October 2022 Halloween Hayride-Philosophy Walk (“The White Wolf of Merlin”)

Howwwwwl! We had such a great time on our Halloween Hayride-Philosophy Walk this year. And what an insightful, inspiring, and energetic bunch of thinkers — kids, parents, and costumed creatures alike!! Check out pictures & all the things we explored here!

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Philosophy Workshop: “Rewilding”

In this workshop we explored rewilding from the context of ecology and philosophy with Christopher Preston. Access resources and sessions recordings here!

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August 2019 Philosophy Walk (Helena): Reconnecting with Nature

We were blown away by how amazing our August Philosophy Walk was…beautiful weather, wonderful people, great questions, and thought-provoking discussion led by 2019 Merlin Student Fellow & Philosopher, Henry Kramer, and Grants Manager & Humanitarian, Ryan Aikin. Our group of 17 — including 3 delightful young philosophers who joined us for the journey — enjoyed a lovely hike on the Waterline & Rodney Ridge Trails and explored “reconnecting with nature” through the lens of phenomenology, pragmatism, and animism. Access resources & photos here!

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March 2019 Philosophy Walk: The Environment, Ethics & Stewardship (Part 3)

Part 3 of our 3-Part Fall Philosophy Walk Series on the environment, ethics & stewardship took place on Sunday, March 24th at Ten Mile Creek Park.  Despite the weather being overcast (a change from the sunny day prior) and the trails a bit slushy from the recent melt, our adventure was beautiful and fun.  We also heard numerous bird calls from above — geese, gulls, northern flickers — and some fun dog calls (from our furry four-legged’s who joined us on the walk). Sponsored in part by grants from The Philosophy Learning & Teaching Organization & Humanities Montana, our group shared dialogue about philosophical and other perspectives related to current and future environmental & conservation challenges, and featured special guest speakers Thomas Baumeister, Mark Smillie, and Tyrrell Hibbard.

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The Democracy of Wolf Conservation

No other species on this planet elicits stronger emotions in us than the wolf. This should come as no surprise. After all, it’s the wolf which has been in our presence the longest, it’s the wolf with whom we’ve shared our ancestral dwellings and whose descendants we keep as pets today, and it’s the wolf who has shaped our humanity and our relationship to wildness like no other. In this article, 2019 Merlin Community Scholar Fellow Thomas Baumeister, discusses the role of adaptive management, pragmatism, and engaged citizenry in wolf conservation.

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A History of Western Philosophy Chart

This awesome chart from superscholar.org provides an abbreviated, easy to follow, and informative overview of the general flow of thought in Western Philosophy.  Although missing several influential scholars, it does a great job at capturing the nuts-and-bolts of things and is very well thought-out.  We hope you enjoy this visual…

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