Photo by : PAULO VELOZO

Thursday , November 2 , 2017 | 4:30pm | CLYDE BUTCHER WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER

Throughout his award-winning career , photographer Clyde Butcher has cherished America ' s national parks . " I am filled with gratitude that I live in a country that had the foresight to save so many wild places for future generations ," said Butcher . " They have given us the ability to step out of the rush of the modern world and to return to the quiet peace of nature ." Clyde set out over the course of his career to capture 33 National Parks ! Hear the stories and celebrate the landscapes of our country ’ s last remaining wild places .

Photo by : Chuck Vosburg

Monday , December 11 , 2017 | 4:30pm | ANDREW FORSTHOEFEL AUTHOR , PEACE ACTIVIST

At 23 , Andrew Forsthoefel walked out the back door of his home in Chadds Ford , Pennsylvania , with a backpack , an audio recorder , his copies of Whitman , Rilke and Gibran , and a sign that read “ Walking to Listen .” On a quest to find answers to the existential questions every human faces , Forsthoefel also faced the full range of the elements as he walked toward the Pacific , from an Appalachian winter to a Mojave summer . He met beasts inside : fear , loneliness and doubt . But he also encountered great kindness from strangers . Thousands shared their stories with him , sometimes confiding their prejudices , too . Often he didn ’ t know how to respond . How to find unity in diversity ? How to stay connected , even as fear works to tear us apart ? Ultimately , his story is that of others living all along the roads of America and how our nation defines itself on the most human level . Photo by : Liv Smith

Wednesday , January 17 , 2018 | 4:30pm | MICHAEL YAMASHITA NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTOGRAPHER

Before the legendary explorations of Christopher Columbus , Vasco da Gama and Ferdinand Magellan , Admiral Zheng He sailed from Ming-dynasty China , and in 28 years made seven voyages visiting 30 countries . With his fleet of hundreds of junks he came close to conquering the world , until the Ming dynasty ' s power shriveled and the explorer ' s accomplishments were all but forgotten . In a compelling tribute to Zheng He , Michael Yamashita traces each of his journeys and pays homage to the impressive achievements of this explorer , whose feats equal or surpass those of better-known explorers . Photographer Michael Yamashita has been shooting for the National Geographic magazine for over 30 years , combining his dual passions of photography and travel . Yamashita ’ s particular specialty is in retracing the paths

of famous travelers , resulting in stories on Marco Polo , the Japanese poet Basho , and the Chinese explorer Zheng He . Photo by : Tia Liming

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The Great Adventures and Explorations series features adventurers of many kinds , including historians , authors and photographers who dare to follow in the footsteps of past explorers or even to venture on their own incredible journeys . These speakers will captivate you with their stories and bring out a little bit of the adventurer in you !

10 2017 / 18 PROGRAM GUIDE