Today, more than ever, our understanding of interfaces (nexi) between ecological/environmental systems and human cultures requires integrated inquiry and new problem solving techniques. To meet these challenges, the Wright-Ingraham Institute conducts and applies multifaceted research to site specific field study programs that engage with and benefit graduate students, leading academic thinkers, scientists, professionals, policy makers and stakeholders. Our goal is to model ways of understanding and interpreting complex systems that contribute to meaningful solutions in the service of society.
The Wright-Ingraham Institute is a private, non-profit 501(c)(3) education and research institution established in Colorado in 1970 by its Founding Director, the late Elizabeth Wright Ingraham. Elizabeth was a prolific author, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, a champion of women’s issues, and a highly regarded innovator who served on numerous boards and committees throughout her illustrious career. She is credited with the design of approximately 150 buildings throughout the Southwestern United States and was posthumously inducted into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame.
Following in the footsteps of her grandfather, Frank Lloyd Wright, and strongly influenced by the teachings of George Bernard Shaw, Elizabeth was passionate about architecture, community, conservation, and creating synergistic relationships between natural and built systems. She created WII to promote, direct, encourage, and develop opportunities contributing to the conservation, preservation, and responsible use of human and natural resources. Under her direction, the Institute opened the Richard T. Parker Advanced Center for Research in 1973 at its Running Creek Field Station site. The field research and educational workshops, developed to study the ecosystems of the Front Range of Colorado, remain cornerstone to WII’s programming mission.
Tal C. Beery, Executive Director, has over fifteen years of experience in the environmental, arts, and educational sectors, and a distinguished career in nonprofit leadership, development, and strategic planning. Prior to joining the WII, Tal served as Chief Development Officer and Interim Co-Executive Director at the Hurleyville Performing Arts Centre, managing a staff of twenty-two and significantly increasing the center’s budget over three years. As co-founder and managing director of Arts and Ecology Incorporated, Tal created experiential education programs for undergraduate students, and is a frequent public speaker on place-based adult learning. Additionally, Tal has served as a consultant to more than sixty New York City community groups and social service organizations, successfully delivering impact evaluations, strategic plans, and grant awards that exceeded twenty million dollars. Tal’s independent and collaborative works as an artist and curator have been exhibited in the Whitney Biennial and the Brooklyn Museum, and he has lectured on art and social change at the Museum of Modern Art and numerous other venues.
Frida Foberg, Program Manager of the Field Stations program, is a Swedish community-oriented artist, architect, and curator. With an MA in Architecture from Aarhus School of Architecture, Frida works on interdisciplinary projects aimed at broadening awareness of social and environmental issues. Her work has been exhibited at the Venice Biennale, Liljevalchs, Arko Art Museum, and more. Frida’s collaborations with organizations like Arts Letters & Numbers, UNICEF, and Big Picture Learning reflect her dedication to fostering spaces for diverse voices and interactions.
Dylan Gauthier, Director of Research, is an artist, curator, designer, and educator whose practice investigates relationships between ecology, architecture, landscape, collaboration, and social change. His individual and collective projects have been exhibited at the Centre Pompidou, CCVA at Harvard University, the Parrish Art Museum, the Walker Art Center, and other venues globally. Dylan will advance WII’s research programs by helping to set priorities and goals for interdisciplinary research. Along with Frida Foberg, he co-directed the Institute’s Field Stations Iceland program in 2023, and he co-leads the Grants program with Anna Grady.