Award-Winning Author Florence Williams to Talk on The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier and More Creative
Wednesday, April 12, 2023 at The North Carolina Arboretum
Award-winning science and nature writer Florence Williams visits Asheville and the Arboretum on Wednesday, April 12, in connection with her acclaimed book The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier and More Creative. Chosen as the first Arboretum Reads selection in 2019, The Nature Fix set the tone for how many of us sought respite and healing in nature from the earliest days of the pandemic. Now three years later, we’re still reading and finding Williams’ amassing of research on the benefits of nature compelling evidence to get outside!
Scientist Edward O. Wilson called The Nature Fix “a beautifully written, thoroughly enjoyable exposition of a major principle of human life now supported by evidence in biology, psychology, and medicine.”
Inspired by her research for the book to become a certified forest therapy guide, Williams will lead a Forest Bathing experience for a small group in the Arboretum Forest and will deliver a talk in the evening. Prior to her visit, Adult & Continuing Education will host an Arboretum Re-Reads discussion on The Nature Fix for onsite and online gatherings. Registration on all events in connection with Williams’ time in Asheville is detailed below.
Florence Williams’ most recent book, Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey, was named the winner of the prestigious PEN / E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award on March 3 in New York City. In Heartbreak, Williams wrote about her road back from divorce by combining a personal narrative with an investigation of the scientific basis of loss. She said her research helped her “understand the ways we all suffer together and that as humans we are deeply wired for attachment.”
Registration is underway on the Arboretum’s website for all events in connection with Williams’ visit to Western North Carolina. For more information, contact adulteducation@ncarboretum.org.
Williams’ visit to the area is presented by Adult & Continuing Education Programs at the Arboretum in collaboration with Reems Creek Nursery, Asheville Wellness Tours, and Malaprop’s Bookstore.
