Two-Eyed Seeing & Third Spaces” at Lunch with a Scientist

“Lunch with a Scientist” is a monthly in-person and online program hosted by Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve where scientists present a general-audience lecture about their work at or related to Cedar Creek. Rebecca Krinke was invited to be the August speaker where she presented the work of the “Two-Eyed Seeing & Third Spaces” group at Cedar Creek through a slide presentation chronicling the research questions and approach to place-based learning with two-eyes. This highlighted the gatherings of the group at various sites within the 5500 acres of the field station, including the Big Bio diversity experiment plots, the bison pavilion, Cedar Bog Lake, and the Ecology Walk, culminating in a research focus on the sacred and medicinal uses of plants. 

Upcoming work by Collaborative members was also presented, including a new collaborative project instigated by Rebecca Krinke as a follow up to her work at Bernard Field Station at the Claremont Colleges, Claremont, California (April 2024). She and fellow College of Design faculty member Emily Stover wrote a grant to explore both Cedar Creek and Bernard field stations through place-based learning with tools of art + science. They are working with Caitlin Potter, PhD, Associate Director of Cedar Creek, Wallace (Marty) Meyer III, PhD, Director of the Bernard Field Station, and Professors Lance Neckar and Monica Mahoney of Pitzer College, who teach at the field station. 

After the presentation and audience questions and discussion, everyone was invited to join Rebecca, Caitlin Potter, and Jacob Gustafson, research assistant, to see the “third space” installed temporarily at the dock at Cedar Bog Lake. The large translucent “curtain” - printed with a photograph of being on the Moon, looking at the Earth - was created by Rebecca and her 2023-24 research assistant Lucia Bennett. Originally prototyped at Cedar Creek on the research frames in the big bio plots, the curtain was also installed at Bernard Field Station in April. Several Lunch with a Scientist audience members made the trek to Cedar Bog Lake to experience the overlay of the Moon-Earth curtain on the landscape. People were delighted to view the lake through the curtain, with one person exclaiming as we walked up for first glimpses, “There’s the lunar module!” as she pointed to monitoring equipment in the lake which did have an uncanny resemblance to the Apollo lander. The “third space”  we created had a powerful effect on conversation, and it was gratifying that we were there a half hour or so talking about Cedar Creek and Raymond and Eleanor Lindeman’s work at the lake which had a profound effect on shaping the field of ecology. We talked about what is a field station, what they could become, about education, especially outdoor education, from kids to elders, higher education in America, and other countries approaches.