About Me


Peggy Smith Eppig
Environmental Historian 

I've always been interested in the lay of the land. How do landscapes form and what natural, physical, and human forces create them? How are we inspired by them? How is history shaped by them?

I took this interest to the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in the early '80s and graduated with a combined BFA in landscape, illustration, and education degree. I continue to paint landscapes, wildlife, and botanical illustration work on commission. After graduation I moved to South Carolina to work as a park naturalist and worked closely with Gullah communities on the Atlantic coast. I fell hard into birding as a volunteer with the Southeast Audubon Society and it was with birding that I became interested in the concepts of migration and intentional movement. 

I earned my PhD in Environmental Studies at Antioch University New England with a focus on environmental history of the 20th century. I currently work for the Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation in agriculture and natural resources education and serve as director for the Environmental Certificates Program at Goucher College. My independent research includes pilgrimage and conservation history. 

I have always included a hound or two in most of my explorations. Over the years there have been terriers and coonhounds. My current hiking companion is Amos The Minor Prophet, a handsome Black-and-Tan Coonhound rescue. 




Global Environmental Change 500 -  Antioch University New England, Keene, NH  
Natural History of New Hampshire 300 - Keene State College, Keene, NH 
Agroecology 400 - Keene State College, Keene, NH 
Intro to Environmental Studies 100 -  Goucher College, Baltimore, MD 
Community-Based Conservation 600/Online - Goucher College 
Farm and Forest-Based Education 600/Online - Goucher College 
Complex Systems Thinking and Analysis 600/Online - Goucher College
Feminist Political Ecology 300 - Goucher College

Informal Courses Offered:

Mid-Atlantic Natural History Adult Series -  Eden Mill Nature Center (1995 - 2010)
Leopold Land Ethic/ Leopold Education Project Adult / PD  Maryland Ag Ed Fdn (2010 - current)
Nature Journaling, Adult - EMNC and Deer Creek Quaker Meeting, (1995 - current)

Published Work:

Eppig, P. (2022) "Holy Enforcers: St. Cuthbert and St. Hubert." Chapter in Supernatural Gamekeepers. Richard Chacon, Ed. Springer. 

Eppig, P. (2018) “Ecology of Pilgrimage: Building Socio-Ecological Community on the Way." International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage. Vol. 6, Issue 2. Summer 2018.

Eppig, P. (2017) “Russell Lord and the Permanent Agriculture Movement.”  Dissertation.

Eppig, P. (2012) “Farm Boundaries as Ecological Systems.”  Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies.  Vol. 79, Issue 4: 451-562.

Eppig, P. (2011) “What is Agroecology? (And Why Should We Care?)” Monadnock Table.  Vol. 2, Issue 7.

Eppig, P. (1999-2005) “The Naturalists Corner.”  Regular column. Pennsylvania Forestry Journal.


Presentations:

March 30, 2019. “Ecology of Pilgrimage, St. Cuthbert’s Way.” Fellowship Presentation. Americans on the Camino Annual Symposium, Black Mountain, N.C.

Oct. 8, 2017. “The Ecology of Pilgrimage.” Institute of Pilgrimage Studies Annual Symposium, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA.

June 22, 2017. “Schoolgrounds for Learning.” Building A Land Ethic Conference. Aldo Leopold Foundation and University of Wisconsin. Baraboo.

May 26, 2017. “Sacrificial Landscapes and the Domestic War Economy: A Conservation Paradox.” War, Environment, Social Inequality, and Pro-Social Studies. Seville, Spain.

Oct. 21, 2016. “Sacrificial Landscapes: The Conservation Paradox of 20th Sacrificial Lands and War Economies.” Lecture at Winthrop College, Rock Hall, SC

May 10, 2016. “Russell Lord and the Permanent Agriculture Movement.” Dissertation defense, public seminar. Antioch University New England, Keene, NH.

Professional Associations:

Association for Environmental Sciences and Studies

Association for the Study of Literature and Environment

American Society for Environmental History

European Society for Environmental History
                                                           
Institute for Pilgrimage Studies

Forest History Society

War, Environment, Social Inequality, and Peace Studies Working Group




8 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh, did you walk St. Cuthbert's Way? That was my first "pilgrimage." I would love to read what you made of the experience.

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    1. Hey Mary Jo! I did! It was awesome! I'm writing up on it now, a chapter in my book The Uphill Road. I'll post when it's available.

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  2. This blog is a revelation. Thank you for sharing your knowledge—I’ve hiked some areas you write about and it is helpful to understand what you are seeing that I cannot identify.

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  3. Hello, I would like to ask you about your article on Susquehannock State Park. I am the educator there. Would that be possible. I love your blog, combining nature and history.

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  4. Peggy, I read your latest blog. Wonderful read. Keep up the good work.

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  5. I have just read your paper The Ecology of Pilgrimage 2018 and found it very interesting. It overlaps tangentially with a discussion some of our volunteers have been having on the subject of sustainability and Pilgrimage in Spain. All prompted by a leaflet we have been reviewing on littering and poor toilet habits of some pilgrims and the impact on local people.. Your article was passed to me in consequence and is a fascinating addition to our discussion.

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    1. Thanks for reading, Brendan. Yes, I try to follow the Leave No Trace guidance and recommend that to students, fellow pilgrims, and the folks I guide on hikes.

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