Environmental author and activist Terry Tempest Williams
Where and When
Reston Community Center presents Terry Tempest Williams with “The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks” at Reston CenterStage, Hunters Woods Village Center, 2310 Colts Neck Road, Reston. Performance: Saturday, Dec. 2, 2017 at 8 p.m. Tickets $15 - $20 (non-Reston). Call 703-476-4500 or visit http://www.restonco…">www.restoncommunity….
Naturalist Terry Tempest Williams is recognized for potent writing about her reverence and respect for the natural world, especially America’s National Parks. Williams is considered a writer with a clear ethical vision on behalf of the environment.
Williams is also acknowledged for her eloquence and compelling presentations about the connections between the nature world and social issues. In an address at Reston’s CenterStage, Williams will express her views about the current state of America’s public lands and their future. The presentation will be based upon Williams’ recent book “The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks.” The book is a collection of a dozen essays about the current condition of some of America’s most famous national treasures, accompanied by photographs to illustrate her words.
“I am so looking forward to visiting the Reston Community Center which is committed to diversity and inclusivity,” said Wiliams. “I hope to show how America's National Parks are also diverse and foster a respect for the nation's multiplicity of storied landscapes and personal histories.
The first national park, Yellowstone, was established by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1872. The National Park system was established in 1916 when President Woodrow Wilson signed a bill creating the National Park Service. More than 300 million visited the parks last year. “These lands belong to all of us,” said Williams.
“When you think of basic human rights like clean air and clean water this is an environmental issue, but when you think of the polluted waters in Flint, Michigan and the toxic situation for its residents from children to the elderly, this becomes an issue of environmental and social justice, especially in regards to marginalized communities,” said Williams.
“Environmental issues are issues of health and well-being,” added Williams. “Healthy landscapes contributing to healthy communities. It's all interrelated and interconnected.
Reston Community Center’s Arts and Events Director Paul Mischnewicz, said, “When I read ‘The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks’ I was riveted by the passion and poetry which with Terry Tempest Williams explores not only our National Parks but also our national soul.”
Northern Virginians will be able to have their personal opportunity to be riveted by Terry Tempest Williams and “The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks.”
As Williams noted, America’s National Parks and wilderness areas are places to “encounter the miraculous.”