“Marc Berman is a brilliant academic star of the new nature movement, and his pioneering new book Nature and the Mind is sure to become a seminal force in the burgeoning new field of environmental neuroscience.”
—Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods
What if a simple walk in the woods were a prescription for our divided attention? Dr. Marc Berman, author of Nature and the Mind: The Science of How Nature Improves Cognitive, Physical, and Social Well-Being, uses science to show that spending time in natural environments can ultimately boost our ability to direct attention (a staggering twenty percent improvement in attention-related abilities). Both an introduction to a revolutionary new scientific field and a helpful guide to better living, Nature and the Mind offers a nature prescription for physical health, mental health, and social health. Like exercise, eating vegetables, or spending time with friends, taking a stroll in a park is good for us in a deep-down, necessary way.
The positive effects of nature don’t just end at the individual; contact with nature can make people more caring towards one another, promote economic and racial justice, encourage people to care more for the environment, and more. A groundbreaking guide on why and how nature is good for our brains and bodies, Nature and the Mind gives us a window into fundamental aspects of our psychology and physiology that can be improved through interactions with nature.
Marc Berman will be joined in conversation with Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy Board member Terrie Taylor. Marc Berman is the world’s leading environmental neuroscientist, and founder and director of the Environmental Neuroscience Laboratory at the University of Chicago. He is the winner of the Association for Psychological Science Early Career Research Award and the American Psychological Association Early Career Award. He is professor and chair of the department of psychology at the University of Chicago as well as co-director of the Masters of Computational Social Science program. His work has been featured on CNN, NPR, and in many popular publications, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, VICE, Newsweek, National Geographic, and USA TODAY.
Doors open at 6 p.m. with live music, and the conversation begins at 7 p.m. This event includes a Q&A session and an author signing immediately following in the lobby.
Please note: This event takes place at Milliken Auditorium at the Dennos Museum Center, not the City Opera House. No additional venue transaction fees apply.
Individual Tickets: $20
Admits one person to the live event. Tickets do not include a copy of the featured book.
Ticket + Book Pickup: $38
Admits one person to the live event and includes a discounted paperback copy of Nature and the Mind. The book may be picked up at the author event or Horizon Books in Traverse City. Ship the book for an additional $8.
Virtual Tickets
Can’t make it to Milliken Auditorium? Enjoy the event live or on-demand from home!
Each Virtual Ticket includes access to a private YouTube link beginning at 6:50 p.m. Virtual attendees may participate in the Q&A via moderated chat.
You may also purchase the featured book for an additional fee. Horizon Books will ship anywhere in the continental U.S., with shipping costs applied at checkout. Signed books are not available for virtual ticket holders.
Student Tickets: $12
With a valid school ID. Admits one person to the live event. Book not included.
Group Tickets
For discounted rates on groups of 20 or more, please contact: hanna@nwstc.org
Terrie Taylor is a TC native and a member of the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy Board. She’s worked in the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Michigan State University since 1986, coordinating studies to understand the pathogenesis of fatal cerebral malaria in Malawian children. As a clinical researcher, she appreciates the rigor of Marc Berman’s work in environmental neuroscience.
