In early September, I had the good fortune to represent Oregonians For Wild Utah at this year’s SUWA Grassroots Leaders Retreat in southeastern Utah. There I had the chance to interact with over forty other activists from around the country, subject matter experts, and SUWA regional organizers. We were based for four days and three nights outside the town of Boulder, midway between the high alpine forests of Boulder Mountain and the depths of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM). This trip represented my first return to this uniquely beautiful area in over two decades.
What made the overall experience particularly encouraging for me was the active participation and raw enthusiasm of so many younger activists, including a number drawn from the Latino/a community in Utah. The densely packed program interspersed lectures with time spent in the field, including hikes along the Burr Trail east of Boulder and in the Escalante River Canyons. At a recently restored site previously damaged by vehicle use and carelessly built campfires, we learned about the multiple positive impacts of the volunteer-driven stewardship program from SUWA’s Jeremy Lynch and a BLM wilderness ranger who works closely with these visiting groups.
Back at camp, we learned interactively about the diverse species of bats inhabiting the GSENM from Dr. Jackie Grant, who now leads the Grand Staircase-Escalante Partners and previously was a biology professor at Southern Utah University. Dr. Emmanuel Santa-Martinez of Salt Lake Community College taught us about the breadth and importance of pollinators in the ecosystem. Finally, we heard a truly inspiring presentation by SUWA board member Tara Benally, a member of the Hopi Tribe and a long-time resident of the Navajo Reservation. Tara provided a moving description of her life growing up on Tribal lands, a historical perspective of the many injustices committed against the Tribes over the last two centuries, and her efforts organizing Tribal members on the Colorado Plateau around electoral participation and wilderness.
I came away from this retreat re-energized to work in Oregon to help protect the wild lands of southern Utah and the rest of the Colorado Plateau. In particular, I hope to return to this area next summer on a stewardship trip and to get more first-hand experience with this beautiful and in Tara’s words, “time immemorial” landscape. I am grateful to SUWA and in particular, to our West Coast organizer Jenny Holmes for this opportunity
Steve Corbató, Oregonians For Wild Utah – December 1, 2024
