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Took a pre-ERC cross-country road trip!

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Got to meet my host organization, amazing fellow fellows, and all the incredible staff at IEDC at the Portland kick-off. The fantastic training sessions were a sign of all the great things to come! Drove to the coast afterwards as part of my second cross-country drive from Oregon to Wyoming.

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Checking out the Wind River area and all the treasures it has to offer. Received an amazing welcome from the Wind River Development Fund... excited to get started with engaging with the community!

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The bronze longhorn wasn't actually for rent

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April marked the month of many conferences. Still at the fundraising stage, my hosts, Paul the ED and Erika the COO, give an incredible presentation at the Federal Funding Summit hosted at the Central Wyoming College in Riverton. There were many key state and federal officials at the summit, and we made many amazing connections for future endeavors. This was followed by the Wyoming Outdoor Recreation Summit, the Native CDFI Summit, and my first WRDF board meeting, I was ready to sit down and begin synthesizing all the new information I'd gathered and people I'd met, all while trying to settle into my new little house in Lander.

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It's not a trip to the capital without a selfie

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Had an incredible time and listened to some incredible panelists at the IEDC conference in DC. My (professional) highlight of the trip was meeting Undersecretary Castillo and making invaluable connections with other federal representatives.

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Outdoor recreation is what my project is all about, and I was thrilled the weather was consistently nice enough to get out and fully explore everything Wind River has to offer. Behind me is one of the most popular fishing and rafting spots in the area - the Wind River Canyon that cuts through the Owl Creek Mountains.

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The Wind River Indian Reservation spans 2.2 million acres and I attempted to traverse as many of them as I could over the summer. Getting to know the area, becoming familiar with the locations of all the creeks and lakes, seeing where all the dirt roads lead was the top of my agenda during these sweltering months.

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Jackson Peak in the Teton Range 10,070 ft.

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Climbed my first 10,000+ ft. peak in the Teton Range - one of many incredible and unforgettable outdoor adventures in the area on and around Wind River. What's not to love (except the smoke from the wildfires)?!

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Art at Tocabe - an amazing traditional native restaurant in Denver

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The Denver IEDC conference felt more like a homecoming than a conference. It was so wonderful and joyous to see all my fellow fellows I hadn't seen in months, catch up with how each of their projects were going, and explore new ideas and solutions for challenges we were facing. The highlight of this conference was the opportunity to present alongside my hosts on creative new models of economic development for native communities.

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Presenting at the Forum on Rural Development

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I had the incredible opportunity to present on behalf of the Wind River Development Fund and the Wind River Fish & Game Department at the National Leadership Forum on Rural Development hosted by the R.K. Mellon Foundation in Pittsburgh. I met some fellow fellows and their hosts who were also in attendance, made some great [philanthropic] connections, and spoke with other inspiring individuals working in outdoor recreation and rural community revitalization.

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I figured I may as well have an authentic Wyoming experience by putting in for an elk and a deer tag. I spent days and days out in the field, but without success. It was a bit disappointing to pay out-of-state hunting license prices, but the amazing time I had camping in the mountains and scanning the open ridges at sunrise was unbeatable. I'll know where not to hunt next year!

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December marks the completion of my Wind River Ecotourism and Outdoor Recreation Strategic Plan (edits pending)! I can't wait to be home for the holidays and start the new year fresh.

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So much learned, so much still to learn.

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Here's to 2025 - Onwards and Upwards