We owe a great deal to the visionaries who helped to create movements that lead to the protection of many of this country’s special places. They often spoke of the places in their lives that centered them and made them who they were to become. We have these advocates of nature to thank for the preservation of many wonderful places and for their ability to move us all toward living in balance with nature.

Assignment: Research one of these people and write them a letter thanking them for what they did and how it has affected our lives today.

Edward Abbey (1927–1989)

Wendell Berry (1934– )

David Brower (1912–2000)

Rachel Carson (1907–1964)

Verplanck Colvin (1847–1920)

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)

James Hansen (1941– )

Ferdinand Hayden (1829–1927)

Aldo Leopold (1887–1948).

Stephen Mather (1867–1930)

Benton McKaye (1879–1975)

John Muir (1838–1914)

Rev. William Murray (1840–1904),

Gaylord Nelson (1916–2005)

Gifford Pinchot (1865–1946)

John Wesley Powell (1834–1902)

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945).

Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1915)

Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

Izaak Walton (1594–1683)

Howard Zahniser (1906–1964)

Movements – Describe one of these movements in detail.

• Conservation
• Preservation
• Outdoor
• Environmental
• Wilderness
• Sustainability