“Join us for an evening with Kevin Van Tighem as he presents his latest work Understory: An Ecologist’s Memoir of Loss and Hope.

When: Thursday, October 30  |  6:30pm
Where: Friends Program Room

Understory is a deeply personal and evocative journey into the complexities of nature, grief, and the search for meaning in the autumn of life. Drawing on a lifetime spent in the wilds of western Canada’s national parks and years of conservation work, Van Tighem reflects on a career spent protecting the natural world and the emotional toll of witnessing its decline. Freed from bureaucratic constraints after retirement, he turned to writing, activism, and politics, driven by a sense of duty to the landscapes and species he loves. But alongside his commitment to action came profound grief and the pressing question: how do we find hope amid environmental loss?

Written with the lyricism of a naturalist and the candour of a seasoned storyteller, Understory invites readers to confront their own relationships with nature and consider how they, too, can find purpose and hope in uncertain times.

Kevin Van Tighem is a former superintendent of Banff National Park. He has written more than 200 articles, stories, and essays on conservation and wildlife which have garnered him many awards, including Western Magazine Awards, Outdoor Writers of Canada book and magazine awards, and the Journey Award for Fiction. He is the author of Bears Without Fear; The Homeward Wolf; Heart Waters: Sources of the Bow River; Our Place: Changing the Nature of Alberta; and Wild Roses Are Worth It: Alberta Reconsidered. He lives with his wife, Gail, in High River, Alberta. For more information about Kevin, please visit: https://kevinvantighem.ca/.

Café Books will be joining us for Kevin’s visit and will have copies of Understory available for purchase.”

Hosted by the Canmore Public Library.