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What: PLAYA at Summer Lake is "A Place for the Intersection of Art and Science." Their mission is to "Transform the World Through Creative Inquiry." PLAYA nurtures innovative thinking in the arts and sciences through residencies and workshops on the edge of the Great Basin, to promote dialogue and positive change in the environment and the world.

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Where: PLAYA is on Summer Lake in Lake County, Oregon. It is about two hours southeast of Bend. It is very remote. 

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How Are We Involved: Amy and I have been developing a very productive relationship with PLAYA over the past few years. We hope it continues. The purpose of our work with PLAYA is to increase understanding and appreciation in our region for the ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest. Our current projects are detailed below.

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Dark Sky Weekend, April 26 - 29, 2025: PLAYA is in a very dark sky location. In fact, it is part of the Oregon Outback Dark Sky Sanctuary. I will be leading a series of events for anyone who loves astronomy, dark skies, or just being outside at night. Option #1 is to sign-up with PLAYA to stay on site for the weekend. There is room for about 10 participants. There will be a fee, of course. Register here. Option #2 is a free community event on Saturday, April 28, 2025. RSVP here.

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If you are interested in either portion of the PLAYA Dark Sky Event, send me an email. I am happy to answer questions.

 

School Visits in Klamath and Lake County: Playa sponsors Amy and my are visits to schools in Klamath and Lake Counties, Oregon. Thus far we have two lessons that we provide:

Lesson #1: Natural and Cultural History of the Pacific Northwest: Joe delivers a high school lesson titled, "Catastrophic Events In Recent Oregon Geologic History." The students learn about the Missoula Floods, the Pluvial Lakes of SE Oregon, the eruption of Mt. Mazama, the Bridge of the Gods, and Cascade Subduction Zone Earthquakes." We offer resources that teach Native People’s stories passed down from people who witnessed these events. Amy then facilitates a writing activity about student experiences with their own challenging nature experiences. ​We visited Paisley School and North Lake School in November 2024.

 

Lesson #2: Celebrate the Dark: Joe delivers an "Introduction to Stargazing" lesson that has a strong dark sky component. Amy provides associated writing activities. We will be visiting Chiloquin, North Lake, Paisley, and Lakeview schools in April 2025 as part of International Dark Sky Week. We will be celebrating the Oregon Outback Dark Sky Sanctuary.

 

We do not have any rooms left on our calendar right now. If you have a connection with any school in Klamath or Lake counties, please email me so we can get your school on our future calendar.​

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Teacher Workshop, Friday, November 21 - Monday, November 24, 2025. Amy and I will offer a teacher workshop co-sponsored by PLAYA and Lewis and Clark College. This workshop will focus on understanding and appreciating the ecology of the region. We will study processes, systems, and interrelationships rather than separate disciplines. The lessons will include art and writing activities as well as outdoor experiences. A central issue will be respect for the land and an understanding of our interdependence. We will highlight environmentally sound Indigenous practices and restoration efforts in the region. We are seeking an Indigenous Ecologist/Educator from the region to help teach this course. Each participating teacher will be invited to develop an ecology unit incorporating different aspects of a place of their choice. They will be encouraged to include relevant Native relationships and land practices relative their chosen area to share with other teachers in the region. Our ultimate goal is to have a library of lessons, K - 12, that teachers can use. 

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The Native workshop teacher will be given free lodging at PLAYA plus $250 per day for 3 days stipend (11/20-23).

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If we are unable to find a Native workshop teacher we will be using Native guest speakers, either in-person or online. We offer $100 to each guest speaker. Send me an email if you are interested in applying to be our Native workshop teacher or a Native guest speaker. If you know of a good candidate please contact them and me!

 

Graduate level credit will be available through Lewis and Clark College. Once the college has their website ready with information and registration details, I will post the link here. Stay tuned. Send me an email if you want notification when this is ready. 

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The PLAYA BIPoC Residency, Tuesday, November 25 - Monday, December 1, 2025.: Playa is committed to providing paid residencies to BIPoC artists, scientists, and others who live in Oregon. The curator needs to be BIPoC, live in Oregon, and be interested in working with PLAYA to flesh out the details of this project and finding eight or so residents.

 

Contact PLAYA for more information and to apply

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The BIPOC curator will be given free lodging at PLAYA and $250 per day for 6 days stipend (11/25-12/1).

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*The Native person assisting in our teacher workshop could stay and be curator for the BIPOC residency as well.

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References

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"Thank you so much for including our students in your work! It is hard to beat having two experts--in two disparate fields--sharing their expertise with high school students. You never know when the spark to follow a path not otherwise imagined might be ignited! We look forward to hearing more and seeing you next year!"

 

Paul Hauder, Principal Paisley School

 

"Thank you to both of  you for the amazing presentations you gave to our students.  We would love for you to continue presenting to our students when it convenient for you."

 

Cameron Mitchem, Principal, North Lake School

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