Below is the schedule for the 2021 Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Teachers Conference. Click here for more information or to register for the event, and click here for a detailed class schedule.
John Muir (Jack) Laws is a scientist, educator, and author who helps people forge a deeper and more personal connection with nature through keeping illustrated nature journals and understanding science. Jack has kept nature journals since he was a child. Being dyslexic, Jack struggled in school. He found his place and delight in learning through spending time in nature and keeping notebooks of his observations, discoveries, and adventures. Trained as a wildlife biologist and scientific illustrator, he now observed the world with rigorous attention and awe. He looks for mysteries, plays with ideas, and seeks connection in all he sees. He has found that attention, observation, curiosity, and creative thinking are not gifts, but instead are skills that grow with training and deliberate practice. As an educator and author, Jack shares ways to make these skills a part of everyday life. More info.
Emilie Lygren is an educator, facilitator, and poet committed to building a more connected and just world. Throughout her career, Emilie has intentionally cultivated a broad range of teaching skills and expertise in curriculum development, science education, social emotional learning, discussion facilitation, learning theory, outdoor leadership, and culturally responsive teaching practices. Emilie has coauthored dozens of publications and curricula focused on outdoor science education with the BEETLES Project at the Lawrence Hall of Science, and has published poems in several literary journals. Connection is at the foundation of Emilie’s work in science education, poetry, and outdoor learning. Through her writing and teaching, Emilie offers practices of authenticity, awareness, and curiosity, and she strives to bring people into deeper relationship with themselves, their communities, and the natural world. More info.
Anne Stephens is an assistant professor in the Department of Science Education at California State University, Chico, and Director of the Inland Northern California Science Project. She is currently serving as Principal Investigator for a Cohort 11 California Mathematics and Science Partnership Grant, Science and Environmental Engineering for Secondary (SEES) with the Tehama County Department of Education. Prior to joining the faculty at CSUC, she spent five years as a consultant in the STEM Office at the California Department of Education, where she served as the statewide coordinator for the California Regional Environmental Education Community (CREEC) Network.
Rob Wade is a place-based educator working in the Upper Feather River region of California’s northern Sierra Nevada. As the Outdoor Education and Science Coordinator for the Plumas County Office of Education (PCOE) since 1995, he has designed, developed and implemented successful and sustainable K-12 programs in the region, built upon strategic partnership with over 32 agencies and organizations. These partnerships also allowed the 2016 launch of an NGSS K-12 strategy that took outdoor education and stewardship mainstream. Outdoor Core Mountain Kid is a K-12 collaborative that supports every teacher to integrate authentic weekly outdoor learning adventures for every student as part of a year long local theme centered on inquiry and stewardship. Field journaling is a foundational skill and activity for every student and every grade level. Rob has a BS from the University of California-Berkeley in Conservation & Resource Studies and an MA from the School of Education at the University of San Francisco. In addition to his regional work in California, Rob is a national facilitator and consultant supporting K-12 program development. Rob is the 2017 recipient of the Excellence in Environmental Education Award, presented by the California Environmental Education Foundation and a 2020 recipient of the Environmental Law Institute’s National Wetland Award. More info.
NOTE: The Live Event also included breakout rooms with the following nature journaling teachers. These breakout sessions are not included in the video pass.
Bethan Burton is an artist and environmental educator. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Ecology and Conservation Biology and a Master of Environment majoring in Education for Sustainability. She teaches nature journaling to all age groups and is passionate about connecting people with the natural world. She lives in Brisbane, Australia, where she takes daily backyard expeditions with her four-year-old nature journal buddy. Bethan is the founder of International Nature Journaling Week, an event designed to celebrate nature journaling and bring people together as a world-wide community with a shared passion. She is also the host of Journaling With Nature Podcast, a show which explores the joys of nature journaling through interviews with nature lovers from around the world.
Roseann Hanson is one of the organizers of the Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Conference, and the author of Nature Journaling for a Wild Life. She is a naturalist, artist, and explorer who has been keeping science-based nature and field notes journals for 40 years. She studied journalism and ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona, and has worked in the American Southwest, Mexico, and East Africa as a conservationist, naturalist, and writer. Roseann enjoys integrating conservation, science, outdoor skills, and cultural awareness into her work. Currently she is coordinator for the trans-disciplinary Art and Science Program at the 117-year-old Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill, part of the University of Arizona College of Science. Through the Desert Lab and other institutions she teaches nature writing and nature journaling and field notes for biologists. She was named a Fellow of both the Explorers Club in the U.S. and the Royal Geographical Society for her conservation and expedition work. You can find her at http://www.exploringoverland.com/fieldarts and on social media at https://www.facebook.com/roseannhansonexplore & https://www.instagram.com/roseannhanson
Rebecca Rolnick is a naturalist, writer, and environmental educator. Her overarching mission is to conserve biodiversity and connect people to nature. She lives in upstate New York and holds a B.S. in Conservation Biology with a minor in Environmental Writing and Rhetoric from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. As a National Geographic Certified Educator, she is passionate about helping students develop a sense of curiosity and wonder, critical thinking skills, and environmental literacy through place-based learning. Rebecca teaches the free “Writing Workshop Wednesdays” featured on John Muir Laws’ Nature Journal Club Community Calendar. Learn more about Rebecca at: www.rebeccarolnick.com
Marley Peifer is an artist, gardener, tracker, and educator. He longs for the reintegration of art with science and words with images, a synthesis that he develops in his journaling. He is passionate about learning, teaching, and fine-tuning awareness in nature. Few realms are untouched by his rampant curiosity and he is always ready to observe and philosophize about nature, culture, and Hymenopterans. He laments the overspecialization in today’s world and believes that a holistic perspective and a diversity of skills is necessary now more than ever. He is the creator and host of the Nature Journal Show on YouTube.