As part of the Sustainable Futures Speaker Series, Dr. Frederica Bowcutt will present "The Tanoak Tree: An Environmental History of a Pacific Coast Hardwood."

Radically different perceptions of the tanoak tree (Notholithocarpus densiflorus) have ranged from treasured food plant to cash crop to trash tree. Having studied the patterns of tanoak use and abuse for nearly 20 years, Frederica Bowcutt uncovers a complex history of cultural, sociopolitical, and economic factors affecting the tree's fate and discusses hopeful changes, including reintroduction of low-intensity burning to reduce conifer competition for tanoaks, emerging disease resistance in some trees, and new partnerships among tanoak defenders, including botanists, foresters, Native Americans, and plant pathologists.

Bowcutt teaches botany in interdisciplinary programs at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. She specializes in floristics, field plant ecology, and plant-centric environmental history.

The Sustainable Futures Speaker Series is presented by the Environment & Community Graduate Program, the Schatz Energy Research Center, and the College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.

The presentation will take place Thursday, February 8, at 5:30 p.m. in Founders Hall 118.