Nicole Davis-Bisnow

Nicole Davis-Bisnow is the founder of RedFlag.org, a 501c3 nonprofit dedicated to inspiring and supporting grassroots activism. Her passion for global activism started early in her career when she worked as an international vanguard journalist covering conflict and human interest stories for Current TV. Davis-Bisnow earned a Bachelor’s Degree in philosophy and a Master’s in Art History from New York University. She is also certified as a facilitator in Equine Therapy from Eponaquest in Southern Arizona. She is currently creating a “healing ranch” in Liberty, Utah as a meeting place for people of all ages, backgrounds and economic access to reconnect with nature and experience the healing power of horses.

3 words to describe Nature?

My. Best. Friend

3 things Nature taught you?

Unconditional Love

Self-Confidence

My Truth

3 most treasured Nature spots?

The American National Parks (a special mention for my hometown parks: The Florida Everglades and Biscayne Bay National Park)

“The Enchanted Forest” a secret spot on Powder Mountain, my current home in the Wasatch Mountains of Northern Utah.

Sarara Camp in Namunyak Sumburu Country, Northern Kenya—a place I consider my home away from home.

When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel…?

The presence of a great compassionate mother

When you see a forest, it makes you feel…?

Connected to ancient wisdom and magic

When you see a volcano, it makes you feel…?

The beating pulse of our Earth’s molten heart

When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel…?

In awe that no matter how many times I’ve seen a sunrise or sunset I still fill with the same delight and gratitude as the first one

When you hear thunder, it makes you feel…?

 Nostalgic for my childhood in Florida

When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel…?

A stir in my heart to play outside

Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?

An Old Growth Forest and A High Alpine Meadow Person

On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?

10 - My well being and the well being of nature are inextricable.

Share with us a childhood nature memory?

I grew up in a city without a night sky. When I was about five my parents sent me away to the mountains of West Virginia for summer camp. One night our counselors rustled us awake with hushed voices—beckoning us to follow them out into the forest surrounding our cabin. We walked bewildered in the cold night air through excited whispers, until we came to an open meadow. They laid a blanket on the ground for us and had us lay back and look up. My heart ceased. There was not a patch of that moonless sky that didn’t have a glittering star. Just remembering how stunned and enamored I was with that sky, that moment, that ageless understanding of truth, brings tears back to my eyes. Then came my first shooting star, and there was no turning back.


Marshall Birnbaum

Marshall Birnbaum is an artist, curator and photographer living in the mountains of Utah. He is the founder and director of the Summit Institute AIR (Artist in Residence) program based in Eden, Utah. He has previously curated the Art Programs for numerous Summit flagship events. He serves as an advisor to the SXSW Art Program and sits on the board for cultural development at Weber State University. Marshall is a Co-Founder at Escape Collective where he learned to build geodesic domes. Marshall is also a Co-Founder of The Hideout Riders Club dirt bike gang where he learned to pop wheelies on a dirt bike. His favorite color is Blue. His favorite flower is Cosmos Atrosanguineus. He enjoys distance running and touring far-away places on his bicycle. The longest Marshall has ever gone without blinking is about 53 seconds. Marshall can hold his breath for around a minute and a half.

Marshall has had photos published in The Atlantic, Surface Magazine, Forbes, Vogue, Outside Magazine, Arch Newspaper, Cultured Magazine, Complex, Alpine Modern, CLAD Magazine & Cool Hunting and has had writings published in Stay Wild Magazine.

3 words to describe Nature?

Organic. Evolving . Complex

3 things Nature taught you?

Life is strange

Time is relative

Keep asking questions

3 most treasured Nature spots?

Airports

Great Basin Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains of California

The East River, NYC

When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel...?

Like drifting

When you see a forest, it makes you feel...?

Like running

When you see a volcano, it makes you feel...?

Oddly happy

When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel...?

Awake or tired

When you hear thunder, it makes you feel...?

Hungry

When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel...?

Wild

Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?

Mountain Person!

On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?

11

Share with us a childhood nature memory?

When I was younger, I was told with great assurance and confidence by my school teachers that giant squids were pure fantasy. I was prohibited from selecting the animal for a science presentation which caused me great anxiety and sadness. When the Giant Squid was discovered in 2012 I felt an overwhelming sense of justice and validation in the universe.


Camille Preston

CAMILLE PRESTON is a psychologist, executive coach, consultant, speaker, and internationally recognized expert on Virtual Effectiveness. She is the founder and CEO of the organizational consulting firm AIM Leadership, and the author of two books: Rewired: How to Work Smarter, Live Better, and Be Purposefully Productive in an Overwired World and Create More Flow: Igniting Peak Performance in an Overwired World.

For more than twenty years, Camille has guided leaders, executives, policy makers, professionals, and individuals alike to new heights of leadership, performance, efficiency, and greater happiness and fulfillment. Her clients span industries and fields around the globe, including executives from NBC, Zappos, MGMMirage, Citrix, the Corporate Executive Board, Mars, Verizon, GE, CapitalOne, the US Army, and many others.

Beyond work, Camille is an avid runner, yogi, and adventure traveler. She has worked on five continents, traveled to 39 countries, and currently lives in Cambridge, MA with her husband, Mark, and their son, Preston and daughter, Adeline.

3 words to describe Nature?

