Great Backyard Bird Count: Winter Birdsong with local bird expert Rich Wood

Sponsored by the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum

Bring your lunch and enjoy a presentation led by Rich Wood on birds and birdsong, focusing on our winter residents. We will then head outside to discover some of the feathered songsters that call the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum home! This activity will be held during the Great Backyard Bird Count. For more information on the Great Backyard Bird Count, visit www.birdcount.org. 

Book Discussion: Rachel Carson and Her Sisters, Extraordinary Women Who Have Shaped America's Environment by Dr. Robert K. Musil

Presented by the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum

Pick up a copy of Rachel Carson and Her Sisters by Robert K. Musil from the JMU Libraries, EMU Library, or Massanutten Regional Library and join us at the Frances Plecker Education Center to talk about it over light refreshments.

Litten Lecture - Sound Ecology: How Soundscapes Impact the Gray Carbird and their Avian Communities  Featuring research by Dr. Dana Moseley and music with Anna Showalter and Amanda Gookin

Presented by the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum and The Litten Family

Sponsored by the College of Visual and Performing Arts

Free admission, registration required (follow link above to find registration information)

Discover how aspects of urbanization impact the song and behavior of a vocal mimic, the gray catbird. Dr. Moseley will explain her research on this topic. Anna Showalter, a musician and JMU doctoral student, uses the art of listening and creating sound to share Moseley's research and story with audiences to promote greater awareness of the soundscape humans share with other creatures. Anna will also share Ashkan Fakhrtabatabaie's piece for piano and electroacoustics that draws from the audio date that Moseley collected at the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum and other Harrisonburg spaces. We will also enjoy a performance from cellist Amanda Gookin, director of the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival.

Author Talk: Dr. Robert K. Musil, author, Rachel Carson and Her Sisters: Extraordinary Women Who Have Shaped America's Environment

Sponsored by the Institute for Stewardship of the Natural World and the JMU Libraries

About Robert K. Musil, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Robert K. Musil, PhD, MPH is the President and CEO of the Rachel Carson Council, the legacy environmental organization envisioned by Rachel Carson and founded in 1965 by her closest friends and colleagues. He speaks widely at colleges and universities, leads RCC campaigns on global climate change and environmental justice, and is a leading advocate on Capitol Hill.

From 1992-2006, Dr. Musil was the longest-serving Executive Director and CEO of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), winner of the 1985 Nobel Prize for Peace. He is a graduate of Yale and Northwestern Universities and the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He is the author of Hope for a Heated Planet: How Americans are Fighting Global Warming and Building a Better Future (Rutgers University Press, 2009); Rachel Carson and Her Sisters: Extraordinary Women Who Have Shaped America’s Environment (Rutgers, 2016); and Washington in Spring: A Nature Journal for a Changing Capital (Bartleby Press, 2016).

Event Parking Information

Visitors
Visitors may park in lots D2, C10 between 4PM and 8PM. No parking permits or vouchers will be necessary. An online parking map is available. Guests are prohibited from parking in specially designated spaces such as Service Vehicle spaces, accessible spaces without proper permit, or expired timed spaces. They are also prohibited from parking in Fire Lanes.

Faculty, Staff and Students
All regulations for JMU students, faculty and staff will remain in effect, and students attending the event are required to park in appropriate student parking lots with a JMU parking permit.

Exhibit: Echoes of Silent Spring: 50 Years of Environmental Awareness (1962-2012)

Sponsored by the Institute for Stewardship of the Natural World

Created by the MSU Museum at Michigan State University in 2012, “Echoes of Silent Spring: 50 Years of Environmental Awareness” reflects on Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, which alerted readers to the potential dangers of the chemicals used in pest control. Silent Spring is often credited with changing some of the practices of pesticide use and launching a broader environmental movement. The exhibit also goes beyond the book itself and explores interconnected topics such as ethics, women in science, agricultural practices, and environmental regulation.

The exhibit will be displayed on James Madison University’s East Campus in King Hall, on the first floor outside room 159 and in the second floor hall, from March 1 through May 4.

The 'Burg & the Bees @ Central Library

Sponsored by Massanutten Regional Library

Come learn about the bees in the 'Burg! Knapp's Bees will offer an informative presentation on bee rescues, bee behavior, and basic pollinator forage. Registration recommended. Follow link above.

Documentary Screening: The Power of One Voice Film, A 50-Year Perspective on the Life of Rachel Carson

Co-sponsored by the Sustainable Food Initiative and Earthkeepers

Learn about the life of Rachel Carson and the profound implications of her environmental work by viewing this groundbreaking documentary by Mark Dixon. In this film, Dixon pulls insights from a variety of speakers at a 50-year anniversary celebration of Carson's book, Silent Spring.

Panel Discussion: A Conversation About Sound Ecology

This event is sponsored in part by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum, and presented by Anna Showalter, doctoral student in the JMU School of Music.

In her book Silent Spring, Rachel Carson asks “Can anyone imagine…a springtime without a robin’s song?”  Have you thought about the role of the sounds of nature in your human experience? Join us for an interdisciplinary conversation about the sound worlds humans share with birds and animals. We’ll look through the lens of sound ecology - a discipline studying the relationship between human beings, sound, and their environment. We’ll consider how scientists, artists and educators can contribute toward the understanding and practice of a sound ecology.

Documentary Screening: The Power of One Voice Film, A 50-Year Perspective on the Life of Rachel Carson

Co-sponsored by the Institute for Stewardship of the Natural World and JMU Libraries

Learn about the life of Rachel Carson and the profound implications of her environmental work by viewing this groundbreaking documentary by Mark Dixon. In this film, Dixon pulls insights from a variety of speakers at a 50-year anniversary celebration of Carson's book, Silent Spring.

Event Parking Information

Visitors
Visitors may park in the Grace Deck between 3PM and 7PM. No parking permits or vouchers will be necessary. An online parking map is available. Guests are prohibited from parking in specially designated spaces such as Service Vehicle spaces, accessible spaces without proper permit, or expired timed spaces. They are also prohibited from parking in Fire Lanes.

Faculty, Staff and Students
All regulations for JMU students, faculty and staff will remain in effect, and students attending the event are required to park in appropriate student parking lots with a JMU parking permit.

Book Discussion: Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

Presented by the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum

On Earth Day, join us for a discussion of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, a book that alerted many to the dangers of chemicals used to control pests, and is often credited for changing some pesticide practices and shaping an environmental movement.

Musical Performance: The Beauty of Birdsong

This event is sponsored in part by the Virginia Commission for the Arts.

Join pianist Anna Showalter and friends for performances of original compositions and a celebration of bird song and music. Learn about how birds have inspired human music for millennia.  Be inspired to listen to birds - the avian musicians in your neighborhood!