Joe Whitworth – On Unrelenting Effort, Blazing Your Own Trail, and Taking Action
Joe Whitworth is the President and CEO of The Freshwater Trust (“TFT”), an innovative and action-oriented conservation organization whose mission is to preserve and restore freshwater ecosystems. With a focus on technology and an all-star staff made up of scientists, attorneys, GIS experts, systems analysts, and more, TFT is pioneering the next generation of conservation …
Jesse Smith – A Regenerative Approach to Land and Life
Jesse Smith is the Director of Land Stewardship at the White Buffalo Land Trust, which is a global hub for regenerative land stewardship, ecological monitoring and research, education, and more. Jesse brings a unique perspective and a diverse set of experiences to his work in regenerative agriculture– his early interest in architecture led him to …
Mark Easter – Food, Soil, and Our Planet’s Future
Mark Easter is a Colorado-based ecologist and author whose new book is titled The Blue Plate: A Food Lover’s Guide to Climate Chaos. If you care about food and you care about Planet Earth, The Blue Plate is a must-read. It explores the production, consumption, and disposal of many of our favorite foods– seafood, salad, …
Kelsey Molloy & Angel DeVries – Fortifying Grasslands and Communities on the Northern Great Plains
Kelsey Molloy is the Northern Great Plains Director at The Nature Conservancy and Angel DeVries is the Executive Director of the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance (RSA), and they both live and work on the Northern Great Plains in Malta, Montana. While they work for different organizations, Kelsey and Angel collaborate on a long list of critical …
The Partnership of Rangeland Trusts – 20 Years of Cooperation, Collaboration, and Conservation
If you’re a longtime Mountain & Prairie listener, then you’re already familiar with the Partnership of Rangeland Trusts, also known as PORT. But for any new listeners, PORT is an alliance of agriculture-focused conservation organizations dedicated to preserving working farms and ranches and conserving productive agricultural lands. PORT is currently celebrating its 20th anniversary, and …
Mauricia Baca – An Empathetic Approach to Nevada’s Conservation Challenges
Mauricia Baca is the State Director of the Nevada Chapter of The Nature Conservancy. In this role, she leads TNC’s efforts in Nevada across a wide range of conservation issues that are familiar to Mountain & Prairie listeners– the Colorado River, the Sagebrush Sea, and renewable energy. But Nevada is also home to some very …
Heidi Redd & Sue Bellagamba – Tales from the Dugout Ranch
Heidi Redd is a renowned rancher, conservationist, author, and member of the National Cowgirl Museum’s Hall of Fame. Sue Bellagamba serves as Canyonlands Regional Director at the Nature Conservancy, and for more than thirty years, she has worked to protect the lands and waters of southeastern Utah. Heidi and TNC have been partners since 1997 …
Curt Meine – Aldo Leopold’s Life, Work, and Enduring Legacy
Curt Meine is a Senior Fellow at The Aldo Leopold Foundation and one of the world’s foremost experts on the life, work, and legacy of conservation icon Aldo Leopold. Curt is the author of the biography Aldo Leopold: His Life and Work, and he also works as a conservation biologist, a professor, a senior fellow …
Nancy Smith & Austin Rempel – A Surprisingly Simple, Effective, and Scalable Approach to Riparian Restoration
Nancy Smith is the Conservation Director for The Nature Conservancy’s Colorado River Program, and Austin Rempel is the Riparian Restoration Program Manager at The Nature Conservancy. Both Nancy and Austin are working on the front lines of some of the West’s most innovative water and habitat conservation projects– projects that benefit everything from groundwater supplies …
Dan Stellar – Bolstering Biodiversity in Arizona and Beyond
Dan Stellar is the State Director for the Arizona Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, where he leads the organization’s efforts across a wide range of cutting-edge initiatives, including forest health, water conservation, resilient cities, healthy grasslands, and more. Arizona is one of the nation’s largest and most biodiverse states, which creates a host of extremely …
Kristine Tompkins – Nothing to Lose
Kristine Tompkins is an iconic conservationist, the president and co-founder of Tompkins Conservation, and the former CEO of Patagonia. For three decades, she has committed to protecting and restoring wild beauty and biodiversity by creating national parks, restoring wildlife, inspiring activism, and fostering economic vitality through conservation. Kristine and her late husband Douglas Tompkins have …
Dr. Emily Howe – The Interconnectedness of Mountains, Forests, Rivers, and Estuaries
Dr. Emily Howe is an aquatic ecologist with the Washington state chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and she holds a Ph.D. from the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington. Her work integrates across ecosystem boundaries, investigating how landscape configuration and management shape cross-boundary relationships for food webs, organisms, and ecosystem …
Sterling Drake – Roots Music, Ranching, and Giving Back
Sterling Drake is an award-winning musician whose soulful tunes reflect his deep love of the landscapes, people, and culture of the American West. The media outlet Lonesome Highway probably best described Sterling’s music by calling it a “perfect fusion of western swing, honky-tonk heartache, and dance hall treasures.” But you can’t really confine Sterling’s music …
Live at the Amon Carter Museum – In Conversation with James Prosek and Spencer Wigmore
This is a special live episode that was recorded at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas. The event was centered around the museum’s ongoing exhibition titled Trespassers: James Prosek and the Texas Prairie, and the episode features a fascinating on-stage conversation with artist and past podcast guest James Prosek and …
Chad Ellis – On Leadership, Building Relationships, and Working for the Greater Good
Chad Ellis is the CEO of the Texas Agricultural Land Trust (TALT), which is one of the nation’s leading ag-focused conservation organizations. TALT’s mission is “To conserve the Texas heritage of agricultural lands, wildlife habitats, and natural resources,” but at its core, TALT’s work is built on the foundation of long-term, trusting, mutually respectful relationships. …
