Eight students from the UVM Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources attended the Northern Woodlands Writers’ Conference at the Hulbert Outdoor Center on Lake Morey in Fairlee, Vermont on October 13, 2018.

Instructor Walter Poleman, who teaches NR 1–the first-year Natural History and Human Ecology course, and Elise Tillinghast, executive director of the Center for Northern Woodlands Education and an editor for Northern Woodlands magazine, organized this experience for students to hone their natural history writing skills by engaging with regional nature writers and artists. Rubenstein School Dean Nancy Mathews has enthusiastically supported this student opportunity for the past four years. 

The students who attended the conference included: Sarah Clauss (ENSC ’22), Meredith Maloney (ENSC ’20), Macie Millstein (ENVS ’22), Allie Pankoff (ENSC ’19), Adrian Pierce (ENSC ’22), Mariah Rivera (WFB ’21), Tom Shafer (WFB ’22), and Kate Wettergreen (ENSC ’20). Students reflected on what they learned at the conference and submitted essays about their experiences.  

Student Reflections: