17 Jul TMF 2025: Keynote Dr. Gregory Mueller on Protecting & Preserving Vital Fungal World!
The Telluride Mushroom Festival (TMF) returns for the 45h year in a row. And when that happens–this year August 13 – August 17 –the Town of Telluride will be taken over by amanita hat-wearing, mold- and spore-worshipping mycelium fanatics – among them, the world-famous mycologist Dr. Gregory Mueller.
Go here to get your pass.
Go here for more on the history of the Telluride Mushroom Festival. (Scroll back to 2009.)
Greg Mueller, courtesy Telluride Mushroom Fest.
Dr. Gregory Mueller has authored numerous books and scientific articles on fungi, focusing on the evolution, ecology, and conservation of the kingdom. Specifically his research delves into the diversity and distribution of fungi, exploring how they respond to environmental changes like pollution and climate change. That work makes him a leading figure in understanding the vital role fungi play in ecosystems.
No surprise then, Dr. Greg has been and remains actively involved in efforts to protect threatened fungal species. To that end, he co-founded and co-coordinates the Global Fungal Red List Initiative, which is part of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature or IUCN. The aim: to spearhead efforts assess and classify threatened fungi globally by raising awareness about their conservation needs, an aim that derives support from citizen scientists who are amateur mycologists.
At TMF 2025, Dr. Greg will expand on the notion of protecting and preserving during his keynote address on Friday evening, August 15, at The Palm. His talk is titled “Fungi rule the world so why aren’t we doing more to save them?”
“Fungi are everywhere in the media. Recognition and interest by the public is probably at an all time high. At the same time, we are accumulating more and more data that some species of fungi are threatened with extinction, yet fungi are rarely considered by the conservation community or policy makers. We are accumulating masses of data on iNaturalist and Mushroom Observer, but these data need to be put to work. It is great that there are exciting new initiatives and tools being developed and implemented. But, those making decisions and undertaking conservation action need to be engaged and provided with the data they require,” he explains.
Before his keynote, at 10:30 Friday morning at the Sheridan Opera House, Dr. Greg will also be speaking about field work he has done in Costa Rica:
“My postdoc at the time, Mariana Herrera, and I spent several weeks collecting near Cerro de la Muerte in central Costa Rica in the fall of 2022. This was Mariana’s first time in the country, but I was returning to an area I worked in for over 15 years. The diversity of macrofungi growing under the towering oaks and continuing up to the Páramo at 3,000 meters altitude is spectacular. The trip had two main goals; (1) seeing how the fungal community might have changed in the nearly 10 years since I last collected there, and (2) obtaining fresh material of Cantharellus, Craterellus, Hydnum, and Laccaria for revisionary studies.”
For more about the life and work of this global mycology ambassador, check out Dr. Greg’s podcast.
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