Wild nature fills our mythology. But is the wild disappearing? Despite this common fear, the restoration of animals like wolves means that, in some contexts, wild nature may actually be starting to increase again. Nature, it turns out, may be on the point of being renewed. Christopher Preston looks at how these examples of renewal fit with the traditional account of nature preservation and what they might mean for how we think about the surrounding landscape going forward.

Join us on Zoom for a virtual Humanities Happy Hour conversation about the surprising effects of reintroducing large predators in European landscapes densely populated with humans. Let’s just say it involves a kangaroo and a wolf…and it does not end happily!

Christopher Preston teaches environmental philosophy at the University of Montana, Missoula. He is author of several books, including The Synthetic Age: Outdesigning Evolution, Resurrecting Species, and Reengineering Our World. Much of his research connects to the idea of the Anthropocene, the epoch in which human influence is everywhere. He studies emerging technologies for their impact on the human-nature experience, as well as restoration and rewilding efforts.