For our annual Sustaining Our World Lecture coming up on April 2, we are extremely pleased to welcome Molly Steinwald, the new executive director of the Environmental Learning Center in Vero Beach, Fla.: “Human[-]Nature: Care for Our World is Care for Ourselves.”

Molly Steinwald is a science and environmental educator, writer, photographer and researcher, and before taking on her current role with the Environmental Learning Center she served as director of science education and research at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, Pa. Her research interests range from animal behavior and wildlife genetics to plant community composition and environmental psychology, and much of her recent work involves environmental education and empowerment for non-traditional audiences. Steinwald has more than 15 years of teaching experience at the undergraduate and graduate level to science and non-science majors and K-12 teachers, in formal and informal learning settings—and in topics ranging from physiology and ecology to molecular biology and plant-people interactions.

The lecture is open to the public and will be held on Thursday, April 2, from 6 to 7 p.m. in Kane Hall 210. Event registration is free, but please RSVP as soon as possible to make sure we have enough seating for everyone!

About the Talk
A growing body of work is showing that people are spending an overwhelming amount of time indoors, in front of screens, interacting less with other living creatures and less with each other. At the same time, the incidence of depression, child and adult obesity, ADHD and more is growing at an alarming rate. And still, many suffer the effects of socioeconomic hardship.

Environmental scientists and educators are beginning to recognize that traditional methods of outreach and education promoting conservation behaviors are not enough. Stepping back and recognizing the many facets of humanity that make up “the public”—focusing on their interests, needs and barriers to environmental behavior change—and partnering with individuals and organizations across disciplines is requisite. Similarly, research is increasingly pointing to contact with nature as therapy, and engagement in sustainability-focused programs can provide professional skills. So by re-envisioning environmental education and outreach programs so that human well-being and empowerment are considered as equally important to improving the state of the environment, we can work to overcome the human-nature divide—such that caring for the environment means also caring for self and loved ones.

We hope you can join us. Register today!