Free Up-North Summer Lecture Series Focused on Climate, Environment

PELLSTON, MI – Visitors to the University of Michigan Biological Station in Pellston can attend a series of free lectures on various climate and environment-related topics.

The research facility on Douglas Lake will host expert lecturers from across the country, mostly on Wednesday evenings though the summer. Topics will range from “slow birding” and scientific art to Indigenous science and the aurora borealis – or Northern Lights.

Lectures will happen outdoors beneath a large tent along the lakeshore.

It’s an incredible lineup of distinguished scientists and artists, said Aimée Classen, station director.

“Families are always invited to visit and explore our exciting work, but on summer evenings they also have the opportunity to hear directly from leading experts in the U.S. focused on critical environmental issues and learn how the science impacts all of us,” she said.

Guest speakers will come from both Ivy League and state universities across the nation, as well as federal officials.

Events will be from 7 to 8 p.m. at the station at 9133 Biological Road in Pellston on the following dates through August.

The scheduled events are:

  • June 14: Vanessa Ezenwa, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale University and an American for the Advancement of Science fellow, will present “Worms, Germs and Buffalo: A Coinfection Story.” Her talk is about the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases in wild animal populations, such as deer, gazelle, and buffalo.
  • June 21: Leslie Sobel, a mixed media environmental artist from Ann Arbor, is an artist in residence at the station in June. She connects climate, water, and data through her art, and her talk is called “Artist in the Wilderness: Field Work and Art Making.”
  • June 22: Ross Ellet, a meteorologist at the ABC affiliate in Toledo, Ohio, and a space weather experts, will discuss geomagnetic storms, aurora borealis and how to best photograph the Northern Lights – even if only with an iPhone.
  • June 28: Robin Clark, an assistant professor at Lake Superior State University, will talk about northern white cedar trees – called “Giizhik” in Anishinaabemowin, the language of the Native Anishinaabe Peoples of the Great Lakes. Her talk is titled “Weaving Anishinaabe and Western Sciences for Long-term Giizhik Relations: Process and Patterns.”
  • July 5: Joan Strassmann, an evolutionary biologist and the Charles Rebstock Professor of Biology at Washington University in St. Louis, will discuss the world of common, everyday birds. She is the author of “Slow Birding: The Art and Science of Enjoying Birds in Your Own Backyard.”
  • July 26: Melissa Duhaime, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan’s Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, will discuss viruses and microplastics. She teaches “Microbes in the Wild” at the biological station in Pellston.
  • Aug. 9: Jennifer Pett-Ridge, senior staff scientist at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, will give a lecture about mycology and plant biology. She is a leading soil scientist who will discuss how soil organisms impact the global carbon cycle.

Source : MLive

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