Where Ethics Meet Earth

When Paula Whyman first climbs a peak in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in search of a home in the country, she has no idea how quickly her tidy backyard ecology project will become a massive endeavor. Just as quickly, she discovers how little she knows about hands-on conservation work.  

Bad Naturalist is a memoir about Paula Whyman’s attempts to restore native meadows on a 200-acre mountaintop—about the obstacles she encountered, the mistakes she made, the failures and the all-important successes, and the discoveries she made along the way.  

In conversation, Whyman will share the story of her efforts to restore the land, and how her land ethic evolved in the process.  

Douglas Tallamy, founder of the Homegrown National Park movement, on Bad Naturalist: "How can someone who knows nothing about ecological restoration successfully rehab 200 acres of retired farmland? In Bad Naturalist, her self-deprecating, humorous, and thoroughly engaging book, Paula Whyman tells us exactly how. She describes the many pitfalls, explains how she triumphed over them, and details the many benefits of persevering, both for herself and for her mountaintop ecosystem. Why should landowners read this book? Because they own—and need to restore—most of the landscape, an awesome responsibility whose meaning Whyman has distilled for us.”

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Dr. Winifred Frick, Chief Scientist at Bat Conservation International (BCI), will share the ecological importance of bats, the urgent need for their conservation, and the power of storytelling to drive environmental action. In this talk, Dr. Frick will highlight the vital roles bats play in ecosystems across the globe providing critical services to nature and people alike. Yet, despite their value, bats remain among the least understood and most threatened mammals, facing mounting pressures from habitat loss, climate change, and disease.

Through science, collaboration, and community engagement, Bat Conservation International works to shift perceptions of bats from fear to fascination, while advancing solutions that protect biodiversity and promote sustainable development. This work connects to the mission of the Aldo Leopold Foundation, emphasizing how fostering a sense of awe and appreciation for the natural world deepens our connection and responsibility to conserve it. This alignment underscores the importance of emotional engagement in environmental work—not just scientific understanding. A central theme of the talk will include how bats inspire action.

Dr. Frick is a central character in the forthcoming independent film, The Invisible Mammal, a documentary that brings bats—and the women scientists working to protect them—out of the shadows and into the public eye. By showcasing bats as charismatic, ecologically essential, and threatened with extinction, the film creates a moving narrative that builds empathy and motivates stewardship. Ultimately, Dr. Frick will make the case that protecting bats is not just a scientific imperative but also a cultural one. By connecting science with story, and conservation with community, we can share the value of bats and inspire collective action to safeguard the natural systems on which we all depend.

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When author Jeffrey Ryan set out to write a book about Aldo Leopold and the other founders of The Wilderness Society, his journey unexpectedly led him back to the 1830s where he discovered the tale of a failed writer and fruit farmer who would go on to become the most prominent advocate for public lands of his generation.  

Ryan came to see that the arc of America’s conservation movement from the establishment of Yosemite as a park in 1864 to the signing of The Wilderness Act in 1965 hinged on two generational “baton passes”—both requiring the most prominent leaders of the cause to entrust the growth and refinement of public spaces on the very people they hired. Of special interest to Ryan is how the philosophical, physical and emotional needs for protected lands played a central role in their creation and protection—even at a time when the scale of our forests, rivers, prairies and forests seemed inexhaustible and opposition seemed insurmountable. The consensus building skills of those who advocated for public lands and overcame innumerable setbacks are especially worth revisiting as we navigate another period of uncertain destiny. 

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Richard (Dick) and his wife, Kim, co-own the Cates Family Farm LLC in Wyoming Township, Iowa County, with their son Eric and his wife, Kiley, and their daughter Shannon and her husband, Dan. Dick is a life-long farmer who grew up working on his family’s beef cow-calf farm, a neighbor’s dairy farm, Montana ranches, and in large-scale dairy forage and grain crop production overseas.

Dick pursued professional studies in soil science and agronomy and earned an MS (1979) in soils from Montana State University and a PhD (1983) in soils and plant health from the University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences while serving a Leopold Fellowship. Dick began taking over the family farm management in 1987 and then, along with Kim, purchased a portion of the land to build their own farming business. 

Dick and his family are members of the Iowa County Uplands Farmer-Led Watershed Project and the Lowery Creek Watershed Initiative, where they share information about and demonstrate conservation practices with other landowners and the public.

The Cates family has been recognized for their soil and water conservation work, receiving many awards including their most cherished recognition of receiving the 2013 Sand County Foundation Wisconsin Leopold Conservation Award.

Dick authored the book Voices from the Heart of the Land: Rural Stories That Inspire Community (University of Wisconsin Press, 2008), a children’s book An Adventure on Sterna’s Hill (2019), and A Creek Runs Through This Driftless Land: A Farm Family’s Journey Toward a Land Ethic (Little Creek Press, 2024).

Eric and Kiley manage the family farm now, with a “A Commitment to Conservation.”

How do we nurture the wild world in these trying times? How might our relationships—with nature, land, wild beings and humanity—deepen and converge? As policy and partisanship stress conservation ethics, now is the most critical time for us to speak with passion and purpose towards the essential mission of a land ethic. In this interactive session with J. Drew Lanham and Krissy Kludt, co-directors of Writing the Wild, we'll conjure words and phrases from head and heart to embolden the work of land conservation and environmental stewardship. Bring your pen and paper, or keypad and screen, and prepare to get soul-deep in the sacred work of nurturing our relationships with the Earth.

This event is for current donors. If you’d like to attend, a gift of $25 or more unlocks access to this special event—and helps us grow the Land Ethic movement far into the future.  

If you have already made a gift to our Spring 2025 Endowment Campaign, a link to this event will automatically be sent to you via email.

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Joe Lamp’l is the creator and host of The joe gardener® Show podcast and founder of  joegardener.com and the joegardener® Online Gardening Academy™. He’s also the creator, host, and executive producer of the Emmy-winning national public television series Growing a Greener World®, now available on YouTube.

A longtime advocate for organic gardening and ecological stewardship, Joe has shared his expertise as the host of Fresh from the Garden on DIY Network and as an on-air contributor for The Today Show, Good Morning America, and The Weather Channel. His work has earned numerous accolades, including the American Horticultural Society’s B.Y. Morrison Communication Award for outstanding and inspirational garden education across multiple platforms.

Joe’s latest book, The Vegetable Gardening Book, offers a practical, comprehensive guide to growing food successfully—whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned gardener. Through his podcasts, courses, and extensive online resources, Joe continues to educate and inspire a new generation of gardeners.

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