Project Understory

A relaxing canoe trip turns into a rolling adventure full of twists and turns. Find out what happens when laughter turns to panicked screams.

A routine night shift turns into a wild encounter at an Australian animal sanctuary.

In this episode, Rae Henneman shares her journey from growing up in urban Chicago with little exposure to nature to discovering a passion for birding in college. A chance encounter with a white-breasted nuthatch sparked her curiosity and transformed how she sees the natural world—both in the forest and back home in the city. Join Rae as she reflects on how awareness can open our eyes to the wildlife around us, one bird at a time.

This episode follows the story of a child curious about bird migration and his journey on becoming a nature detective and solving his case

In this special episode, you will hear stories about the importance of trees. The stories come from multiple storytellers including a classroom of 4th graders and a classroom of Master Naturalists.  

In this episode, Kate shares how a mountain summit inspired her to engage in all the fleeting opportunities that life has to offer.

This is a story by Alaina Allen about her passion for kayaking. It embodies the sentiment "if at first you don't succeed, try, try again".

Join Phil White as he shares a short story about an encounter with a troupe of raccoons as they attempt to steal his sweet treats during a camping trip, and the strange connection with one which he still thinks about to this day.

This episode describes an adventurous 23-mile backpacking trip through the Porcupine Mountains with views of waterfalls, trees galore, a whole lot of water, and countless memories.

Practicum student Logan Buress shares a story about his trip to the Apostle Islands and how him and his family were unprepared for their trip there.