The ISSRNC is a community of scholars interested in religion, nature, and culture. We are dedicated to helping scholars think across disciplines and foster critical inquiry and engaged scholarship. Learn more…


Cork Reception

A Philosopher and 300 Religious Studies Scholars Walk into a Bar

I’ve been involved with the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature, and Culture (ISSRNC) almost from the start, beginning with the old membership committee, a handful of presentations, helping out with conference organizing, and five years as treasurer. All of this was fun, but nothing was more fascinating than being an eccentric philosopher…

Image credit: Laura Hobgood

Religion, Animals, and Academia

As a PhD student in 1994 I thought nobody else found questions of religion and nature both fascinating and incredibly important. Luckily, Belden Lane emerged as my dissertation adviser. He contributed an early voice to religion and nature in North America. Then I (not so randomly) ran into Bron Taylor, Mary Evelyn Tucker, John Grim, Jay McDaniel, Carol Adams, Paul Waldau, Sarah Pike, Roger Gottlieb, and so many more…

Fire and Ice on the Mountain

Religion, Ritual, and Ecology

I served as ISSRNC’s President from 2015-2018 and was fortunate to take the position after Bron Taylor’s, Kocku von Stuckrad’s, and Laura Hobgood’s leadership had already turned the society into a vibrant community of scholars…One of the most rewarding aspects of my involvement with ISSRNC has been supporting our collegial conference communities…

Photo from the Oak Flat field trip at the ISSRNC conference in 2023. © Evan Berry.

Past President Future Tense

Over the past decade, but especially since the beginning of Trump’s second term, the US federal government has steadily intensified its assault on institutions of higher education, on climate science, on student activist organizations, on student loan forgiveness programs, and on programs of study that focus on social and racial inequalities…

Photo credit: Gabriela Palai

The Origins of the ISSRNC and its Journal

The idea to create the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture began in conversations I had with Sarah McFarland Taylor and Rebecca Gould in the late 1990s, as we lamented the difficulty at large conferences, such as the American Academy of Religion, in sustaining extended conversations…

Wild Women and Just Water

Wild Women and Just Water Event

We’re excited to share details on an upcoming event that the ISSRNC is co-sponsoring that may be of interest to our members. Wild...

Foundations and Fluidity

Foundations and Fluidity CFP – 2026 ISSRNC Conference

Foundations and Fluidity will mark the 20th anniversary of the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature, and Culture (ISSRNC)—a milestone not only for the Society but also for the emerging field of Religion and Nature/Ecology. October 10-14, 2026 | Casa Artom, Venice, Italy. See full details in the CFP.