On Sunday, Aug. 25, at 11 a.m., Lauret Savoy, Professor of Environmental Studies and Geology at Mount Holyoke College, will talk about the American landscape, revealing aspects of our country’s geology that bear directly on our cultural and racial history at the final Monadnock Summer Lyceum.
Her lecture, “Trace: Memory, History, Race, and the American Landscape,” will be a combination American and personal memoir. People of all backgrounds and cultures will gain valuable insights from Savoy’s talk, which will take place in the Unitarian Universalist Church, 25 Main St., Peterborough.
Savoy is a woman of African American, Euro-American, and Native American heritage. In her lecture, she will explore the stories we tell about ourselves in various locations in America, as well as the stories we tell about how our landscape was formed. For Savoy, writing about the complex intertwinings of natural and cultural histories is a way of seeking home. For her, this work is as necessary as breathing.
Savoy’s lecture is based on her latest book, “Trace: Memory, History, Race, and the American Landscape” (Counterpoint Press, 2016), winner of the American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation, and the Creative Writing Award from the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment. The book was also a finalist for numerous other awards.
Savoy is the author of three additional books, and her essays and other writings have appeared in the Georgia Review, Gettysburg Review, Huffington Post, Travel & Leisure, ArtForum, Christian Science Monitor, and Orion magazine.
In addition to being the winner of a Distinguished Teaching Award at Mount Holyoke, Savoy is also a photographer and a pilot. Born in California, and a familial native of Washington, D.C., she graduated cum laude from Princeton University, then received her MS in earth sciences from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and her PhD from Syracuse University.
Savoy’s presentation will be moderated by Tom Wessels, Professor Emeritus from Antioch University New England’s Department of Environmental Studies and the founder of Antioch’s Master’s program in Conservation Biology. He is an active environmentalist, interested in the interface of landscape and culture, and the author of five books including “Reading the Forested Landscape” and “Granite, Fire, and Fog”.
Early arrival is encouraged, because musical entertainment will begin at 10:30 a.m. This week’s musicians will be The Merry Pipers: Gene Faxon, David and Joy Flemming, Anne and Joel Huberman, and Lin Van Allen, playing recorders ranging from the tiny sopranino to the bassoon-sized bass.
Following Savoy’s presentation, at noon, there will be a reception hosted by Nature’s Green Grocer. The music, presentation, and reception are all free and open to the public.
For more information, visit www.monadnocklyceum.org.