Co-organized by Juliana Medeiros, Holden Arboretum and Maya Allen, University of New Mexico

This lecture series will take place entirely online, with a new speaker on the second Wednesday of the month from October 2020 to September 2021.

Our Scientist Lecture Series this year was inspired by Black Botanists Week, a Twitter campaign that took place in July 2020, “to promote, encourage, create a safe space for, and find more Black people who love plants.” This campaign went viral, reaching thousands of viewers and attracting Black Botanists from around the globe. The participants received an outpouring of support and requests for collaboration through their newly created #BlackBotanistsWeek Twitter account and website [3]. Media coverage of this movement included such outlets as WNYC news, Cape Talk Radio, Newzroom Afrika and The Daily Item. The organizing committee strives to leverage these collaborations to fund a Black Botanists Week Scholarship to support underrepresented groups in pursuing botanical fields.

This 11-part lecture series will cover a broad range of botanical disciplines, delve into the historical legacy of formally trained and self-taught Black Botanists who inspired others to pursue a career in plants, and highlight pathways toward diversity and inclusion in botanical sciences. With this series, the organizers and contributors seek to shine a light on the Black roots within botany, foster a community of Black Botanists, show that diversity is found within this community, and inspire others who may not have considered Botany as a career choice.

Talk registration and virtual venue: The talks will take place on Zoom with a livestream to YouTube. The talks are free to view, but guests must register in order to view the live talks.

Free Educational Materials: HF&G will provide short lesson plans based on each talk, for use by teachers and parents. The videos, along with the educational materials, will be made permanently available on YouTube for public viewing after the live event has ended. The YouTube video description will contain a link to a Holden webpage describing and hosting the Educational Materials. These materials will be aimed at grades 7-12, focusing on the comprehension and connection to the biological concepts and lived experiences of the speakers as presented in the talks.

For more information including the Speaker Roster & Brief Biographies click here [4].