Alumni Authors from Environmental Studies

AUNE Spring Speaker Series

Location: AUNE Community Room

Antioch New England Spring Speaker Series

Antioch University New England
Spring Speaker Series
4/15 - Environmental Ethics and Disability Rights
4/22 - Alumni Authors from Environmental Studies
4/29 - Place- and Community-Based Education in Schools

Introduction by Tom Wessels, Core Faculty, Department of Environmental Studies

Philip Ackerman-Leist, MS ’06, author of Up Tunket Road: The Education of a Modern Homesteader
Sandy Macfarlane, MS ’99, author of Tiggie: The Lure and Lore of Commercial Fishing in New England
Michael Wojtech, MS ’00, author of Bark of the Northeast: A Field Guide

Ackerman-Leist’s memoir, Macfarlane’s biographical book, and Wojtech’s forthcoming field guide represent three distinct directions an author with a background in environmental studies might take. Join them for an evening that will explore both the subject matters of their respective books and the process of bringing a book to publication.

Up Tunket Road asks “What is the nature and reality of homesteading in the media-saturated, hyper-connected twenty-first century?” It is the inspiring true story of a young couple who embraced the joys of simple living while also acknowledging its frustrations and complexities. Ackerman-Leist weaves an instructive narrative that contemplates the future of simple living.

Tiggie is the story of a fisherman working off Cape Cod from the 1940s through the ’60s. “Late in his life, he wanted people to know the real scoop—at least as real as any fisherman will admit to,” Macfarlane says. “He asked me to help him. We had known each other for thirty years, most of which was spent butting heads. He was a commercial shellfisherman, and I was a shellfish biologist and enforcement officer. The book reflects both of our points of view.”

Bark of the Northeast stands apart from typical field guides which rely on leaf, twig, and bud characteristics for identification. These traits are often difficult or impossible to see on forest trees; bark is visible in any season. The author says, “I see tree identification as a way for people to teach themselves the art of seeing, and to use these observation skills to connect with their local landscapes.”

This event is free and open to the public.

For more information, please contact:
Sean Wiley
283.2431
swiley@antioch.edu

Last Updated: 3/11/10