INTEGRATING GEOLOGY INTO THE LOCAL COMMUNITY

We are “The Catskill Geologists.” After successful academic careers, we have become popular science writers. We have blended geology into the regional culture of the Catskills and upper Hudson Valley. In 1991 Robert began writing geology columns for Kaatskill Life magazine. Later Johanna joined him in the writing of four columns a year for thirty years. With time came the publications of four books. These all describe the area’s bedrock and Ice Age history, written at a level both readable and, more importantly, interesting to the everyday resident. More columnist work followed in several of the area’s newspapers, especially the Woodstock Times and, today, in the Mountain Eagle. More than a thousand columns have been published in 33 years.

This generated a growing interest in our region’s geology that spilled over to work for local civic groups looking for lecturers and nature walk leaders. These include the Woodstock and Columbia County Land Conservancies, the Mountain Top and Greene County Historical Societies, the Catskill Arboretum, and the Roosevelt Presidential Library. We have designed self-guided geology trails for several of those groups. A facebook page and a blog site has enabled direct contact with our readers.

There have been frequent guest appearances on local radio and television stations. We hosted our own radio talk show on the local PBS channel WIOX. That focused on the geological history of the Catskills. Recently we have related the Hudson River School of Art to the region’s Ice Age history. We argue that the glaciers sculpted the landscapes that inspired the painting.

The theme we are advocating is that every community has its own local newspapers, magazines, public radio stations, libraries, museums, preserves and other civic groups. All may be open to making a place for well explained geoscience. Our science can be a truly integral part of our communities. We now also enjoy an enriched life of community engagement.