Lookupandout

First, the frogs died. Then people got sick. An emerging area of research is uncovering hidden links between nature and human health.

“They are learning that without saving nature, we cannot save ourselves.”

www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...

Traffic near the Selva Maya Forest in Guatemala.

Early evening in the Western Highlands of Guatemala - corn ready for harvest with a splash of color from an abundance of poinsettias.

Poinsettias in the wild. Western Highlands, Guatemala.

Arctic blue? Light blue? Sky Blue? The color of Lake Michigan is difficult to pinpoint today.

Fall bounty.

Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, Illinois.

Sunday afternoon on an Illinois oak savanna.

Lexington, Illinois.

And an oak savanna at dusk, yet another important element of the prairies that once stretched across Illinois.

Heller Nature Center, Highland Park, Illinois.

Oak-hickory forest at dusk. Prescribed fire is essential to maintain these remnants that complemented Illinois prairies forming a mosaic.

Heller Nature Center, Highland Park Illinois.

A prairie remnant, a small piece of the 22 million acres of tallgrass prairie that once covered Illinois.

Fame Flower Knob, Nachusa Grasslands.

Illinois tallgrass prairie in all its glory.

Yes. Nice to see this sign in a sea of yard signs advertising mosquito removal services. Food chain anyone?

Nice hair accent (or extension).

Yes, I know you are right that schools now start early in many places. Long breaks also present serious childcare hardships for working families. Yet I see all the structured learning and pressure to always be doing something as taking away the freedoms that used to be a hallmark of childhood.

What’s the rush? School supplies being promoted in grocery and drug stores in July?! Whatever happened to the lazy days of summer, especially for kids?

Heading home. Greenstone Ridge Trail, Isle Royale.

View from the fire tower. Feldtmann Ridge, Isle Royale.

Picture perfect paper birch. Feldtmann Lake Loop, Isle Royale.

Look at those tannins flow. Big Manitou Falls and the Black River Gorge, Superior, Wisconsin, just before reaching Lake Superior.

A rectangular kind of day.

Spot the triangles. Perhaps more than appear at first glance.

Just plant something. A tomato. A pepper plant. A tree. If you don’t have a yard, containers work well as do egg cartons filled with herb seeds on a window sill. It is amazing how much joy comes from the anticipation of waiting for the seed leaves, and then the distinctive leaves of the plant.

In Alabama, a Social Media Influencer Really Gets Wild

This inspirational story of how a “deer hunter, forester, Southern man posting about flowers” became an effective steward and advocate for the protection of grassland remnants in Alabama is absolutely worth a read.

www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/c...

National parks, forests, wildlife refuges and other public lands in the United States are national treasures, and the backbone of conservation and the outdoor recreation economy.

Please speak up to keep public lands in public hands. 🌿🪶🐟

A walking meditation doesn’t have to take place in a natural area but the sights, sounds, smells, feel and sometimes even taste (of the air), certainly provides a respite during trying times. Try it - just focus on what is immediately around, in the present.

Peonies don’t need ants to bloom but the insects seek out the flowers because of the nectar the buds produce. This is why you can end up with ants in the house if you bring a peony bouquet inside.

I think a lot about how technology has created barriers. What do we miss around us when our heads are pointed downwards at our phones? And how many neck and back problems has this behavior caused or aggravated?!

And this is what grasslands restoration looks like.

A tallgrass prairie in Illinois that at one time was used for row crop agriculture (soy and corn) before being restored.

Sometimes instead of calling on people to do this or that to protect the environment, it is simply better to foster interest and hopefully further curiosity about the natural world. Hopefully appreciation and an interest in protecting will follow.

By 2030, half of young people entering the global labor force will come from sub-Saharan Africa. This will require the generation of up to 15 million new jobs in the region each year.

These are conservation rangers in northern Kenya. Protecting wildlife can drive economic opportunities.