Forest Botanicals Region Social Ecology Lab
Footage taken by Shannon Bell and Matthew Pickett
The forests of Central Appalachia have sustained societies for millennia.
The Forest Botanicals Region Social Ecology Lab conducts research and outreach to support the traditions, lifeways, and livelihoods tied to the medicinal herbs and forest foods of the Central Appalachian woodland understory.
Explore Our Projects
Led by Sociology Professor Shannon Bell at Virginia Tech, the Forest Botanicals Region Social Ecology Lab is engaged in ethnographic and survey research, action research, and public humanities outreach projects. Explore some of our work by clicking on the links below.
Forest Botanicals Region Living Monument
A public humanities project consisting of a Storywalk Trail, a sculpture, and an online exhibit celebrating the relationships that a diversity of Central Appalachian peoples have long held with the vast number of medicinal plants and foods growing wild in the Appalachian forest understory.
