I just got back from the 2016 Western Society of Naturalists meeting in Monterey. It was obviously a meeting upset by our post-election fears over funding, bigotry, the environment…. but a good time for us to come together (sometimes cry a little) and celebrate the more-important-than-ever work that we have as ecologists. It can make one doubtful, knowing that your "president elect" is somebody who would almost certainly mock your work.

What was really inspiring was seeing all that the people in this group of strong, brave ecologists create. Knowledge, beauty, and even buttons :) Jackie Sones, the WSN Naturalist of the Year, is not only a brilliant biologist but also someone who shares what she sees on a near daily basis, and reminded us that we need to proudly claim the title "Natural Historian" or "Naturalist". Below, I proudly show my Ed Ricketts button, she had a whole series!

So, I'm back to work. And, maybe, a little more "woke up" than I was before. The fight moves forward - in politics, in the intertidal, and in between.