Mountain & Prairie with Ed Roberson

Rob Addington is the Director of the Forest and Fire Program with The Nature Conservancy in Colorado. He and his team are focused on increasing the pace and scale of forest restoration in Colorado to reduce hazardous fuels and promote landscape resilience to natural disturbances such as wildfire as well as climate change. - You don't have to live in the West to know that the region has been battli...

David Gessner is no stranger to Mountain & Prairie listeners– he's joined me for many episodes and is the author of many of my favorite books, including "All the Wild That Remains," "Leave It As It Is," "My Green Manifesto," and more. His newest book is "A Traveler's Guide to the End of the World: Tales of Fire, Wind, and Water," which once again showcases David's unique ability to combine humor,...

Doug Peacock is a legendary environmentalist, writer, filmmaker, and grizzly bear advocate. He's the co-founder of two conversation nonprofits– Round River Conservation Studies and Save the Yellowstone Grizzly. Doug was also the inspiration for the character George Washington Hayduke in his friend Edward Abbey's classic novel "The Monkey Wrench Gang." And to top it all off, he is the author of man...

Chris Hawkins is the Colorado Urban Conservation Manager for The Nature Conservancy, where he leads the organization's efforts in Denver to "solve global challenges like the biodiversity and climate emergencies by supporting and creating more sustainable, efficient ways of living." - When many people think of The Nature Conservancy, they may envision large-scale conservation efforts across vast gr...

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 in Great Sand Dunes National Park, and enjoyed world-c...

Jesse Griffiths is an Austin-based chef, author, hunter, and fisherman, and he's also the co-owner of Dai Due Butcher Shop & Supper Club and the New School of Traditional Cookery. Jesse's work has been featured everywhere from The New York Times to the Joe Rogan Experience, and he's a regular contributor to Steven Rinella's MeatEater. As an author, Jesse has received great praise for his two books...

For today's conversation, I was thrilled to chat once again with Christian Beckwith , a Jackson, Wyoming-based writer, historian, conservationist, and entrepreneur. Christian's latest project is " Ninety-Pound Rucksack : A podcast about the US Army's 10th Mountain Division and the dawn of outdoor recreation in America." - If you enjoy spending time up high in the mountains here in the American Wes...

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 to some of the...

Walt Morgan is a retired Navy Commander and Navy helicopter pilot, and he's also the founder of Translational Lift Coaching , where he works with individuals and teams to help them reach their full potential. Walt's wide-ranging background as a leader, teacher, student, and parent gives him a unique approach to helping people identify what they are doing well, what they could be doing better, and...

Kathie Sever is an artist, designer, and the founder of Fort Lonesome , an Austin-based company that creates one-of-a-kind, hand-cranked, chain-stitched western wear. What started with Kathie hand-embroidering garments for friends out of her home has transformed over the years into a globally known fashion brand that is worn by well-known personalities such as Matthew McConaughey and singer-songwr...

This is the second of two live episodes that were recorded at the Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society's 2023 annual meeting in Houston, Texas. The topic of this panel discussion was Achieving Landscape-Scale Management in a Private Land State. As you learned in the previous episode, Texas has very little public land compared to other western states, so large-landscape conservation in Texas bring...

This is the first of two live episodes that were recorded at the Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society's 2023 annual meeting in Houston, Texas. The topic of this panel discussion was Equitable Access to the Outdoors, a subject that is timely and important in all areas of the West, but especially important in Texas, where 93% of the state's land is privately owned. Whether your interest is outdoor...

Taylor Hawes is the Director of the Colorado River Program for the Nature Conservancy. As the leader of the program, she guides TNC's efforts to conserve the freshwater biodiversity of the Colorado River Basin while also meeting human demands for water– challenging objectives given the wide-ranging stresses facing the river today. But despite the challenges brought about by climate change, overall...

