi and David Godshall with the landscape architecture firm Terremoto. As Godshall recently told Gardenista: “We planted a wild garden that will be a place where landscape ecologies meet. Coast live oaks are confronted by palms, artichokes run wild, native buckwheat will stumble into twining white roses, and dune grasses will sweep into the edible garden.” The result is “a microcosmic daydream” of Northern California.
After lunch attendee will experience a private tour of Sonoma Plaza, which became a National Historic Landmark in 1961. This eight-acre Plaza, laid out in 1835 by Mexican General Mariano Vallejo (who also founded Sonoma), was the site of a revolt in 1846 that resulted in the founding of the Republic of California. Today it features shops, galleries, restaurants, and Sonoma City Hall.
The tour excursion next goes to Hudson Ranch and Vineyard, a 200-acre site situated deep in the heart of the rolling hills of Napa Valley’s Carneros District, which its owners describe as their “agrarian dream.” The ranch produces world-class wine grapes for exceptional wines and Tuscan olives for verdant oil, raises heritage breed pigs, lamb and chickens, and grows a diverse array of seasonal fruits and vegetables for its grocery store.
The excursion will conclude at Buena Vista Winery, which according to landscape architects Surfacedesign, “played a pivotal role in the establishment of European grapes in Sonoma and the early development of the California wine industry.” The site includes two original stone buildings, a hedge maze under canopies of heritage oak, a series of terraces and outdoor rooms, and a new forecourt of intricately patterned cobble. And, yes, a lot of wine.
Come join National Park Service biologists and volunteer stewards for Stewardship Saturday on Grape Island in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area on August 20. Help us control non-native invasive plants and enhance native ecosystems and natural processes in the park. We will explore the local flora and fauna and discuss the ecology, natural history, and cultural significance of landscapes in the park as we work to understand and improve habitat for the native birds, bugs, trees, and flowers of the Boston Harbor Islands.
We will be departing from a dock at the Charlestown Navy Yard, 21 2nd Ave, Boston MA. We are able to offer free parking at the park- individuals will need to share their vehicle information with park staff in advance for entrance. There are also a variety of public transit options nearby. We will send more information to registrants about parking prior to the event. We will be going to Grape Island.
Timing: The boat departs at 9am. We will return by 3pm.
What to wear: Long-sleeved shirts, long pants, socks, and closed-toe shoes. Conditions can be unpredictable so please monitor the weather in the days leading up the event and dress appropriately.
What to bring: Please bring a lunch and reusable water bottles. Bring all your water for the day! Sunscreen and a hat are always recommended. Tools will be provided.
Event will run rain or shine, however, may be cancelled due to severe weather.
Special consideration:
MASKS may be required to be worn on transportation to the island based on local COVID levels at the time of the event.
Do not attend if you have had recent exposure to a positive COVID case or if you are experiencing symptoms.
Work consists of natural or cultural resource field stewardship. Potential hazards include transit by boat, the use of hand tools, carrying moderate weight, working in varied terrain, dense brush, thorns, poison ivy, and/or ticks. Tasks may include data collection, clearing vegetation, debris, and/or trash, consolidating cut material into bags or piles, carrying materials, planting, trail clearing and/or light maintenance. Work may be conducted in extreme heat or cold.
Program destination is subject to change based on field conditions. For questions please contact Erin Drumm at 617-780-1057 or erin_drumm@nps.gov Free. Register on the Eventbrite site HERE.
