Is there any rational doubt that the natural world is imperiled? Climate change. Overfishing. Deforestation. Pollution. Loss of biodiversity. The list is endless and documented in the media every day.
What is the role and responsibility of writers and artists in raising awareness about these worsening threats to nature that also threaten human survivability? The sheer wonder of nature inspires many words, photographs, musical compositions, paintings and sculptures. For many creative types, it provides their sole motivation. The ongoing desecration of the natural world also instigates many writers and artists to take action through their work.
But how else can creative types address pressing environmental issues in their work? Perhaps the answer lies in something Jean-Paul Sartre wrote, “New problems demand new writing styles.”
Join author and educator Matt Love for a unique writing and creative thinking workshop on Saturday, June 25 in Astoria that asks participants to reflect upon their relationship to nature and seek new ways of raising awareness to protect and honor the natural world.
Inspired by David Orr’s Earth in Mind, his classic study of the American education system’s failure to educate students about the importance of protecting nature, the workshop will take participants through a series of writing and discussion exercises intended to inspire fresh approaches to presenting nature in writers and artists’ work.
The workshop is also ideal for teachers of all grade levels who want to invigorate their nonfiction writing instruction and make the study of nature more exciting and relevant to students. It might also appeal to environmental scientists and conservation activists who possess the desire to instill new creative energy into their endeavors.
The workshop will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 25, in Astoria at the Fort George Brewery’s Lovell Showroom. The cost is $85 and participants will pay by cash or check prior to the workshop. The class will be capped at 15 students.
Matt Love is the author/editor of 14 books about Oregon, including the bestselling, Gimme Refuge: The Education of a Caretaker, his memoir of serving as caretaker of the Nestucca Bay National Wildlife Refuge for ten years. He has written extensively on Oregon’s unique legacy of publicly-owned beaches and taught writing workshops at Portland State University, University of Oregon, Pacific University, Clackamas Community College and the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology.
To register for the class, email Love at nestuccaspitpress@gmail.com or call 503-812-1524.
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