Storytelling in Practice: History, Memory, and the Environment

Join us for a conversation with Lyndsie Bourgon about the overlap of social history and the natural world. Lyndsie will share insights from her work documenting traditional knowledge, folklore, and memories of land and sea, as well as conducting fieldwork in rural and remote areas.

In this conversation, we'll explore topics including:

• The intersections between the environment, history, culture, and identity
• Writing and interviewing tips related to exploring the nonhuman world
• Her recently published book “Tree Thieves: Crime and Survival in North America’s Woods,” about timber poachers who have felled some of the last remaining old growth for sale on the black market to be made into furniture and firewood.

About the Storytelling in Practice event series:

What does oral history look like in practice? What goes into community-rooted storytelling projects and what are the outcomes? Voice of Witness is hosting a series of intimate conversations with practitioners who have developed and activated dynamic oral history projects. We’ll explore the connections between storytelling and community building, liberation, ethics, civic engagement, public art, narrative change, and more. Sharing reflections and challenges, VOW staff and guest speakers will offer insights into planning, conducting, and presenting oral history projects and their potential impact. This series was formerly called Oral History in Practice.

About Lyndsie Bourgon:

Lyndsie Bourgon, FRCGS, is a journalist, author, and oral historian. She is a National Geographic Explorer, and a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and Explorers Club. She has experience reporting and conducting fieldwork in rural areas including Haida Gwaii, the Peruvian Amazon and the California redwoods, and she writes for publications including The Guardian, The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Walrus, and Canadian Geographic. Lyndsie’s book, Tree Thieves: Crime and Survival in North America’s Woods, was nominated for the PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Non-Fiction, the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize at Columbia University, and a BC and Yukon Book Prize. As an oral historian, Lyndsie has conducted interviews and managed projects in the Shetland islands, Odenwald forest, and Indigenous communities in northern Alberta, British Columbia and northern Ontario.

After registering on this page, you will be emailed a zoom link to join the event.

The event will be recorded and shared with registrants. By registering for the event, you'll be added to the Voice of Witness newsletter. You can unsubscribe easily at any time.

Your ticket directly funds VOW's mission to document and amplify the stories of people impacted by—and fighting against—injustice. Every contribution helps sustain our work.