Raymond Wiggers
Lectures
- In the past decade years, I have presented over 300 lectures and keynote addresses at public libraries, museums, professional societies, nature centers, science and gardening clubs, and educational institutions. For a full listing of my lecture topics, click here.

- For a listing of my past lecture venues, from 2004 to earlier this year, click here.


- Coal Swamps, Coral Reefs, and Continental Glaciers: A Look at Prairie-State Geology
A geologist's travelogue of Illinois, based on my popular book Geology Underfoot in Illinois. Unjustly branded as a flat and boring place, Illinois is in fact full of scenic and scientifically significant locales that teach us much about our planet's history.

- Geology at the Local Level
Exploring your region's landmarks and geologic origins; check with me at raywiggers@nheg.org about the regions I cover.

- Glaciers to Wildflowers: How Illinois' Living Landscapes Came to Be
A mere twenty thousand years ago, much of northeastern Illinois was a forbidding ice desert. This talk explores how, at the end of that glaciation, the Prairie State's  landscapes, soils, and plant communities evolved into their present forms. An overview of significant pre-Ice Age events is also included.

- Wisconsin's Living Landscapes: Dramatic Change through Time
Today, the Badger State boasts a remarkably broad spectrum of native plant habitats -- from boreal forest in its northern reaches to a host of species adapted to prairie, savanna, woodland, sand-barrens, and rare cliff-dwelling communities. This lecture explores how this ecological diversity and the soils that help to define it have been shaped, changed, and challenged by the vast geologic forces -- most notably, the Quaternary Ice Age and human activity.

- Our Ever-Changing Earth
How modern geology has revolutionized our view of our planet: a look at the combination of catastrophic events and slow but powerful forces that shape our world's landscape, interior, and atmosphere. Includes a discussion of plate tectonics theory, earthquakes, tsunamis, climate change, and impact events.

- A Geologist's View of the Solar System: A Trip to the Moon and Other Planets
Featuring the evolution and landscapes of our solar system, seen from a planetary-science perspective. Includes images from US and European space missions.

- Ancient Life of Illinois: The Past Revealed in Our Fossil Record
The geologic and biologic history of Illinois, as revealed in the fossil record -- from marine invertebrates of the Ordovician sea of half a billion years ago, to the luxuriant, equatorial coal swamps of the Pennsylvanian period and to the massive "megafauna" mammals of the modern Ice Age.

- Architectural Geology of the Chicago Region
The interplay between architecture and stone, soils, and sediments is an intimate one, and Chicagoland is the perfect place to explore this fascinating connection. This presentation includes a look at the ornamental stone used on the Windy City's most famous landmarks, and also covers the imposing engineering challenges of anchoring skyscrapers in the region's treacherous lakebed sediments.  

- The Living Skin of the Earth: A Look at Our Region's Soils
The story of soils -- how they develop, deteriorate, and affect the lives of each one of us -- is one of the most surprisingly engaging stories in all of natural history. This presentation includes a look at Illinois' justly famous prairie-derived soils, and also discusses the link between soils and the habitats that both create them and are adapted to them.

- The Greening of the Earth: 500 Million Years of Plant Evolution
The saga of the rise of a great kingdom of life. Touching upon earlier forms of photosynthetic life -- from cyanobacteria to complex marine algae, and continuing with the plants' humble origins on land half a billion years ago. The development of all the major groups of plants, from low-growing mosses to giant conifers and flowering plants, is discussed in this particularly photogenic talk.

- Land of the Living Sands: The Illinois Dunesland
The scientific story of the Prairie State's Lake Michigan shoreline, with special emphasis on Illinois Beach State Park and its associated nature preserves and communities. This talk reveals the remarkable interplay between the geology of a restless coastline and the magnificent if fragile ecosystems that define the Dunesland as one of the Midwest's most fascinating -- and imperiled -- examples of diversity and evolution.  

- Discovering Cultivated Orchids
For the lover of indoor plants, there is no reward or addictive pleasure that outdoes growing tropical orchids. Long unfairly stigmatized as very difficult to grow in the home environment, these representatives of the largest plant family on Earth are in fact often surprisingly easy to maintain and flower. This talk describes the most reliable selections and provides plenty of time-tested cultural tips.
RECENT & UPCOMING PUBLIC LECTURES

Note: If you are currently enrolled in the Natural History Exploration Guild education program, or are interested in learning how your participation in the lectures listed below will earn you credits towards Guild Naturalist certification, please visit www.nheg.org.