Life-source (vital, energizing)

Teacher

Diversity (if you connect with how amazing, vast, diverse and profound nature is - it transforms your interactions elsewhere…. if you know the dessert and the ocean and the mountains - it helps you deal with different personalities, different life experiences)

3 things Nature taught you?

Centering

Humility (so beautiful, so powerful, so ever-changing)

To recharge OFTEN (being in nature recharges…)

3 most treasured Nature spots?

Sitting in a kayak in the center of Squam Lake - especially early morning, at dusk.

Top of Powder Mountain, in Utah - vast views, diverse landscape, intersection of so many forces - wild and beautiful.

Church Island Chapel - Squam. It is a sanctuary in a pine grove, surrounded by water… where I have gone with my greatest heartaches and greatest desires

When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel…?

Any type of water is profoundly powerful for me as I have a lot of fire in my personality. I need to be around water otherwise I’m off balance. I always seek out water - on my morning runs, on my ideal vacations, etc.

Something about the moisture in the waves, the space that sits above the ocean.

When you see a forest, it makes you feel…?

Reminded that I am just part of a larger system, a speck on this earth. You see the grandeur, the longevity, the strength - and it gives me focus.

When you see a volcano, it makes you feel…?

It gives me the force to change, surrender to greater things. I loved driving in Chile - so many roads are built to frame a volcano. Almost as if there is deep reverence for their force to create and destroy.

When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel…?

Morning - I think about where / what to create, how to leave a mark and feel a sense of deep possibility.

Evenings - I think about all that is, all that I have been blessed with. There is a sense of gratitude to be.

When you hear thunder, it makes you feel…?

Humbled by the powerful force of nature - AND all that I don’t understand about it.

When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel…?

Grateful to snuggle deep into bed. For having safety, protection, and emotional community.

Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?

I’m a water person… I need to be.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is Nature to your well-being?

10…. I can tell when I haven’t been “in it”. Nature drives where I live, how I engaged, the ways I create balance within myself.

Share with us a childhood nature memory?

Every summer I spent at Squam Lake. All this time unplugging, slowing down, learning a new rhythm, adapting to a new pace of life. We would also spend 3-4wks as a family backpacking. Now, as a mom - I’m humbled that they would leave the lake and “choose” a harder interaction with nature - to teach us life skills.


Davis Smith

DAVIS SMITH is the founder and CEO of Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear brand with a humanitarian mission. He is also a member of the eight-person United Nations Foundation's Global Entrepreneurs Council. Davis is a serial entrepreneur who previously started Baby.com.br, Brazil’s Startup of the Year in 2012. Davis holds an MBA from the Wharton School, an MA from the University of Pennsylvania, and a BA from BYU. Davis is an adventurer who has visited 70 countries. He has floated down the Amazon on a self-made raft, camped in the Sahara Desert, kayaked from Cuba to Florida, and explored North Korea.

3 words to describe Nature?

Raw, Fragile, Inspiring

3 things Nature taught you?

I began spending time in the outdoors before I can remember, but some of my first lessons learned while adventuring with my father are that:

1. Nature needs to be respected because while infinitely beautiful, it will eat you alive.

2. In my lowest moments, nature has lifted me up and inspired me.

3. I’ve always felt that nature has shown me that there is something bigger than myself. Spending time in the outdoors connects me with things that are truly important.

3 most treasured Nature spots?

1. The red rock canyons of Southern Bolivia, where I lived for a number of years as a young adult.

2. Cotopaxi national park in Ecuador, where I spent some of my childhood and early teen years.

3. The Wasatch Mountains that tower above Salt Lake City, where I currently live.

When you look at the ocean, it makes you feel…?

Small and vulnerable.

When you see a forest, it makes you feel…?

Safe, overwhelmed with beautiful sounds, smells and sights.

When you see a volcano, it makes you feel…?

Humbled and melancholy (I grew up in the Andes surrounded by amazing volcanos which I often summited with my father).

When you see a sunrise or sunset, it makes you feel…?

Overwhelming joy. Is there anything that can fill a heart or bring a smile faster?

When you hear thunder, it makes you feel…?

An urge to run and duck for cover!

When you hear the wind howling, it makes you feel…?

Somewhat intimidated, but I love the sound when I’m in a tent.

Are you an Ocean, Mountain, Forest, or Desert person?

I’ve spent eight years living in the Caribbean, so I’m obsessed with the ocean. I love kayak touring, diving, snorkeling, spearfishing and camping on the beach. That said, I’ve lived in Utah for a number of years now and have really grown to love the mountains.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is to your well-being?

8. I love the outdoors, but I own an outdoor gear brand and have a small family, both which keep me indoors quite often. I’ve found that surrounded by people I love, I can also get immense joy even when not outdoors.

Share with us a childhood nature memory?

Some of my fondest memories as a child were spending time adventuring with my dad. We once built our own raft and floated down the Amazon river fishing for piranha. We also survived on uninhabited islands in the Caribbean, spearing fish with home-made spears. My brother and I spent hours every day exploring and building forts in the jungle behind our home when we lived in Puerto Rico. My childhood is full of memories in nature. Most incredibly pleasant, but some memories are of times that were terrifying and scary. It was those moments, however, that gave me such a deep respect for nature and taught me to respect it and always be prepared for the worst.