A year ago, Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy reached out to me, to help launch a new series of artwork for their Traverse City Conservation Center located on a 243-acre preserve—previously a golf course. We began by taking a closer look at the subject of their logo, northern white-cedar, also known as the tree of life, and rightfully so. According to the Ecology and Management of Northern White-Cedar, a report by Raymond Miller, "Northern white-cedar stands in the central Upper Peninsula of Michigan have been found to support 83 species of animals in addition to their most celebrated resident: the white-tailed deer. Of the 84 species, 47 are birds, 34 are mammals, and 3 are herpitiles."

It's hard to imagine how many cedars are growing among the nearly 50,000 acres of land and 155 miles of shoreline protected in Northwest Michigan by all the faces behind Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy's mission. What a good feeling to think about the wild orchids and turtles, the birds with branches to build a nest on, all thanks to the folks conserving land. 

Read about the series here.