Beau Alexander is the owner and operator of Maxwell Alexander Gallery , a world-renowned art gallery that curates and celebrates "a new breed of fine art" here in the American West and beyond. Beau and his brother, the famed western artist Logan Maxwell Hagege, officially opened the gallery back in 2012, and their goals were simple: Represent one-of-a-kind artists, put the artists' interests first...

I met Chandra Brown through the podcast more than four years ago, and with each passing year, I've been more and more inspired by her life and work. You may remember that she's the founder of Freeflow Institute , a Montana-based organization that curates immersive outdoor learning experiences in Earth's wildest classrooms. What started with combining summer river trips with writing workshops taugh...

If you've listened to Mountain & Prairie since the early days, then I'm sure you remember Cate Havstad-Casad . She first joined me on the podcast in early 2018 for a conversation about her life and career as a hatmaker and farmer. In late 2019, she was one of the four amazing women who joined me on stage for a live podcast at the Bozeman's Ellen Theatre. And today, more than 5 years after that fir...

Dr. Katharine Hayhoe is a world-renowned climate scientist, professor, and Chief Scientist for The Nature Conservancy, where she leads and coordinates the organization's scientific efforts. She is also the author of " Saving Us: A Climate Scientist's Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World ," an excellent book you've likely heard me reference on the podcast. Whether you are interested in lear...

Megan Torgerson is a podcaster and the creator of Reframing Rural , a narrative podcast whose mission is to "share stories of people and places in rural America in an effort to celebrate culture, preserve history and cultivate curiosity and conversation across geographic, class and cultural divides." In just three seasons, Megan has grown Reframing Rural from a spark of an idea into a highly regar...

Bryce Andrews is a Montana-based rancher and writer, and he's the author of the brand new book " Holding Fire: A Reckoning with the American West ." Longtime Mountain & Prairie listeners will remember my first conversation with Bryce back in 2019 when we discussed his writing, conservation work, ranching experience, and his first two books. I thoroughly enjoyed that first conversation and was so i...

Cole Mannix is the President and Founder of the Old Salt Co-op , a new, purpose-driven company that "provides meat raised with integrity from Montana landscapes its customers know and care about." Cole and his team partner with a growing number of Montana ranches, butchers, chefs, and businesses to connect customers and producers, while simultaneously encouraging and promoting a deeper understandi...

Carlos Fernández is the Colorado State Director of The Nature Conservancy, one of the most effective conservation organizations in the American West and around the globe. You probably remember Carlos from our first conversation back in August of 2020, in which we discussed his inspiring career trajectory, the importance of collaborative conservation partnerships, and several of TNC's cutting-edge...

Christian Beamish is a writer, craftsman, surfboard shaper, and all-around adventurer who lives and works between Ventura and Carpinteria, California. He's the author of one of my favorite books– " The Voyage of the Cormorant" – which tells his deeply personal story of building an open-hulled boat by hand and then sailing it down the Baja Peninsula alone, surfing and camping along the way. He's al...

Jess Mudgett is an artist, skater, surfer, and occasional ranch hand who specializes in one-of-a-kind designs that appear everywhere from murals in the rural West to the Yeti offices in downtown Austin. Fans of Jess's work can spot his art from a mile away– he's known for bold, often-times big portrayals of western landscapes, horses, birds, people, and more, all presented in a style that is uniqu...

If you're a Mountain & Prairie Patreon supporter , then you probably already know that I recently began hosting another podcast for my friends at Ranchlands. It's called the Ranchlands Podcast , and it features conversations with members of the Ranchlands community. As of today, we're about ten episodes in, and we feel very grateful that the podcast has been well-received and shared widely. - For...

This is a special episode that was recorded live in Fort Worth, Texas as part of the Cowboy Artists of America's 56th annual exhibition and sale. The show was called "Stories From Around The Campfire," and it was held at the world-renowned Amon Carter Musem of American Art. I was joined on stage by seven influential members CAA community, and we had a panel discussion about the rich history and br...