ABOUT ROWLAND
I have been involved in environmental education for most of my adult life, offering coursework ranging from natural history, to place-based writing, environmental literature, urban ecology and ecopsychology. I have a special interest in the American nature writing tradition and how it addresses the human-nature relationship. As a writer, I'm currently developing three manuscripts of essays: 'The Ecology of Paradox: Disturbance and Restoration in Land and Soul,' 'Thinking Like A Prairie,' and 'Radical Slowness.' I continue to write poetry and songs. As an artist, much of my work explores the interstices between human and non-human realms, combining figurative and landscape elements with themes drawn from ecology and natural history.
I completed my Masters in Whole Systems Design at Antioch University Seattle, and my PhD in Environmental Studies at Antioch University New England. For many years I have served in a number of administrative and academic roles across Antioch University, specializing in information systems design on the administrative side, and adjunct teaching and internship advising on the academic side. I also maintain an independent consulting business working on strategic planning and board advising with small non-profits and career counseling with individuals.
Since 1998 I've served on the editorial board of Whole Terrain, Antioch University New England's journal of reflective environmental practice, and have been been Managing Director since 2005. I co-coordinate several annual nature writer/artist gatherings including the Glen Brook Retreat in Marlborough, NH and Feeding the Writer Retreat at the NEED Center in Truro, MA on Cape Cod. Over the years, I have led or helped organize signature events such as the Community, Nature & Spirit Conference, Monadnock Literary and Arts Festival, Communicating Science Weekend, as well as performance/presentation series such as Science Soiree, MuseTopia and Atrium Thursdays. I was an active member in the Art Not Terminal collective gallery in Seattle, and have curated a number of art exhibits there and in the Monadnock Region.
Since 1998 I've served on the editorial board of Whole Terrain, Antioch University New England's journal of reflective environmental practice, and have been been Managing Director since 2005. I co-coordinate several annual nature writer/artist gatherings including the Glen Brook Retreat in Marlborough, NH and Feeding the Writer Retreat at the NEED Center in Truro, MA on Cape Cod. Over the years, I have led or helped organize signature events such as the Community, Nature & Spirit Conference, Monadnock Literary and Arts Festival, Communicating Science Weekend, as well as performance/presentation series such as Science Soiree, MuseTopia and Atrium Thursdays. I was an active member in the Art Not Terminal collective gallery in Seattle, and have curated a number of art exhibits there and in the Monadnock Region.
I've co-founded or served on the board of a number of organizations that exist at the crossroads of youth, environment, education, creativity and restoration, including The Phoenix School (K-12 independent school), Cascadia Quest (now EarthCorps, Seattle Youth Garden Works (now Tilth Alliance Youth Garden Works), Compassionate Connections/AIM High (Youth Apprenticeship, Internship, Mentorship), Monadnock Farm & Community Coalition, and Friends of Public Art.
Our Words Can Change the World
W.S. Merwin wrote “It could be that there's only one word and it's all we need. It's here in this pencil. Every pencil in the world is like this.” Beyond creating my own writing, art and music, I foster personal discovery, interpersonal insight, and planetary service through co-creative mentoring, editing, event planning and coordination; and facilitation of creative communities.
Bridging the Distance Learning
Within my educational practice, learning begins with attention; what gets noticed can be responded to; compassionate response is at the root of responsibility. My work in teaching, instructional and program design, advising/mentoring, and administration seeks to bridge the distance and deepen the relationship between people and place.
Sustainable Organizations for a New Economy
Many worthy institutions suffer chronic under-funding, straining their ability to fulfill their missions. I work towards a transformed economy that balances personal and planetary sustainability with fiscal viability. Serving as “connective tissue” in the interstices between organizations, communities and landscapes, I help create means to share resources across permeable institutional boundaries.
Socially and Environmentally Conscious Information Systems
My background in ecology has informed the way I relate to information systems design. I call myself a “data whisperer;” drawing implicit connections between disparate data and facilitating explicit flow of information to integrate and serve people, organizations and places.
CONTACT
Email: ecorowland@gmail.com