- Oak Lawn Public Library
- Starved Rock State Park
- Galena/Jo Daviess County Historical Soc.
- Gardeners of the North Shore
- Will County Audubon Society
- Science Faculty, Adlai Stevenson H. S.
- Hyde Park Historical Society
- Racine Geological Society, Wisconsin
- Homer Township Public Library
- Ela Area Public Library, Lake Zurich
- Chicago Rocks and Minerals Society
- Lake Villa District Library
- Severson Dells Nature Center, Rockford
- Carol Stream Public Library
- Palatine Public Library
- Prospect Heights Public Library
- Midwest Museum of Natural History
- Grayslake Public Library
- State Microscopical Society of Illinois
- Vernon Area Public Library
- Palatine Historical Society
-Stephenson County Historical Society
- Calumet City Public Library
- Hanwakan Foundation, WI
- Mighty Acorns Annual Meeting, Indiana
- Geneva Public Library
- Messenger Public Library, North Aurora
- DeKalb Public Library
- Shorewood/Troy Public Library
- Elmhurst Public Library
- Zion-Benton Public Library
- Illinois Institute of Technology
- Evanston Public Library
- Algonquin Area Public Library
- Oswego Public Library
- Plainfield Public Library
- Cary Public Library
- Friends of Indian Boundary Prairies
- Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation
- Calumet City Public Library
- Aurora Public Library, West Branch
- Aurora Public Library, Eola Branch
- Greeley Elementary School, Winnetka
- Indian Prairie Public Library, Darien
- Spring Valley Nature Center, Schaumburg
- Fremont Public Library, Mundelein
- Rock Valley Wild Ones, Rockford
- Root River Wild Ones, Racine, Wisconsin
- Des Plaines Historical Society
- Volo Bog State Natural Area
- Southeast Wisconsin Freethinkers
- Elgin Public Museum
- Homewood Historical Society
- Prince of Peace Catholic Church, Lake Villa
- South Holland Public Library
- Naperville Public Library, Naper Branch
- La Grange Park Public Library, IL
- Northwest Cook County Sierra Club
- Southeastern Wisconsin Sierra Club
- LaSalle Public Library
- Park Ridge Public Library
- Lake County Audubon Society
- Triton College
- Last Updated 21 June 2010 -
MY PAST LECTURE VENUES, FROM 2004 TO THIS YEAR
(venues are in Illinois unless otherwise stated)
- Saturday 17 January 2009, 1:00 a.m. -2:30 p.m. A Geologist's View of the Solar System. A free public talk hosted by the Mokena Community Public Library, 11327 W. 195th Street, Mokena, IL. For more information, contact the library at (708) 479-9663.

- Thursday 12 March 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Gardening with Nature. A free public talk hosted by South Holland Public Library, 16250 Wausau Avenue, South Holland, IL. For more information, contact the library at (708) 331-5262.

- Thursday 19 March 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present. A free public talk hosted by the Glen Ellyn Public Library, 400 Duane Street, Glen Ellyn, IL. For more information, contact the library at (630) 469-0879.

-Sunday 5 April 2009, 3:00-4:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present. A free public talk hosted by the Evanston Public Library, Church & Orrington, Evanston, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847)448-8600.

- Wednesday 15 April 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present.  A free public talk hosted by the Oak Lawn Public Library, 9427 Raymond Avenue, Oak Lawn, IL. For more information, contact the library at (708) 422-4990.

- Thursday 30 April 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present.  A free public talk hosted by the Palatine Public Library, 700 N. North Court Street, Palatine, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847) 358-5881.

-Wednesday 20 May 2009, 11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m. Discovering Cultivated Orchids. A free public talk hosted by the Lake Villa District Library, 1001 E. Grand Avenue, Lake Villa, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847) 356-7711.

- Thursday 3 September 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Geology at the Local Level: Kane County and Environs. A free public talk hosted by the Geneva Public Library, 127 James Street, Geneva, IL. For more information, contact the library at (630) 232-0780.

