If you're anything like me, when you think of nature the first image that comes to mind is a tree. But, as beautiful as forests are, another ecosystem is even more important to human history: grasslands. For centuries, grasslands have been ignored by Western scientists, sometimes even denigrated as wastelands. Julia Rosen says that's due in part to a bias against grasslands that emerged in Europe and was exported overseas. In this episode of re: Wild, Boyce and Julia discuss grasslands — both their past and the key role they may play in our future.

For further reading, see Julia's July article in The Atlantic, "Trees Are Overrated."

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Julia Rosen is a freelance journalist covering science and the environment from Portland, Oregon. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Hakai, High Country News, and many other publications. Follow her on Twitter at @1juliarosen