On a warm and somewhat stormy evening in July, Native Resilience joined DRI’s Curiosity Lab event, sharing original poetry written by members of our resilience reporter program and inviting the public to write climate-themed poems of their own.

The event, From Curiosity to Creation: Listen, Learn, Create, was held at DRI’s campus in Reno, Nev., as part of the city’s month-long arts festival, Artown. Attendees listened to talks on the intersection of art and science, then had the opportunity to explore activities and create science-inspired artwork.

Activities included coloring with robots, watercolor painting with melted ice core samples, creating upcycled art with plastic litter collected from Lake Tahoe, nature journaling with DRI’s STEM education program, and more. At the Native Resilience table, visitors read examples of climate poetry by Gina McGuire and Andra Hawk-Valdez, and were provided with writing prompts for creating their own poetry. The event culminated in a gallery of creations.

Event Photos – July 30, 2025

Attendees listen to a speaker at DRI's Artown event
Attendees listen to a speaker at DRI’s Artown event on July 30 in Reno, Nev. Credit: DRI.
Attendees walk around the DRI campus at Artown event
Attendees walk around the DRI campus at the Artown event on July 30. Credit: DRI.
Native Resilience team shares climate poetry at Artown event
Kelsey Fitzgerald shares poetry examples from the Native Resilience project with an attendee at DRI’s Artown event. Credit: DRI.
people standing around a table and talking
At the Native Resilience table, attendees were provided with poetry samples and prompts for writing their own poetry. credit: DRI.
Climate poetry samples
Samples of climate poetry at the Native Resilience table. Credit: Native Resilience.
samples of poetry written by event attendees
Samples of poetry written by event attendees. Credit: Native Resilience.
poem written by an event attendee
A poem written by an event attendee. Credit: Native Resilience.
Poems written by event attendees
Poems written by event attendees. Credit: Native Resilience.
The gallery of poems written by event attendees
The gallery of poems written by event attendees. Credit: Native Resilience
Visitors stop by the poetry table at DRI's Artown event.
Visitors stop by the poetry table at DRI’s Artown event. Credit: DRI.
Visitors creating poetry and artwork at the DRI Artown event.
Visitors creating poetry and artwork at the DRI Artown event. Credit: DRI.
watercolor painting of mountain scene
A watercolor painting created with melted ice core samples. Credit: DRI.
sunset view from the DRI campus
Evening view of Reno from the DRI campus. Credit: Native Resilience.

Learn more

Read more poetry and stories from the Native Resilience project: https://native-resilience.com/news/climate-reporter-stories/