Grandfather Presents: Nature’s Song of Renewal: Ecological Resilience After Helene

Join us for a compelling panel discussion that explores nature’s resilience after Hurricane Helene, with powerful findings and updates one year later. The event will open with meteorologist Brad Panovich setting the stage of the storm’s path and record-breaking impacts on our region. From there, a panel discussion with Panovich, wildlife biologist Marquette Crockett and geologist Philip Prince will provide insights into key questions such as how the natural world changed because of Helene, what we’ve learned from the storm and what findings may still be to come. The panelists will share their expertise and research from their fields of study and reflect on how extreme weather continues to shape our environment. Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation President and CEO Jesse Pope will moderate the discussion.
Following the talk in the Wilson Center’s Classroom in the Clouds, eventgoers will experience some social time with heavy hors d’oeuvres catered by Stonewalls and the opportunity to mingle with other attendees and the panelists. A nature-inspired concert by traveling composer/performer Ben Cosgrove will then take place at the Williams Outdoor Learning Space. (The Classroom in the Clouds will be the rain location for the concert.)
Ben Cosgrove explores themes of landscape, place and environment with his music. Described by the Boston Globe as “a sonic plein-air painter … [using] his piano as a paintbrush,” Cosgrove has performed in every U.S. state except for Delaware, collaborated with groups ranging from rock bands to research scientists, contributed music to several radio and film projects (including the recent Ken Burns documentary “The American Buffalo”) and held residencies and fellowships with institutions including NASA, the National Park Service, the National Forest Service, Harvard University, Middlebury College, the Schmidt Ocean Institute and the Sitka Center for Art & Ecology.
During the event, Cosgrove will debut a song inspired by time spent at Grandfather Mountain.
Panelists:
Brad Panovich has been working for WCNC-TV in Charlotte since 2003. He is the chief meteorologist and previously spoke at a Grandfather Presents in 2023.
He has a passion for weather and science education. Panovich holds a bachelor’s degree in meteorology from The Ohio State University. He is a certified broadcast meteorologist by the American Meteorological Society and a member of the National Weather Association. He has won several awards for his work, including two Emmys and “The American Meteorological Society Broadcast Meteorologist of the Year” in 2017. He is also an adjunct professor within the University of North Carolina at Charlotte’s meteorology program.