Paths of Enlichenment

With Laura Boggess

Friday, August 8  |  1 - 4pm

BRN - Elective 

Join Laura for an enlightening (en-lichen-ing!) 3-hour session about lichen lifestyles and the insights they offer. We'll begin in the classroom with an introduction to lichen identification, their roles in ecosystems, and traditional uses as medicine and natural dyes. Then we'll take a slow observant walk--on lichen time--through the Arboretum grounds to practice field identification and deepen our connection with these remarkable beings. In the final portion of the session, we'll reflect on the deeper insights lichens offer in a time of global transformation. As we face what Joanna Macy calls "the Great Unraveling," marked by biodiversity loss, economic instability, and climate change—lichens can inspire us to reimagine resilience through cooperation, interconnection and attentive presence.  No prior lichen knowledge is necessary. If you have a hand-lens, please bring it. If you don't, we have some to lend.

This program takes place in the classroom and outdoors. Please come prepared to walk on gentle, yet uneven terrain, and dress appropriately for the weather.

Laura Boggess is a cliff ecologist, lichenologist, and faculty member at Mars Hill University. Her deepest passion lies in exploring cliff ecosystems—both as a scientist and a climber—and she finds continual inspiration in the quiet beauty and resilience of lichens. Through her work as a quantitative ecologist, she studies how humans impact cliff and lichen communities in the Southern Appalachians. As an educator, she seeks to translate the lessons of coexistence and ecological wisdom that lichens offer into meaningful reflections for our changing world.

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