The urgency to halt the progression of climate change requires much more than the implementation of scientific knowledge—it requires a revolution across the fields of education, culture, and the arts. In The Nature-Study Idea, Liberty Hyde Bailey articulated a similar need to reimagine education in light of socio-ecological crises at the dawn of the twentieth century. This panel discussion explored what Bailey's insights mean for us 120 years later as we marked the publication of the first modern, authoritative edition of the classic text and the launch of The Liberty Hyde Bailey Library from Cornell University Press.
Panelists included:
Patricia Crain, Professor of English Emerita at New York University and author of Reading Children: Literacy, Property and the Dilemmas of Childhood in Nineteenth-Century America
John Linstrom, editor of The Nature-Study Idea and Related Writings, Series Editor of The Liberty Hyde Bailey Library, and Mellon Fellow in Climate Humanities and Social Justice at the Climate Museum
David W. Orr, author of the book’s foreword, Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics Emeritus at Oberlin College, and editor of Democracy in a Hotter Time: Climate Change and Democratic Transformation
Lara Saguisag, Associate Professor of Teaching and Learning and the inaugural Georgiou Chair in Children’s Literature and Literacy at New York University, and author of the award-winning children’s book Children of Two Seasons: Poems for Young People
The panel was introduced by Climate Museum Director Miranda Massie and moderated by NYU Dean for the Humanities and Vice-Dean for Interdisciplinary Initiatives Una Chaudhuri. Followed by a book signing and reception with wine and hors d'oeuvres.
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In The Nature-Study Idea, Liberty Hyde Bailey articulated the essence of a social movement, led by ordinary public-school teachers, that lifted education out of the classroom and placed it into firsthand contact with the natural world. The aim was simple but revolutionary: sympathy with nature to increase the joy of living and foster stewardship of the earth.
This definitive edition reintroduces The Nature-Study Idea as an environmental classic for our time. It provides historical context through a wealth of related writings, and introductory essays relate Bailey's vision to current work in education and the intersection of climate change and culture. In this period of planetary turmoil, Bailey's ambition to cultivate wonder (in adults as well as children) and lead readers back into the natural world is more important than ever.
NYU Arts & Science, Environmental Humanities
NYU Arts & Science, Dean for Humanities
NYU Steinhardt, The Georgiou Library and Resource Center for Children and Literature