Yesterday, Nathaniel Tripp, a member of the Connecticut River Joint Commission, gave a lecture titled, “Confluence” in the Cape Cod Lounge and spoke about the history of the Connecticut River, his adventures and his book.

Tripp, a self-defined “jack of all trades,” became interested in the Connecticut River 38 years ago when he moved to his farm in Saint Johnsbury, Vt., where he raises sheep and vegetables. According to Tripp, he became interested in the river because he spent his childhood exploring the Hudson River in New York.

After years of surveying and working on the river Tripp published a book about the way the river brings people together in 2005 titled, “Confluence.” He was inspired to write the story after he canoeing the river, and consistently worked on it over a two-and-a- half year period with Vt. Governor Howard Dean.

“I was nervous at first, but we had an absolutely wonderful time,” said Tripp.

A few years later, Dean appointed him to the Connecticut River Joint Commission, where he worked with people from New Hampshire as well as different interest organizations such as lumberjacks to develop a plan for the river.

“Most people were very suspicious of me,” said Tripp. “I will never forget this one meeting when this one guy looked at me saying ‘Who do you think you are coming here with your city ideas from St. Johnsbury.?’ St. Johnbury’s has a population of 7,000.”

According to Tripp, shortly after starting work on this project he started to work on relicensing hydroelectric dams on the river.

Over the course of his lecture, Tripp focused on the importance of encouraging children to play outside and the state of the environment.

“It is disheartening that we do not see kids playing outside anymore,” said Tripp. “When I was growing up, water was the first attraction for kids, even if it was just jumping into a mud puddle.”

Natural Resource Conservation major Noah Hilbert, a junior, who came to the lecture after hearing Tripp in class, agreed with Tripp’s message.

“I really liked his message about getting more kids outside,” said Hilbert. “We should be playing less video games. I should be playing less video games.”

He also touched on the effects that global warming is having on the river basin and the effect he believes it is having on the fisheries.

“Every year we are just crossing our fingers and praying,” said Tripp. “It is tragic what is happening to the fisheries and in the ocean.”

“We are looking at the possibility of several systems crashing,” he added.

Tripp was invited to speak by Eve Vogel, an assistant professor in the Geology Department, who also became interested in the Connecticut River after moving to the region. However, she struggled to find comprehensive information and the history of the Connecticut River until she found Tripp’s book.

“He was invited here today here today really because his book is such a special find,” said Vogel.

Tripp is currently working on another book about his experiences on the river. However, he is still “feeling his way into it” and has no title or publisher at this time.

The lecture was the last in both the Five College Sustainability Series and the Environmental Institute lecture series.

Katie Landeck can be reached at [email protected].