234. What Forests Know That We’ve Forgotten with Ethan Tapper

We’re skimming through life—and it’s costing us hope. In this wide-ranging, deeply grounding conversation, forester and award-winning author Ethan Tapper shows how forests teach us to slow down, notice complexity, and recognize healing in motion. From the wisdom of old trees—and the life in fallen ones—to birds as messengers of possibility, this episode is an invitation to see the world, not as broken, but as quietly regenerating in ways we never realized.Chapters00:00 – Intro & Welcome04:00 – How to Love a Forest and Why It Resonates10:30 – Why Old Trees Matter More Than Size16:13 – Death, Decay, and the Life of Forests22:05 – Why We Want Forests to Look Like Parks28:45 – Rethinking the Word “Nature”33:10 – Forest Resilience, Diversity, and Global Change39:22 - Break42:39 – Reading Forests Through Birds49:45 – From Knowing More to Doing More1:09:50 – Healing Bear Island1:16:30 – Closing