Meeting – October 18, 2017
- When: Wednesday, October 18, 2017, from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
- Where: Amazon Community Center, 2700 Hilyard St, Eugene, Oregon 97405
Mycology is proving itself to be a nearly inexhaustible field for innovation. As new discoveries are constantly being made, there seems to be no end to what fungi can offer humans, their communities, and the environments they touch. However, these revelations are only the most recent chapter in the long-standing history that humans have shared with fungi. In this presentation, Peter will explore the depth and breadth of ethnomycological history, from the centrality of micro and macro fungi in many prehistoric cultures to their increasingly significant influences on modern society and the future of technological design. Obscure and ancient practices with fungi will be presented alongside cutting-edge cultivation techniques to show that working with fungi is not only important but integral to the human story.
About the Speaker Peter McCoy is the co-founder of Radical Mycology, a grassroots organization, and movement that teaches the means to easily work with mushrooms and other fungi for personal, societal, and ecological resilience. For the last ten years, Radical Mycology has provided free resources and held internationally attended conferences to share the science of mycology and the art of mushroom cultivation in a manner that is open-source, practical, and relevant for the modern world. Peter is also the lead cultivation expert for the Amazon Mycorenewal Project and Open Source Ecology, as well as the mycology advisor to Permaculture Magazine North America and a regular guest on the Permaculture Voices Podcast.
In 2016, Peter released Radical Mycology, a 650-page book on accessible mycology, mushroom cultivation, mycoremediation, and more. The book has since been hailed as one of the most accessible texts on the science and art of mycology, offering unique, thorough, and cutting-edge insights into the rapidly evolving field along with practical applications to complement these revelations. Peter’s work and Radical Mycology have been featured in various news outlets (e.g. Grist, Vice, and Salon.com) and he has presented at mycological societies across the country. Peter lives in Portland, Oregon and he regularly teaches mycology-related courses around the world.
For those of you who would like to purchase Peter’s very popular book “Radical Mycology”, Peter will have his book available for sale and will accept cash, check, or credit card ($49.95).
The talk is free and open to the public. There will be a mushroom identification session prior to the speaker. Bring what’s in your basket, edible or not, and learn from the experienced members of our community.