Category Archives: Literature

Collected Op-Ed Articles for 2012

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Michael Bryson

In addition to my academic writing as an RU professor of humanities and sustainability studies, I also regularly write blog essays, newspaper columns, and magazine articles for a general audience. This helps to keep me out of trouble (as deadlines … Continue reading →

Posted in Joliet, Literature, News | Comments Off

Visualizing Earth’s Water

Posted on December 9, 2012 by Michael Bryson

Here is an image posted by one of my students to the last discussion forum of this semester in my Sustainability Studies 220 Water course, along with her comment about it. It can sometimes be challenging to wrap our minds … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts, Classes, Literature, Photography, Students, Sustainability, Water | Comments Off

Leopold’s Shack, Wild Turkeys, and the Wisconsin River

Posted on August 10, 2012 by Michael Bryson

This summer my family and I took our annual vacation to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where we camp out at the Bryson family cabin — a fairly humble one-room cottage in Hiawatha National Forest on the shores of little … Continue reading →

Posted in Biodiversity, Family, Literature, Rivers, Wildlife | Comments Off

Cosmic Outlaws: Coming of Age after the End of Nature (a call for papers)

Posted on July 30, 2012 by Michael Bryson

I recently received this intriguing call for papers through email. If you’re a young and aspiring writer and have an interest in the natural environment, sustainability issues, and related subjects, check this out! In the prescient 1988 book, The End … Continue reading →

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City Creatures: A New Blog

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Michael Bryson

Here’s an exciting new blog to check out: City Creatures, a place of insightful writing about animals (and their human neighbors) here in Chicago’s urban and suburban environments. This is a project of the environmental non-profit organization, the Center for … Continue reading →

Posted in Chicago, Literature, Rivers, Urban ecology, Urban nature, Water, Wildlife | Comments Off

City Creatures Retreat at the Indiana Dunes (Pictures and Random Thoughts)

Posted on May 28, 2012 by Michael Bryson

I’ve never been invited to a writer’s retreat before (not to mention a writers and artists retreat), and despite long anticipation and careful planning for this one, I almost didn’t get to go to this one when my spouse took … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Chicago, Community, Events, Field Trips, Literature, Parklands, Research, Urban ecology, Urban nature, Wetlands, Wildlife | Comments Off

City Creatures Writer’s/Artist’s Retreat at the Indiana Dunes (Midstream Reflections)

Posted on May 26, 2012 by Michael Bryson

There are many times when I give thanks for having the wonderful job of being a professor — and today is one such day. I’m writing this update from a motel room in Chesterton, Indiana, where I’m attending a writer’s/artist’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts, Chicago, Conferences, Events, Literature, Urban ecology, Urban nature, Wildlife | Comments Off

Russell Hoban (1925-2011), renowned author for young and old

Posted on December 16, 2011 by Michael Bryson

One of my favorite children’s authors, Russell Hoban, died this past Tuesday at the age of 86. Hoban was a skilled and highly-praised novelist, as well; but as a father of young girls, I came to know his work through … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts, Criticism, Family, Literature | Comments Off

Teale Woods in Joliet: Urban Nature Restoration

Posted on August 2, 2011 by Michael Bryson

The announcement that the Forest Preserve District of Will County has begun work on developing a short trail through Teale Woods, a small nature preserve near where I live in Joliet, Illinois, got me thinking about this little essay I … Continue reading →

Posted in Joliet, Land use, Landscaping, Literature, Parklands, Urban nature | 1 Comment

Attending the 2011 ASLE Conference

Posted on June 22, 2011 by Michael Bryson

Tomorrow I head down to Bloomington, Indiana, to participate in one of my favorite professional conferences — the biannual meeting of ASLE, the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment. As a scholar whose work straddles the humanities and … Continue reading →

Posted in Conferences, Faculty, Literature, Roosevelt, Sustainability | Comments Off