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Leopold home in Burlington IA |
For ten years I lived in Wisconsin. It was during that time that I became aware of the writings of the American conservationist Aldo Leopold, who was for years on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. I have always thought of him in connection to Wisconsin, no doubt in part because of his famous book, A Sand County Almanac (1949).
It was only in recent years that I realized that he was born and raised in Iowa. His family's tandem Victorian homes in Burlington are beautifully maintained by the Leopold Landscape Alliance, which works to promote his ideas.
Mary and I were in Burlington because I was invited to speak about animal camouflage. The talk went well, and was more than a little enriched by stories and observations from an alert and lively audience. We were especially pleased to meet Steve and Kathy Brower, who have been instrumental in sharing Leopold's beliefs about ecology, wildlife conservation, and environmental ethics. Their work is reassuring at a time when so many good efforts are threatened.
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Among the various efforts initiated by the Leopold Landscape Legacy is a PowerPoint program called Aldo Leopold and the Roots of the Land Ethic, which is available for classes and conservation groups. But they also offer a program (funded by the Kenneth J. Branch Memorial College Fund) in which free resident field trips are available to classes ("all types of classes are welcome"), including such components as tours of the houses and grounds, field trips of Leopold's favorite nature locations, a screening of the award-winning film Greenfire, book discussions, and so on.
Anyone interested in learning more about these educational opportunities should contact Steve Brower at the Leopold Landscape Alliance at brower406[at]aol[dot]com. It all sounds fascinating. I don't doubt for a minute that your experience will be as pleasurable as ours.
RELATED LINKS
Dazzle Camouflage: What is it and how did it work? / Nature, Art, and Camouflage / Art, Women's Rights, and Camouflage / Embedded Figures, Art, and Camouflage / Art, Gestalt, and Camouflage / Optical science meets visual art / Disruption versus dazzle / Chicanery and conspicuousness / Under the big top at Sims' circus
