CLIENT:
Desert Institute at Joshua Tree National Park

TITLE:
Desert Live vol. 2

SERVICES:
Host - Curator - Creative Director

Desert Live is a virtual series of storytelling events, panels, and workshops curated to entertain and inform the outdoor community in relation to Joshua Tree National Park and our public lands. We empower our audience through genuine connections with the culture, beauty, and issues of the outdoors.

Join me on a series of live events with incredible people where we talk about the outdoors, backpacking tips, cooking with native plants, and more on this volume 2 for Desert Live.

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Sirena Rana: Where Do Trails Come From?

Join us for a class that chronicles the trail making process from initial vision to opening day.

Have you ever wondered where the trails we use come from and how they are conceptualized, designed, built and maintained? It’s a fascinating process and one that isn’t commonly discussed. Sirena Rana is the founder of Trails Inspire, a consulting company that promotes the outdoors through trail design, writing, photography, and public speaking. She is the author of Best Day Hikes on the Arizona National Scenic Trail.

Sydney Williams: Trail Thoughts

Join Sydney Williams from Hiking My Feelings for a conversation about how spending intentional time on the trail can help improve mental, physical, spiritual, and community health. When we disconnect from the distractions of everyday life, we can reconnect with ourselves. Through the use of Trail Thoughts and on-trail journaling, program participants learn how to turn a simple walk around the block or a hike on a local trail into an opportunity for personal growth and self-discovery.

Yvonne Leow: Backpacking 101

Join Yvonne to learn how to plan and pack for any kind of desert backpacking trip.

Desert trekking is a rarefied experience. From finding water sources to dodging flash floods, Yvonne Leow will be sharing her lessons learned from her time on a section of the Hayduke Trail, a challenging 800+ mile backcountry route that winds through Utah and Arizona. Even if you don’t have upcoming plans to hike through desert landscapes, the tips you’ll learn from this session will last a lifetime.

Yanina Aldao: Cooking With California Native Plants

Cooking with Native Plants is a craft under revival and we're happy to know Yanina Aldao to guide us through our own kitchen journeys. In this event, we'll learn about sustainability and ethics in foraging and gathering of native plants, learn some tips on how to use some of them in the kitchen, and get a handful of recipes from adding a (perhaps) medicinal twist to your winter Hot Toddies to making your next favorite creosote-based hair rinse to creating Vengan Mesquite Energy Bars to take on your next trail adventure.

Women Who Hike: Why Leave No Trace?

As our public lands and outdoor spaces gain increasing popularity, it is our responsibility as good guests and visitors to make sure these spaces can be enjoyed by future generations. Hence we are faced with the challenge of minimizing the impact of millions of us who are eager to explore the great outdoors.