An Evening with Suzanne Simard
Schedule
Fri May 01 2026 at 07:00 pm to 09:00 pm
UTC-03:00Location
6036 Coburg Rd, Halifax, NS B3H 1Y9, Canada | Halifax, NS
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Bookmark and Nature Nova Scotia are thrilled to present an evening with Dr. Suzanne Simard, author of the best-selling Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest on Friday, May 1st at 7 pm at The Stage at St. Andrew's Church, 6036 Coburg Road, Halifax.You need to register for the event on our Eventbrite page linked above.
Dr. Simard will be discussing her new book, When the Forest Breathes: Renewal and Resilience in the Natural World . The event will be moderated by local author and Bookmark bookseller, Aaron Williams.
The author of Finding the Mother Tree and scientist who pioneered the concept of sophisticated communication between trees, Suzanne Simard now offers a powerful vision for saving our forests based on nature’s deep-rooted cycles of renewal.
Raised in a family of loggers committed to sensible forest stewardship, trailblazing ecologist Suzanne Simard has watched as timber companies leave forests at higher risk for wildfires, water crises, and plant and animal extinction. But her research has the potential to chart a new course. The forest, she reveals, is a symphony of finely honed cycles of regeneration—from mushrooms breaking down logs to dying elder trees passing their genetic knowledge to younger ones—that hold the key to protecting our forests. Working closely with local Indigenous communities, whose models of responsible forestry have been largely dismissed, Simard examines how human interventions—particularly destruction of the overstory's mother trees—endanger new growth and longevity. If we can honor the tools that trees have honed for sharing intergenerational wisdom, she argues, we can protect these sacred places for many years to come.
As she considers how older living things facilitate the conditions for new growth to flourish, Simard faces parallel rhythms of loss and regeneration in her own life, watching her two daughters grow into adults and savoring her final days with her ailing mother. Animated by wonder for our forests and the intricate practices of caretaking that have long sustained them, When the Forest Breathes is a vital reminder of all the natural world has to teach us about adaptability, resilience, and community.
DR. SUZANNE SIMARD is the New York Times bestselling author of Finding the Mother Tree. She is a Professor of Forest Ecology at the University of British Columbia, where she leads The Mother Tree Project and co-directs the Belowground Ecosystem Group. Dr. Simard has earned a global reputation for pioneering research on tree connectivity and communication and the productivity, health, and biodiversity of forests. Her work has been published widely, with over 170 scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals, including Nature, Ecology, and Global Biology, and she has co-authored the book Climate Change and Variability. Her research has been communicated broadly through three TED Talks, TED Experiences, as well as articles and interviews in The New Yorker, National Geographic, NPR, CNN, and many more. She lives with her family in the mountains around Nelson, British Columbia.
AARON WILLIAMS is the author of two books, most recently, The Last Logging Show: A Forestry Family at the End of an Era which won the prestigious 2025 Edna Staebler Award for Creative Non-Fiction. His first book, Chasing Smoke , was based on his experience fighting forest fires in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and Idaho. His writing has been published in newspapers such as The Globe and Mail, the Halifax Chronicle Herald and the Vancouver Observer. He has an MFA in creative non-fiction writing from King’s College. He lives in Halifax, NS, with his family.
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Where is it happening?
6036 Coburg Rd, Halifax, NS B3H 1Y9, CanadaEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
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