The Arbornaught

Meg Lowman, Ph.D. a.k.a. 'Canopy Meg' is an American biologist, educator, ecologist, writer, editor and public speaker. She is the executive director of the TREE Foundation and a professor at the National University of Singapore, Arizona State University and Universiti Sains Malaysia. Nicknamed the 'Real-Life Lorax' by National Geographic and 'Einstein of the Treetops' by The Wall Street Journal, Meg Lowman pioneered the science of canopy ecology. Her motto is no child left indoors. She travels extensively, conducting research, doing outreach and speaking to audiences large and small.

Inga Simpson is the author of Willowman, The Last Woman in the World, Mr Wigg, Nest, Where the Trees Were, as well as Understory: my life with trees and, for children, The Book of Australian Trees, illustrated by Alicia Rogerson. Inga’s novels have been short and longlisted for numerous awards, including the Miles Franklin and Stella Prize, while Understory was shortlisted for the Adelaide Writers Week award for nonfiction. Inga has PhDs in creative writing and English literature, with her most recent thesis exploring the history of Australian nature writing. Her short stories and essays have been published in Wonderground, Chicago Quarterly Review, Griffith Review, Openbook, Review of Australian Fiction, Clues, Writing Queensland, and The Dictionary of Literary Biography.