Speaker: Dr. Nat Bletter

Nat Bletter has 25 years of experience in botany, documenting exotic fruits and vegetables, gathering food in the wild, herbal and traditional medicine, and exploring Asia, South America, Central America, and Africa. He has a Ph.D. in Ethnobotany from the City University of New York and New York Botanical Garden, where he researched medicinal plants of Peru, Mali, and the Guatemalan Mayans, ethnobotany, taste-modifying plants, and stimulant plants such as cacao, which spurred him to start the traditional-ingredient, high-antioxidant, artisanal chocolate company Madre Chocolate. He did a post-doc at UH Mānoa researching plants and migration in Thailand and Laos, and now runs the edible landscaping company Natty by Nature where he makes fruit cocktail trees for people by grafting many varieties onto one tree to squeeze higher diversity into small Honolulu gardens.

Logistics:

When: Thursday, September 12, 2024 at 5:30 pm (Talk starts at 6 pm)
Where: Hale Pulelehua, Amy Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden, 82-6160 Mamalahoa Hwy (please park at the Garden Visitor Center and walk in)

Followed By: Ethnobotanical Pupu Potluck

Note: Please bring an ethnobotanically-relevant pupu and be prepared to explain the origin and significance of the plant(s) to be devoured. May contain meat: a card will be provided to list main ingredients.

Funding for this project provided by the Inflation Reduction Act and the USDA Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Program. USDA and Amy Greenwell Ethnobotanical Garden are equal opportunity providers and employers.