- Wednesday 7 October 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present.  A free public talk hosted by the Fremont Public Library, 1170 N. Midlothian Road, Mundelein, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847) 566-8702.

- Wednesday 21 October 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Discovering Cultivated Orchids. A free public talk hosted by the Des Plaines Public Library, 1501 Ellinwood Street, Des Plaines, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847) 827-5551.

- Monday 15 February 2010, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Land of the Living Sands: The Illinois Dunesland. A free public talk hosted by the Town and Country Public Library, 320 E. North Street, Elburn, IL. For more information, call (630) 365-2244.

- Monday 1 March 2010, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present. A free public talk hosted by the Town and Country Public Library, 320 E. North Street, Elburn, IL. For more information, call (630) 365-2244.

- Wednesday 17 March 2010, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Gardening with Nature. A free public talk hosted by Fremont Public Library, 1170 N. Midlothian Road, Mundelein, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847) 566-8702.

- Monday 29 March 2010, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Geology at the Local Level: Kane County and Environs. A free public talk hosted by the Town and Country Public Library, 320 E. North Street, Elburn, IL. For more information, call (630) 365-2244.

- Tuesday 6 April 2010, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Discovering Cultivated Orchids. A free public talk hosted by the Glenview Public Library, 1930 Glenview Road, Glenview, IL. For more information, contact the library at (847) 729-7500.

- Friday 14 May 2010, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Glaciers to Wildflowers: How Illinois' Living Landscapes Came to Be. A public talk hosted by the Nature Institute, 2213 S. Levis Lane, Godfrey, IL. For more information, contact the Nature Institute at (618) 467-2521. NOTE: This lecture is part of a two-day series that also includes a geology tour of the Mississippi River Valley and Illinois bluff in the Alton, Illinois area on Saturday 15 May. See my Tours Page for details on the 5/15 component.

- Monday 28 June 2010, 6:30-8:00 p.m. Ancient Life of Illinois. A free public talk hosted by the Coal City Public Library, 85 N. Garfield Street, Coal City, IL. For more information, contact the library at (815) 634-4552.

- Wednesday 22 September 2010, 6:30-8:00 p.m. Coal Swamps, Coral Reefs, and Continental Glaciers: A Look at Prairie-State Geology. A free public talk hosted by the Bloomingdale Public Library,101 Fairfield Way, Bloomingdale, IL. For more information, contact the library at (630) 529-3120.

- Thursday, 21 October 2010, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Climate Change: Past and Present. A public talk hosted by the Barrington Natural History Society at the Barrington Area Library,  505 N. Northwest Highway, Barrington, IL. For more information, contact Arlene Koziol at arlenekoziol@mac.com.

- Saturday 19 February 2011, 10:30 a.m. - noon. Geology at the Local Level: Grundy County. A free public talk hosted by the Coal City Public Library, 85 N. Garfield Street, Coal City, IL. For more information, contact the library at (815) 634-4552.

-Thursday 10 March 2011, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Glaciers to Wildflowers: How Illinois' Living Landscapes Came to Be. A public talk hosted by the Des Plaines Garden Club. For more information, contact Judy Riordan at (847) 299-0412.



(In addition, other talks for membership-only organizations may be scheduled.)

LECTURE TOPICS

(Other, "customized" talks on related themes are also offered)

For more information on my scheduling availability and speaker's fee schedule, please contact me at raywiggers@nheg.org.

New Talks for 2010!

- Climate Change: Past and Present
How does an understanding of the Earth’s immense history – which includes sultry “greenhouse,” frigid “icehouse,” and high-sea-level “water world” phases – shed light on the current concerns about Global Warming? And to what extent is our one species changing our climate in the twenty-first century? 

- Climate Change: What Can We Do About It?
There’s no denying it. In this century, there is no greater challenge to our society or to humanity as a whole that the rising specter of human-induced climate change. But is there anything we as individuals and families can really do about it? Isn’t this issue just too big to tackle at the local level? This new talk explains why our individual attitudes and actions  do indeed matter.

- Gardening with Nature
The Upper Midwest boasts a vast assortment of indigenous wildflower and woody-plant species. Learn more about these noble natives – and how you can incorporate many of them in your own garden.

Visit my LinkedIn page to review the comments of my recent clients and colleagues, and to view my professional network.