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AWC StaffMeet Kevin Gaither-Banchoff, new Executive Director for the Arizona Wilderness Coalition
As I look forward, I see nothing but opportunity and excitement for AWC. Out of necessity, our work has often been limited to too few issues and has not involved enough of Arizona’s campers, hikers, hunters, and wild land advocates that share our mission. Over the next couple of years, I expect to see an explosive growth in our membership, our presence, and our ability to accomplish new wilderness protections. I expect new offices to open in Tucson and Phoenix, in addition to our Prescott office. We’ll expand our engagement with volunteers through inventories, outings, and trips to both existing and potential new wilderness areas. And this expanded base of Arizonans will enable us to better engage in protecting our Inventoried Roadless Areas in the state rule making process and wilderness quality lands in both the Forest Planning and Travel Management Planning processes, where we have a chance to better protect millions of acres of wilderness. In the next few years, we also hope to see permanent protection to places like the Tumacacori Highlands, where we are involved in a coalition that soon hopes to see legislation introduced protecting 85,000 acres of the Highlands as Wilderness! AWC also leads another a broad coalition of local and national groups that is building support and advocating for permanent protection of a 14-mile stretch of Fossil Creek as a Wild & Scenic River – on July 28 Senator John McCain & Congressman Rick Renzi actually introduced legislation to do just this! These are the kinds of things I see in our future and I’m happy to be helping lead these efforts. What challenges do you see facing wilderness protection in Arizona? Arizona is one of the fastest growing states in the country and our population is exploding. This results in development that is often--but doesn’t have to be--at odds with our vision for wilderness in Arizona. I think this growth, and dealing with the influx of new people who don’t understand the value of wilderness, is one of our biggest challenges. Education and understanding can go along way to influencing how people use our wilderness quality lands, as well as how and if they support our call for new wilderness protections. In addition, I see another huge challenge in having so many excellent opportunities in front of us to protect wilderness, but possibly not having sufficient resources to adequately protect as much of it as possible. This is why we need to greatly expand the base of people in Arizona that are educated about wilderness, our work, and how they can be involved in and help advocate for greater wilderness protections. In the same vein, we need to continue strategic partnerships with other organizations so we expand the resources and voices calling for our vision for an Arizona that leads the wilderness movement in this country. Without a widespread and active base of support, I fear that our calls for more wilderness protections could be lost amidst misinformed and anti-wilderness advocates that prefer to degrade and impose control over the land. What brought you to Arizona and what are some of your favorite ways to enjoy What inspires you most in the field of conservation? Solitude. Knowing that I’m helping protect and ensure there are places where we can find solitude or just get away from the city and demands of technology is incredibly motivating. And being able to enjoy big trees, water, deep ravines, forest clearings, and wild animals--that's inspiring too. I grew up spending each summer camping, hiking and playing in national forests, monuments and other wild places. Most of it was car camping, but it taught me the value of time in nature and preserving our natural heritage. Another inspiration to me is sharing my passion for wild places with other people; getting others excited about nature and open spaces, hiking or camping under a forest canopy, sleeping under a night sky free of city lights, and hoping to find evidence or bears, wolves, elk or any of the other animals that make our wild places home. Do you have a favorite southwestern/Arizona dish? The burrito. Beans. I never ate beans or burritos before I moved to AZ. I must have been nuts and don’t really understand how I lived without them. When I worked at Native Seeds/SEARCH I also fell in love with the chiltipine, the wild ancestor of most modern chilies. It grows all through most of Latin America, with Southern Arizona as it most northern range. They are super hot and I have multiple bushes spread around my yard. Its fun (for me!) to get unsuspecting friends to try them… What plant or animal would you most like to see in the wild that you haven't yet? Jaguar. What a magnificent creature. And maybe the grizzly bear, which I hope to see this fall when I travel to Yellowstone. Although they used to call Arizona home, I know they're not likely to ever return here. The jaguar is right across the border in Mexico and has been sighted here. I hope the jaguar soon returns to the U.S. |
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What are some exciting ways you see the Arizona Wilderness Coalition moving forward in the next few years? The Arizona Wilderness Coalition has a long history of success and engagement in Arizona. Many of the people that were instrumental in successfully designating millions of acres of Arizona wilderness in 1984 and 1990 still participate in our work, and some still sit on our Board of Directors. While I’ve worked part time helping AWC raise money to fund our work for several years, I’m honored and excited to now step up and play a bigger role in AWC’s work. 
the outdoors? I’ve lived in Arizona for 12 years, where I’ve worked on conservation issues for a variety of local, regional, and national conservation organizations, including Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection, Native Seeds/SEARCH, and the Wildlands Project. Most of my time has been spent on fundraising and organizational development issues. Before I came to Arizona, I worked in politics for a state representative in Michigan. School brought my wife and me here; she wanted to go to graduate school at the University of Arizona. We ended up settling here and now have two wonderful girls and a great community of friends. I love to garden, play racquetball, go running almost daily. I try to hike and camp as often as I can (which is not nearly enough!).