I first came across Ross Reid on Instagram and his account @NerdyAboutNature. I loved learning about the trees and the natural ecosystems from a funny, kind of quirky guy who just seemed to know so much!

I invited him on my podcast and I'm so glad I did. Such insight and a true admonition to connect with nature. He urges the school system to get back to the "poetic beauty of science" and to make it real for everyone. He says the way we communicate science needs to draw people in, instead of scare them off, as science is apt to do.

Ross always refers to the Pacific Northwest as Cascadia. I asked him about that and he explained in depth why we need to think of the land as a whole being, of which we are a part. But in order to benefit from nature, we need to start from a place of humility, recognizing that the land is not ours to build another parking lot on. Rather it is a resource that if managed properly, will sustain us, just as it did the First Nations peoples for 1000s of years.

Ross details a beautiful metaphor of a tree, whereby it's resilience through all circumstances can be likened to our lives. That through the successes and struggles of life, we can find our own individual beauty, just as the tree does in the forest.

This episode is the sort that will make us want to connect to nature, it will make us want to rethink our place in nature and will make us want to be thankful for all that nature does for us.

Follow Ross on Instagram and YouTube at @nerdyaboutnature and as he says "smash him some likes and follows".

https://www.rossjreid.com