Roger Latham Credit: Provided. All Rights Reserved.

Great Valley

Earth Day lecture: Pennsylvania Piedmont, the Wildlands of Southeastern Pa.

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM / April 22, 2026

Celebrate Earth Day and National Parks Week with ecologist and conservation biologist Roger Latham in an event presented in partnership with Jenkins Arboretum & Gardens and Valley Forge Park Alliance.

Step into the Pennsylvania Piedmont with Latham to uncover the unique geology and ecology that make Southeastern Pennsylvania’s wildlands truly special. Explore freshwater tidal marshes, mafic glades, forests on diabase soils, and serpentine barrens — all home to many state-endangered species. Learn about the natural history and ongoing stewardship of these ecosystems, found nowhere else in the commonwealth.

Latham has worked as a research ecologist, conservation biologist and environmental planner since 1973. He earned his doctoral degree in biology at the University of Pennsylvania and conducts applied research and planning for the National Park Service, The Nature Conservancy, Natural Lands Trust, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, Audubon, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and other organizations and agencies involved in wildland restoration and management and endangered species recovery.

Register for "Pennsylvania Piedmont."