Biophilia: Pittsburgh Archive

In this archive, you may access presentation materials and video recordings from previous installments of our monthly Biophilia: Pittsburgh meeting series. Additions will be made often, so visit regularly for the latest materials to deepen your Biophilia: Pittsburgh experience.

December 2023 
Virtual Biophilia: Befriend the Barnyard: Nurturing Nature through Farm Animal Sanctuary
Guest Speaker: Karen Phillips, Founder of Hope Haven Farm Sanctuary  
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November 2023 
Virtual Biophilia: How Connecting to Nature Makes Children Happier, Healthier and Smarter
Guest Speaker: Laura Mylan, Chief Strategy Officer, External Relations, for the Children & Nature Network 
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August 2023 
Virtual Biophilia: Migration in the Sky: Raptors on the Move! 
Guest Speaker: Brian M. Wargo, Saturday counter at the Allegheny Front Hawk Watch and the President of the Allegheny Plateau Audubon Society 
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July 2023 
Virtual Biophilia: The Upside of Darkness
Guest Speaker: Diane Turnshek, lecturer in the Department of Physics at Carnegie Mellon University and adjunct faculty member in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Pittsburgh
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May 2023 
Virtual Biophilia: "Steps to Nurture" - Reflections on Pittsburgh's Network of 850 City Steps
Guest Speaker: Tim Beatley, Teresa Heinz Professor of Sustainable Communities in the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia
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April 2023
Virtual Biophilia: Oasis Farm & Fishery
Guest Speaker: Tacumba Turner, Director of Oasis Farm & Fishery 
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March 2023
Virtual Biophilia: What is a Sustainable Food System? 
Guest Speaker: Corey S. Flynn, MPPM, NDTR and doctoral student at the University of Pittsburgh 
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January 2023
Virtual Biophilia: The Magic of Urban Parks
Guest Speaker: Marcus Shoffner, President and CEO of The Outdoor Inclusion Coalition 
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December 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Growing Green Horizons: Phipps Sustainable Landcare Program and Resources
Guest Speaker: Juliette Olshock, Sustainable Landcare Program Coordiantor at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
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November 2022
Virtual Biophilia: The Healing Power of Gardens
Guest Speaker: Elena Kessler, Director of the Urban Edible and Sustainable Garden at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh
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October 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Invoking Memory through Missouri Botanical Gardens Memory Tours
Guest Speaker: Nicole Smith and Jennifer Smith-Simms, Missouri Botanical Gardens
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August 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Exploring Urban Wildlife in Chicago and Around the World
Guest Speaker: Seth Magle, Director of Urban Wildlife Institute at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago and the Executive Director of the Urban Wildlife Information Network
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July 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Don't Touch, Don't Eat, Don't Smell – A Guided Tour around Alnwick Garden's Poison Garden
Guest Speaker: John Knox and Dean Smith, lead guides at the Alnwick Poison Garden
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May 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Finding Yourself in Botanical Gardens – Ecopsychology and Mindfulness Lessons from Bloedel Reserve
Guest Speaker: Susan Grelock-Yusem, Ecopyschology Practitioner
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April 2022
Virtual Biophilia:Pittsburgh's Eagle Ambassadors
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February 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Meet the Artist: Ann Rosenthal
Guest Speaker: Ann Rosenthal, Pittsburgh artist
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January 2022
Virtual Biophilia: Biophilia at the University of Pittsburgh
Guest Speaker: Anastasia Dubnicay, LEED AP
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December 2021
Virtual Biophilia: Restoring Tropical Dry Forests in Hawai‘i
Guest Speaker: Emily Thyroff, Botany in Action Fellow, third year Ph.D. student at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
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November 2021
Virtual Biophilia:How Stars Helped to Build Human Civilizations
Guest Speaker: Biprateep Dey, Ph.D. student at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Pittsburgh
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October 2021
Virtual Biophilia: The Science and Strategy Behind Fostering Empathy for Nature
Guest Speaker: Dr. Jim Wharton, director of conservation engagement and learning at the Seattle Aquarium
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September 2021
Virtual Biophilia: Creating a Comprehensive Plan for Development
Guest Speaker: Tiffany Taulton, director of community initiatives for Hazelwood Initiative, Inc.
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July 2021
Virtual Biophila: Small is Big: Resident Leadership for a Sustainable Future
Guest Speaker: Miriam Parson, match program director at ioby
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June 2021
Virtual Biophilia: Stay Black, Stay Green
Guest Speaker: Alyssa Lyon, director of Black Environmental Collective at UrbanKind
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May 2021
Virtual Biophilia: Sovereignty Through Farming
Guest Speaker: Michael Snyder, farm manager of Gakwi:yo:h Farms
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January 2021
Virtual Biophilia: A Story that Shaped the Sky: The Curious Case of Shakespeare's Starlings
Guest Speaker: John MacNeil Miller, Ph.D.
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October 2020
Virtual Biophilia: "Conservation and Restoration of Pacific Island Agroforestry Systems"
Guest Speaker: Ashley McGuigan and Zoe Hastings - PhD Candidates, Department of Botany - University of Hawai'i at Manoa 
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September 2020
Virtual Biophilia: "Fostering Connection to Nature through Environmental Education"
Guest Speaker: Dr. Becky Thomas, Associate Professor, Parks and Conservation - Slippery Rock University; Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Educators Southwest Region Director 
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June 2020
Virtual Biophilia: "Coast to Coast with Biophilly"
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May 2020
Virtual Biophilia: "Elusive and Endangered: Keeping Pace with the World's Most Mysterious Cat: The Snow Leopard"
Guest Speaker:Charlotte Hacker - Duquesne University
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February 2, 2017
“How Love of Community Drives Grassroots Sustainability"
Guest Speaker: Zaheen Hussain, Millvale sustainability coordinator
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Select photos © Paul g. Wiegman