Calendar

July 23:
Behind the Scenes of Green Fire

The Woodland School

In the coming year, we are offering an array of Woodland School classes to advance your land stewardship practice, from the classics—chainsaw safety, prescribed fire—to new opportunities like birding the Leopold Memorial Reserve with experts. We hope you'll let one pique your curiosity and join us in the field!

Support the Work of the Foundation

Become a key partner in helping us spread the land ethic, advance the science of land health, preserve the Leopold shack and farm, and train new leaders for the future of conservation. Join today!

Visiting the Leopold Center

The Leopold Center is open Monday - Saturday from 9am - 5pm. Come visit!

The Outlook e-Newsletter

July 2010

Leopold Center Hosts Forest Service National Leadership Team

In June, the Leopold Center was honored to host the National Leadership Team of the US Forest Service for a day-long meeting. The group visited the Leopold Shack, saw a preview of the foundation's upcoming film about Aldo Leopold, Green Fire, and talked about how Leopold's land ethic is relevant to the Forest Service's mission in the 21st Century.

We Formally Announce Green Fire

Many of you have heard us talk about our plans for a new documentary film on Aldo Leopold over the past two years, but now it is finally becoming a reality! Last week, Aldo Leopold Foundation staff reviewed a partial rough-cut of the film and sent the film team home with many comments and new ideas. They plan to have a fine cut ready this fall, and we intend that the final product will premiere early next year.

Fundraising
The pieces are falling in to place, but we still need to raise quite a bit of money to be able to finish the film on schedule. Thus far, we have raised just over $800,000 toward the project, but we still have about $650,000 left to raise. If you would like to give to the project, you can do so online or contact us about sponsorship opportunities and recognition.

Meet the Experts: Behind the Scenes of Green Fire

Leopold biographer and conservation biologist Curt Meine serves as the on-screen guide and narrator to Green Fire, and on Friday, July 23rd at 1:00pm, he will host an afternoon presentation to screen a 13-minute sneak preview, give you an overview of the film's focus, plus share behind-the-scenes stories and images from the production process. After the presentation, we will host a tour of the Leopold Shack with Curt and other special guests.

Why Expert tours? Over our first three years of tours at the Leopold Center, we have encountered a wide array of visitors, with interests and expertise as far-reaching as we could have imagined. Our tour program has hosted everyone from architects and engineers to foresters and policy makers. To better serve these diverse professional audiences, we have developed the Expert Tour Series, tailored to help visitors explore the many disciplines impacted by Leopold with experts from those fields of study.

All ages: $25 per person / Leopold Foundation Members: $15 per person Register online now!

Join us tomorrow for a free brown bag presentation on John Muir!

Come to the Leopold Center at noon on Thursday, July 8th to explore the development of the conservation ethics of John Muir from boyhood to old age; from farmer to political activist; from cultural hermit to acclaimed writer, from machinist to naturalist. His brand of environmentalism stands in concert with Aldo Leopold. Muir had little formal education in literature, but he was a student of writing, drawn especially to the discussions of Transcendentalism, where God was found each individual and in nature. His writing talents continued to develop as he wrote journal entries and letters, still unaware that he was writing books along the way. Muir was not a wanderer his entire life. He made accommodations because he also sought company and relationships. His writing, while out of style to the mind of those who favor more cynical works, never the less inspired a nation to value wilderness.

Amy Lou will also read selections related to Muir and Leopold from her new book, Every Natural Fact: Five Seasons of Open-Air Parenting. Bring a bag lunch along and enjoy the 1 hour presentation followed by questions and discussion. This program is free and open to the public. Amy Lou Jenkins is the author of Every Natural Fact and has taught writing at Carroll University and at writing seminars and workshops. She's an active author and freelance writer specializing in articles and essays related to the environment, parenting, and health.

Brown Bag on the Land Ethic in China Canceled

Unfortunately due to travel conflicts, we have had to cancel the brown bag seminar scheduled for Friday, July 16th with Shen Hou on a Land Ethic in Modern China. We hope to welcome Shen to the center another time!

Come Paddle With Us!

There is still some space available for our canoe adventure down the Wisconsin River on July 24th! Join us for a lovely summer day of canoeing the Wisconsin River! This trip is appropriate for all ages and experience levels. Advance registration is required. Children under age 18 must be accompanied by adult. More information and registration on our website or contact Aldo Leopold Foundation Education Assistant Anna Hawley at anna@aldoleopold.org or 608.355.0279 extension 28.

Sharing the Land Ethic with Future Student Leaders

Over the last weekend of June, Aldo Leopold Foundation Executive Director Buddy Huffaker traveled to speak to a group of select high school students at the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC) as a part of the 2nd annual Student Climate and Conservation Congress, held at a forested retreat alongside the Potomac River just outside of Washington, DC. The Green Schools Alliance (GSA) and NCTC have partnered to create the Student Climate and Conservation Congress program to empower students with the skills,knowledge and tools necessary to plant seeds of change and become global climate and conservation leaders in their own communities. At Sc3, students study and discuss the interconnection between economics and environment, and develop individual and collective action plans to meet 21st century challenges. Buddy spoke about Leopold's land ethic and its relevance today, amidst an agenda of speakers that included Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Bill McKibben, David Orr, and many more.

Call for Artisans

The Aldo Leopold Foundation is beginning to prepare for this year's Art Day event. We invite proposals from new local and regional artists and artisans whose work reflects Leopold's land ethic philosophy. Leopold Art Discovery Day 2010 will take place on Saturday, October 30th at the Leopold Center. Artist applications are due August 15th! A selection committee will review proposals, and selections will be made by August 31st. Artisans are encouraged to bring samples, do demonstrations, propose interactive workshops for the public, and bring original work to exhibit and sell on Leopold Art Discovery Day. Each participating artisan will receive a small honorarium. Read more about Art Day on our website, and download an artisan application here. Leopold Center Art Discovery Day is supported by a grant from the UW Extension Arts and Culture Committee. More information on our website or contact Aldo Leopold Foundation Education Assistant Anna Hawley at anna@aldoleopold.org or 608.355.0279 extension 28.