Elizabeth Lunney
With the recent release of our annual impact report, we're celebrating all that donors and volunteers made possible through The Mountaineers in 2022.
For more than 100 years, The Mountaineers has connected people in the outdoors. I’ve had the honor of building relationships with Mountaineers near and far, young and old, daring, mindful, good-humored, and passionate. I’ve been a student, colleague, mentor, and team member. And in each of these roles, I have deepened my relationship to the place that is my home. In fellowship and visitation, I have put down soggy Northwest roots and learned to love more corners of this wild and amazing planet than I ever knew existed.
While The Mountaineers has taught me a lot, the wilderness has been my greatest teacher. When I am in the wild — when I am at home — the land is with me. And for as long as that is true, I have the responsibility to speak out to protect these amazing places and the experiences they provide.
At The Mountaineers, our voices come together and are heard. We talk to elected officials and agency partners. At public events, including last year’s inaugural Conservation Town Hall, we listen and tell each other the stories that shape our conservation ethic. And we speak through our actions when we give back by maintaining trails and restoring habitat.
In 2022, The Mountaineers took a leading role in strengthening our collective voice. We formally launched Outdoor Alliance Washington, a collection of important voices in human-powered outdoor recreation from across the state, including the Access Fund, American Whitewater, Washington Trails Association, American Alpine Club, Surfrider Foundation, and Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. Together we represent 75,000 outdoor enthusiasts speaking for the connections we have made — with each other and with the outdoors.
When we speak and when we act as Mountaineers, we testify to the power of the wind across peaks, of water rushing through canyons, and of the stillness of a mountain meadow. Our advocacy is in service of a future where everyone can continue to experience the transformative power of nature. This is conservation at The Mountaineers.
2022 Impact: Advocate on Behalf of the Natural World
- Outdoor Alliance Washington Makes Us Stronger Together. The Mountaineers led the charge in convening Outdoor Alliance Washington: a strategic approach to outdoor advocacy alongside other regional outdoor recreation organizations.
- Conservation 101 Series Creates On-Ramp for Advocates. The Mountaineers is often the first place that people engage with advocacy or conservation priorities. The Conservation 101 blog series launched in 2022 to provide a clear starting point for people who want to join in protecting the places they love.
- Mountaineers Help Secure Support for Outdoor
Recreation in Washington. Thanks to the advocacy efforts of the entire outdoor recreation community, the Washington State legislature approved $15 million in ongoing funding for public lands in 2022. This is the first approval of ongoing funding to restore trailhead and campground facilities across the state and maintain roads and trails critical to recreation access. - Inflation Reduction Act Tackles Climate Change and Protects Public Lands. We urged Congress to go big on climate action and invest in a sustainable future for the natural world. The Inflation Reduction Act will invest in public lands in ways that affect Washingtonians, such as protecting coastal areas from climate impacts and creating wildfire- resilient landscapes.
- The Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) Funding Lands in Washington. While the GAOA passed in 2021, we started to see implementation of early projects in Washington in 2022. The Mountaineers continues to engage with implementation, celebrate its impact, and advocate for increased appropriations for the Forest Service.
2022 Arctic Conservation Title Brings Spotlight to AlAskan Arctic
Advocacy is woven through every book in The Mountaineers list, from the global conservation work of Braided River to the backyard activism of Skipstone books. One standout title in 2022 was A Thousand Trails Home by Seth Kantner. Winner of both a National Outdoor Book Award and an Independent Publisher Book Award, Kantner’s firsthand account of a life spent hunting, studying, and living alongside caribou reveals the fragile intertwined lives of people and animals surviving on an uncertain landscape of cultural and climatic change sweeping the Alaskan Arctic. This story has global relevance as it takes place in one of the largest remaining intact wilderness ecosystems on the planet, ground zero for climate change in the US.
The Mountaineers® is a 501(c)(3) organization supported through earned revenue and elevated through charitable contributions. Our staff work to support our seven branches (Bellingham, Everett, Foothills, Kitsap, Olympia, Seattle, and Tacoma), three lodges (Baker, Meany, and Stevens), and our Kitsap Forest Theater. Tax ID: 27-3009280. 7700 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115.
