Pathways Through Nature, A Lifetime Journey Speaker Series 2013-2025
The Green Center presents a series of speakers who will share stories and recollections of their
early childhood experiences in nature and the impact it had on their lives.
early childhood experiences in nature and the impact it had on their lives.
Upcoming Speakers for 2025!
March: Information Coming Soon!
"Inspired by Nature: From Fossils to Flora to Forensics"
with David Gibson, PhD
Emeritus Professor of Plant Biology, Botanist and
Author of "Planting Clues: How Plants Solve Crimes"
February 18, 2025 at 6pm
Leaves, seeds, and pollen in the mud on the sole of a boot, fruit fallen from a tree into a truck as it swept past–all can connect a suspect to a crime scene. Join David Gibson, Emeritus Professor of Plant Biology, botanist and author to follow his pathway as a teenage fossil hunter to a botanist, to write a book about forensic botany. Learn about the myriad ways that plants are used as forensic evidence to help solve crimes. Gibson will share details from a range of fascinating local and international cases involving plants from murder mysteries through plant poisonings to the poaching of rare plants.
Dr. David Gibson, Fellow Royal Society of Biology, is an Emeritus Professor of Plant Biology in the School of Biological Sciences at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. For over 30 years he taught courses in botany and ecology, including Forensic Botany - the focus of his presentation. He conducts ecological research and has published over 180 research papers and 4 books including Planting Clues: How Plants Solve Crimes.
A book sale and signing of "Planting Clues: How Plants Solve Crimes" will follow his presentation.
Past Speakers
