2024 marks the centennial anniversary of the Gila Wilderness, the first designated wilderness recreation area in the world. In the early 20th Century U.S. Forester and naturalist Aldo Leopold was living and working in New Mexico and foresaw a number of consequences of not protecting the natural environment of the forests and wilderness areas in the Southwest and across the country. In 1924 he wrote a proposal to the officials at the U.S. Forest Service in Washington, D.C. to ensure the environmental preservation of wilderness areas. That year the Forest Service accepted the proposal and designated 500,000 acres stretching across the Gila National Forest as a protected wilderness area that would not see any man-made intervention.
Starting Conversations is celebrating the Gila Wilderness Centennial with a special series featuring Steve Morgan, Chautauqua performer, as Aldo Leopold in conversation with three scholars working directly in forestry, environmental restoration, and land ethics.
The first episode features Henry Provencio, USDA Forest Service Environmental Coordinator, Southwestern Region discussing the legacy of Leopold and the Gila Wilderness 100 years later.
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Steve Morgan is a naturalist, performer-educator, and a Landscape Architect focused on creating, restoring, and retaining natural habitat. The southwest has been his home for 50 years and he currently resides in Kingston, New Mexico with his wife Nicole and their dogs. His goal is to continue teaching Leopold’s wisdom to encourage careful observation, inspire wonder, and promote environmental action and change.
Henry Provencio is the former District Ranger on the Wilderness Ranger District, Gila National Forest. He began his Forest Service career as a seasonal employee on the Prescott and Tonto (4FRI) in Arizona. He also served as a wildlife biologist on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests, and the Coconino National Forest. He has served with the 4FRI several times and also in Region 2 as a Planning Analyst.