By Ben Blevins | Deep Educator
We are glad to share the deep grounding and success of our first Feral University events, born from the soil of the Deep Ecology Education Program. These gatherings, envisioned and carried forth by a diligent group of undergraduate students, are vital in weaving paths toward environmental careers that carry the weight of science, creativity, and relational understanding. The Feral University events emerged as spaces for immersive, hands-on learning—a way to reveal the braided stories of environmental science, artistic expression, and the vital work of social change.
These gatherings, built from the earth up by students, aligned practical environmental tools with artistic sensibilities, creating frameworks for ecological thinking infused with human meaning. The workshops, discussions, and shared action of the events pulled us closer to territories where technical know-how and relational arts meet, inviting participants to explore innovative approaches to life and careers. By taking active roles, our undergraduate crew not only imagined but realized these events, feeding into the circle of peer-based education while sparking light in their communities. Lessons in coordination, dialogue, and connections between disciplines are now theirs to carry into futures where such blending is needed most.
Two autumn gatherings were held, each cutting its channel. The first, the Re: Wilding Seminar, was guided by Bridget Gustafson, whose stewardship extends into her work as Senior Strategy Advisor for Re: wild Your Campus. Her offering, “Cultivating Change: From Campus to Community,” put forward practical tools for turning the grounds of schools and communities into green sanctuaries. With a grounded vision, Bridget shared strategies for leaving synthetic pesticides behind and co-creating spaces where native plants, wildlife, and community thrive together. It was a rooted reminder of how small, deliberate shifts in tending the land can ripple outward toward resilience.
The second event brought a different kind of storytelling into the circle. Shayla Bischoff, hailing from the San Carlos Apache Nation, shared the layered world of Indigenous graphic novels. Through her knowledge as Assistant and Program Manager for Undergraduate Studies at Metropolitan State University of Denver and as the co-founder of the Native Nations Council, Shayla shared how these art forms thread cultural identity, acts of resistance, and boundless futures—rooted in theories like Survivance and Visual Sovereignty, graphic novels emerged as tools for heritage and revolution—maps that Indigenous youth can follow and shape as they reclaim stories and dream forward.
These Feral University gatherings remind us what it means to balance thought with soil and creativity with action. They’ve strengthened the latticework for what is to come in this program—new gatherings, expanded visions, and the steadfast joining of hearts, hands, art, and ecology. We are grateful to all who have joined us, both in person and through virtual connection, as we grow this space for fierce learning, meaningful exchange, and a grounded awakening of what lies ahead. See you at our next Feral University event!
Links:
By Ben Blevins | Project Leader
By Ben Blevins | Project Leader
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
