Trailblazers - True Stories of Ordinary People Who Protected the Earth

And How You Can Too!

Before we begin, a small ask (that feels big):

Today, I’m sharing the introduction to the book I’ve been writing. It’s a work in progress, one that will likely go through a thousand revisions before it’s complete, but I feel an urgency right now to put this part of it out into the world.

If this resonates with you, if it feels like something we need more of, I hope you’ll read it. And if you're moved, I’d be deeply grateful if you’d share it, talk about it, or offer feedback.

This is a Big Scary Ask for me.

But I know that a Bigger, Scarier Ask is coming: I’ll likely need to fundraise to bring this book to life. I’ll need an editor, a cover artist, an illustrator. And anyone who knows me knows that I’m not an asker.

But this feels bigger than me. Big enough to set aside the parts of myself that fear rejection or failure, and instead lean into that small but persistent voice that says: what if it works? What if I can make a difference?

Thanks for being here. And thank you, in advance, for anything you’re willing to offer, be it a comment, a share, constructive criticism, encouragement, or advice that I shouldn’t quit my day job (joke’s on you - I’m a starving artist, no day job here!).

Happy Earth Day this week, and thank you for being here. Let’s read on.

***

We are at a crossroads.

That’s not just a poetic metaphor, it’s a literal one. Our wild places, our public lands, the ecosystems that sustain us and the landscapes that shape our national identity are under threat. Not from some far-off villain, but from the slow, grinding machinery of greed. From policy rollbacks, from the quiet normalization of drilling, mining, selling, developing, from apathy disguised as pragmatism, and from a culture that still sees land primarily as something to be used rather than something to be loved.

And yet, there’s another path. There always has been.

This book is about the people who chose that path. These are the people who stepped off the paved road and onto something more uncertain, something that is rocky, wild, and necessary. Trailblazers. Not because they were perfect. Not because they were famous, or wealthy, or well-connected. But because they loved something fiercely and refused to let it be destroyed.

Some of them were scientists, others poets. Some were teenagers, some grandmothers. Some planted trees. Others wrote books. Some chained themselves to gates. Others sat in long, dull meetings and rewrote zoning laws one word at a time. Some knew exactly what they were doing. Others stumbled into the work by accident because their kid got sick, or their river started catching fire, or their favorite trail was bulldozed.

What unites them is not their method, their background, or their station in life. It’s their mindset.

They refused to believe that they could stand by and let someone else take care of things. They didn't want to count on their neighbors, their politicians, or anyone else to protect the forest, or the river, or the neighborhood. They acted because they understood something simple and terrifying: no one is coming to save us. Yet, at the same time: we are not helpless.

We live in a moment that feels perilous and full of grief. From arguments over the climate crisis to vanishing biodiversity and the chipping away at public lands via legislation and loopholes, it feels like we are at the precipice of something very dangerous. And still, there is beauty. Still, there is hope.

But we have to work for it.

And that’s what this book is: a map, made of stories. A guide to how people just like you have stepped up to protect the places they loved. Not always successfully or gracefully, and rarely perfectly. But always with heart.

Photo from Author: Rocky Mountain National Park

Why Stories Matter

You may wonder: why not just write a book of statistics? Of legislation? Of carbon counts and emission targets?

Because you don’t fall in love with a graph.

You fall in love with a mountain you once climbed with your dad. You fall in love with a campsite where your kid caught their first fish. You fall in love with a creek that runs behind your house and sounds like home when you leave the window open.

We protect what we love. But we also protect what we remember, what we understand, what we can see ourselves in. That’s why stories matter. They remind us that conservation isn’t just about science. Conservation is about culture, about emotion, and about the sacred act of caring in public.

That’s why this book doesn’t just celebrate the Edward Abbeys and Rachel Carsons, although we’ll find them here too. It also includes the community organizers, the water protectors, the citizen scientists, the poets, the musicians. Because conservation needs all of us. Not just experts, but witnesses. Not just heroes, but participants. People like you and me and all of us.

Why Now

The 21st century will be defined by the choices we make in the next decade. That’s not alarmism. That’s math. That’s ecological data and Indigenous prophecy and gut instinct all pointing in the same direction: We’re running out of time to treat the Earth as an afterthought.

But here’s the good news: you don’t need to be a scientist to help. You don’t need to be a lawyer or an activist or an elected official. Most of the people in this book were none of these things.

You just need to start.

Maybe that means planting a garden. Maybe it means attending your first town hall. Maybe it means mentoring young hikers. Or starting a podcast. Or donating to a land trust. Or picking up trash on the same stretch of shoreline every Sunday for the rest of your life. Whatever it looks like, it counts. Because you’re not alone. You’re part of a lineage now. You are part of a family of defenders, a chorus of people who decided, quietly or loudly, that the wild was worth fighting for.

What This Book Is

Trailblazers is not a museum. It’s not a collection of dusty legacies. It’s a living document. It is a love letter, a warning, and a spark, all in one.

Each chapter introduces someone who chose to act. Some are household names. Others were never mentioned in the paper. But all of them made the wild world a little safer, a little better, and a little more whole. Maybe some of them will inspire you. Maybe some of them will be models for action that you decide to take. Maybe you'll read about some of these people and realize that you are no different from them, and like them, you can make a difference.

This book does not promise happy endings. The truth is, many of the battles are still ongoing. Some were lost. Some are just beginning. But what you’ll find in these pages is more than inspiration. You’ll find strategies, ideas, and templates. Seeds.

Because if you are holding this book, it means some part of you is already awake. You’re already looking for the trailhead.

Good.

We’ve been waiting for you.