Lauret Savoy

Writing in distinct and illuminating prose, environmental historian Lauret Savoy explores how America's history and ideas of "race" have marked both her and the land. With her mixed ancestry of free and enslaved Africans, European colonists, and indigenous peoples, Savoy seeks to understand how identity is formed by braiding together personal, cultural, and natural stories. Trace grapples with a searing national history to reveal the often unvoiced presence of the past. Presented by Point Reyes Books and The Mesa Refuge.

About Lauret Savoy:  A woman of African American, Euro-American, and Native American heritage, Lauret Savoy writes about the stories we tell of the American land’s origins and the stories we tell of ourselves in this land. Her books include Trace: Memory, History, Race, and the American Landscape; The Colors of Nature: Culture, Identity and the Natural World; Bedrock: Writers on the Wonders of Geology; and Living with the Changing California Coast. She is a professor of environmental studies and geology at Mount Holyoke College, a photographer, and pilot. Winner of Mount Holyoke’s Distinguished Teaching Award, Lauret has also held fellowships from the Smithsonian Institution and Yale University. She is a Fellow of the Geological Society of America.

About Mesa Refuge: The Mesa Refuge is a writers' retreat located in Point Reyes Station, California. Its mission is to provide a quiet and inspiring space for people writing about ways to create a more just and sustainable world. It has traditionally focused on the environment, economics, and social injustice.