A Wild New World

Dear Reader,

I have been quiet for some months now, as I have worked through the transition from my prior role with The Trustees of Reservations. By definition it has been an uncertain time, and the terrible events in the wider world led me to lose my voice for a time. My thoughts just seemed so small, immaterial really, in a world at war and on fire. I wish I could have shared more of this with you all, but I just felt very quiet and somber in my heart.

I do, however, have some really wonderful news to share now: I have joined Northeast Wilderness Trust (NEWT) as Vice President of Advancement and will be commuting between NEWT’s offices in Montpelier, VT and home in the Boston area. NEWT is uniquely focused on Forever Wild¹ conservation of land in the Northeast US (New England and New York), and has built a strong, humming engine for doing this important work at scale: over 80,000 acres protected and aiming to protect another 100,000 by 2030. Less than 3% of the acreage in New England is currently protected as Forever Wild, and we believe that number should be closer to 10% to ensure that wild nature has the opportunity to thrive on its own terms and in its own way. Nature for nature’s sake.

The motivating idea for Frugal Chariot was to lift up works of writing that can help us to reconsider and reform the human relationship to the web of life and matter that sustains us, to remind us that we are one of many. NEWT enacts this reform in the world by creating wilderness and by sharing the stories of the wild as the forest has the opportunity to grow old again and our non-human neighbors have space and freedom to live without human interference. It is a real honor to devote myself to being an ambassador for NEWT and to helping build it for future growth and impact.

So with this exciting news, Frugal Chariot will be transitioning into an occasional update from the world of wilderness conservation and a reading recommendation or two. I am turning off the payment facility so the newsletter will free to all for this next while. To those of you who generously supported my work, and to all of you have read along the way I offer heartfelt thanks.

Sincerely, and gratefully,

Nicie

1. Forever Wild conservation is conservation in its strictest form and prohibits any extractive or intensive human uses so that the ecoystem my develop in its own way on its own time. Most of the conservation easements enacted today are less restrictive and permit many more uses and management practices including forestry, farming, roads, trails, structures, intensive recreation, herbicide use and more. All conservation is great! We just believe that we need more wilderness as wild nature has an intrinsic right to thrive beyond our human uses and needs.