50 Years of the Endangered Species Act – Live in Austin
This is a special live episode that was recorded in Austin, Texas, in November of 2023 at the 50th Anniversary Endangered Species Act Symposium. As you may know, 2023 marked 50 years since the passing of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), which is one the most influential and impactful pieces of conservation legislation in United …
Jenna Pollard – Timber Framing, Organic Farming, Community, and Purpose
Jenna Pollard is a timber framer, a farmer, and an advocate for organic agriculture, but at her core, she is a teacher. The list of Jenna’s inspiring projects, causes, and interests is too extensive to summarize in a few sentences, but to give you an overview: She hosts workshops for women in which they learn …
Diana Lane & Aaron Derwingson – Thriving Rivers, Resilient Agriculture, and Strong Communities
Diana Lane is the Director of Sustainable Food and Water at the Colorado Chapter of the Nature Conservancy, and Aaron Derwingson is the Water Projects Director for the Nature Conservancy’s Colorado River Program. Both Diana and Aaron work at the intersection of water sustainability, thriving rivers, resilient agriculture, and strong communities– harnessing TNC’s relationships and …
Corissa Busse – Tribal-Led Buffalo Restoration in the American West and Beyond
Corissa Busse is the Buffalo Restoration Program Manager for The Nature Conservancy, where she oversees TNC’s work to advance Tribal-led efforts to restore buffalo, grasslands, and communities at scale. Based in Rapid City, South Dakota, Corissa and her team at TNC partner with organizations including the InterTribal Buffalo Council and the Tanka Fund to bring …
Vincent Stanley – Lessons Learned from Patagonia’s First Fifty Years
Vincent Stanley is the Director of Philosophy at Patagonia, and he holds the honor of being the company’s longest-serving employee. He is also an author, poet, and a resident fellow at the Yale Center for Business and the Environment. His most recent book, which he co-authored with Patagonia’s founder Yvon Chouinard, is titled The Future …
Rebecca Clarren – “The Cost of Free Land”
Rebecca Clarren is an award-winning journalist who has been writing about the American West for more than twenty years. Her most recent book is titled The Cost of Free Land: Jews, Lakota, and an American Inheritance. The book is a powerful, nuanced, and deeply personal exploration of her ancestors fleeing antisemitism in Russia and immigrating …
Nick Offerman – Empathy, Nuance, & Good Hard Work
Nick Offerman is an actor, author, humorist, and woodworker who is best known for playing the legendary character Ron Swanson on NBC’s Parks and Recreation. But his success as an actor is just the tip of the iceberg– he’s written five New York Times bestselling books, is the narrator of three of Wendell Berry’s audiobooks, …
Matt Cahill – A Deep Dive into the Sagebrush Sea
Matt Cahill is the Sagebrush Sea Program Director for the Nature Conservancy. Based out of Bend, Oregon, Matt leads all of TNC’s critical work restoring, managing, and protecting sagebrush habitat across six western states. This is a huge and complex effort– it combines protection and policy work with ground-breaking restoration advances, public and industry partnerships, …
Anna Borgman – Obsession, Curiosity, and Purpose-Driven Work
Anna Borgman is a Montana-based butcher, chef, and writer whose work focuses on helping people better understand and appreciate the origins of their food. Whether writing an article for Steven Rinella’s MeatEater or helping to field harvest and process a bison, Anna has a gift for helping curious, conscientious people become more educated about the …
Carrie Segil & Duncan Gilchrist – Catalyzing Conservation in Colorado and Beyond
Carrie Segil is the People and Culture Manager at The Nature Conservancy in Colorado, and Duncan Gilchrist is a Climate and Natural Resources Policy Associate at The Nature Conservancy in Colorado. Both Carrie and Duncan are deeply involved with TNC Colorado’s Catalyst Fund, a cutting-edge conservation funding initiative that supports forward-looking projects that enable innovation …
Erik Glenn Returns – Leadership, Innovation, & Commitment to Conservation
This is the 200th episode of Mountain & Prairie, so I decided to celebrate the milestone by bringing back the first-ever M&P guest, my good friend Erik Glenn. Erik is the Executive Director of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust, a statewide conservation organization that protects Colorado’s agricultural land, heritage, and families for future generations …
Lorelei Cloud – Solving Modern-Day Challenges with Ancient Tribal Wisdom
Lorelei Cloud is a member of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Southern Ute Indian Tribal Council. Lorelei’s commitment to conservation, leadership development, and Ute language, traditions, and culture is evident by the staggering number of leadership roles she holds– she is Co-Chairman of the Indigenous Women’s Leadership …
Rebuilding a Resilient, Regional Meat Supply Chain – LIVE at the Old Salt Festival
This is a special live episode that was recorded in late June 2023 at the first-ever Old Salt Festival, which was held on the Mannix Family Ranch in Helmville, Montana. The Old Salt Festival is a three-day celebration of ranching, land stewardship, and wild places that features live Western music, wood-fired cooking, products from some …
Live from the Strenuous Life Retreat: In Conversation with Nancy Fishbein
Back in September of 2022, I held the first annual Strenuous Life Retreat at the renowned Zapata Ranch in Colorado’s San Luis Valley. The retreat consisted of five days of adventure and education inspired by Theodore Roosevelt’s well-known commitment to living “the Strenuous Life.” We hiked high into the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, rode horses …
Matt Moorhead & Galen Guerrero-Murphy – Grasslands Conservation on the Southern High Plains
Matt Moorhead and Galen Guerrero-Murphy are conservationists who work for The Nature Conservancy on its Southern Highs Plains Initiative (SHPI), a collaboration between five states with the shared goal of protecting the nation’s grasslands. The Southern High Plains encompasses approximately 71 million acres across Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. The region is home …
