Episode 18 of the Western Friend Podcast features an interview with Barbara Phillips, a lifetime botanist and a member of Flagstaff Friends Meeting. Barbara discusses her life-long fascination with the outdoors, what it means to be a botanist, and some of the challenges facing us and the planet in these complex times. Click here to read Barbara's article in Western Friend, "Botany on an Endangered Planet."
Click here to listen to the complete podcast.
Or first try the "sound bite" below.
The “chapters” in this podcast:
0:00 Introduction
01:14 On being a botanist
03:44 What botanists do
08:29 On change in the field
13:43 Does our work matter?
18:18 The importance of botany
21:25 Optimism
30:32 Quakers and connecting with nature
35:16 Being a part, not apart
38:24 Our interconnectedness
41:39 Quakerism and slowing down
46:39 Outro