This blog hopes to continue in the spirit of Great Plains – America’s Lingering Wild, published in late 2009. The book attempts to build appreciation for this often overlooked and misunderstood landscape, put a face to the wild and human inhabitants, spur honest discussion of the conservation challenges we face here today, and try to get to the heart of why it matters.
Often times these blog posts will be simply photo driven, sharing a new photo and maybe a story of something that happened in the field. Other times there may be longer ramblings, or links to other articles or images by others that in some way have something to say about the Great Plains. Whatever the case, I hope you will find the occasional posts interesting, or funny, or sad, or inspiring, or something, enough to spur thought and conversation.
To be honest, I’ve been leary of doing a blog, so here is the disclaimer: this is not meant to be about me. At its best, this blog will be interactive, and provides a forum to help connect people who each in their own way care about this land, its creatures, their life on the land, and to share their comments and stories.
As a conservation photographer working in this landscape for almost 20 years and having lived in the Plains most of my life, I have learned not to tell people what they ought to think but rather to be a witness and share with them what I have learned through the experiences I have had. Second, I have learned to simply listen. Sometimes it shifts viewpoints. Other times it solidifies them.
The Great Plains is a huge place in the heart of this continent, and personifies the soul of this great country. Its future challenges are complex both ecologically and economically. But have heart. The common threads that tie us all together over this landscape are much stronger than differences that may divide us. Conservation begins with conversation, and builds from the ground up. If this blog, a tiny ripple in a very big pond, helps in its own small way build community in this place we hold so dear, then it will have been worth the effort.
You can find the blog by clicking on the link below. I hope you enjoy it.
Sincerely,
Michael Forsberg
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