Paul’s presentation encourages homeowners to replace some of their lawn turf with native prairie plants. Paul’s own prairie experience along with Doug Tallamy’s book Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard will inform his presentation, looking at major obstacles to homeowner’s converting lawn to prairie and how to overcome those obstacles.

 

At 16, Paul spent a summer with the Youth Conservation Corps in Davenport, Iowa where he worked with other teens building trails, clearing trails, picking up garbage, and listening to Aldo Leopold’s words during lunch breaks. He became a committed environmentalist after that summer. In the Spring of 2000, Paul planted a 4 yard wide by 30 yard long prairie in his backyard. Since then, the diversity of plant, insect, and animal life in his prairie patch has been astonishing. In the summer of 2022, Paul was accepted into the Master Naturalist training program. He is a member of the local Audubon Society and the Nature Conservancy. Paul has been married to his wife, Cheryl, for 28 years and they have two grown children. Paul and his wife live in East Peoria.

 

Please RSVP to Christine Belless, cbelless@illinois.edu if you are able to attend. This will help with room set up and refreshments.