By Ronica Stromberg
Larkin Powell brings 20 years of research in Nebraska to fruition in his seventh book, "The Best of Intentions: A Story of Landscape Change in the Heart of the Great Plains."
"It is a history of our landscapes, which in Nebraska means that it's a history of agriculture, for the most part, and how agriculture changed over time that impacted landscapes," he said before a book talk on January 23 at 3:30 p.m. to 60 people at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.
The director of the university's School of Natural Resources, Powell published the softcover book through the Nebraska Maps & More store in Hardin Hall. He included photos, journal entries, old advertisements, maps and family stories to show the role humans played in changing the state’s land from prehistoric times to modern day.
Michael Forsberg, a conservation photographer and author who previewed parts of the book draft, said he was eager to get the finished book based on what he had already seen.
"What I know is Larkin's book is an extension of himself: honest, clear-eyed and accessible," Forsberg said. "It speaks volumes to our relationship with the land that we call home here on the Plains. What Larkin has lived and learned and cared about most of his life, from his farming roots in Iowa to his research as an ecologist to his decades as a teacher and now as the director of the school, are all poured into this book. And the research that he did to find all the illustrations is amazing."
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