Events

The 2025 Northeastern Old Growth Conference: Wildlands and Old-Growth Forests, co-hosted by Middlebury College and the University of Vermont, will be held September 17–20, 2025, at Middlebury’s scenic Bread Loaf Campus in Ripton, Vermont. Scientists, conservationists, policymakers, health professionals, writers, and artists will gather to share knowledge and inspire a future with more wildlands and old-growth forests in the Northeast. This year’s themes include The Future of Old Growth, Healthy Forests, Healthy People, and Old Growth Ecology.

With environmental Filmmaker Kathy Kasic and UVM Professor and Author Paul Bierman

Tabi Joda is an internationally influential figure in the ecological, sustainable development, and resilient agriculture movement. He is the Ambassador of the Great Green Wall Initiative of the African Union, UN Consultant, and coordinator for One Billion Trees for Africa—a movement promoting tree planting to combat the Sahara Desert and building sustainable micro-agriculture systems across the Sahel. While his work is in the realm of ecology, his work rests first on the local human ecosystems that must be strong and healthy for sustainable local projects to succeed.

“Forest Recovery from Human Land-Use: Implications for Streams and Carbon Storage” a Howard E. Woodin Environmental Studies Colloquium Series talk by Stephen Peters-Collaer, PhD student in forest ecology in the Carbon Dynamics Lab at the University of Vermont.

This practice-based activity is open to anyone on campus, but especially those interested in thinking about ecology beyond traditional Western disciplinary lenses. We will use drawings and sound to consider the boundaries between more-than-human nature and embodied experience that Gloria Anzaldúa set out in her mediations, which proposed a feminist approach to the spaces and places at the U.S-Mexico border.

The Mittelman Observatory is hosting a stargazing event on the MBH roof deck from 8:00 - 10:30pm on Friday October 3rd. This event is open to Middlebury students, faculty, staff, alumni, and their families. For safety reasons, attendance is limited and registration is required. Please register for only one 45-minute stargazing time slot using the link below. Tickets are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. The event is free for all attendees. Note that this event will only take place if the sky is expected to be mostly clear.

The Mittelman Observatory is hosting a stargazing event on the MBH roof deck from 8:00 - 10:30pm on Friday October 10th. This event is open to the public. For safety reasons, attendance is limited and registration is required. Please register for only one 45-minute stargazing time slot using the link below. Tickets are available on a first-come-first-serve basis.The event is free for all attendees.Note that this event will only take place if the sky is expected to be mostly clear.

Environmental Studies Core Conversations: Time
Daniel Brayton, Julian W. Abernethy Professor of Literature and member of the Environmental Studies Program
Joseph Holler, Associate Professor of Geography
Christopher Klyza, Stafford Professor of Public Policy and Professor of Political Science and Environmental Studies
Monica Przyperhart, Visiting Laboratory Instructor in Environmental Studies

The Mittelman Observatory is hosting a stargazing event on the MBH roof deck from 8:00 - 10:30pm on Friday October 17th. This event is open to the public. For safety reasons, attendance is limited and registration is required. Please register for only one 45-minute stargazing time slot using the link below. Tickets are available on a first-come-first-serve basis.The event is free for all attendees.Note that this event will only take place if the sky is expected to be mostly clear.

“Regional Trash, Urban Harm: Environmental Justice Dialogue in Greater Hartford, CT” a Howard E. Woodin Environmental Studies Colloquium Series talk by Abigail Fisher Williamson, Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Policy and Law at Trinity College.

Women in Data Science (WiDS) Middlebury aims to celebrate the participation of women in data science and to feature outstanding women doing outstanding work in the field. Come listen to mini research talks by Middlebury professors, and be inspired by our keynote speaker Professor Kaitlyn Cook, a biostatistician from Smith College. All students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to attend! Lights snacks and refreshments will be provided.

“Educating for (Climate) Change” a Howard E. Woodin Environmental Studies Colloquium Series talk featuring:

Bill McKibben, Schumann Distinguished Scholar of Environmental Studies,
Jon Isham, Director of the Environmental Studies Program and Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies
Dan Suarez, C.V. Starr Fellow in International Studies and Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies
Minna Brown ’07, Director of the Middlebury Climate Action Program

ENVS 0401 A Community Engaged Environmental Studies Practicum Presentations: Building for the Future While Navigating Uncertainty

ENVS 0401 B Community Engaged Environmental Studies Practicum Presentations: What Next?