Hosted by James Edward Mills, this series delivers each day in the month of February a compelling audio story via podcast in about 60 seconds. Each narrative offers a brief glimpse into the life and times of Black men and women who have shaped

The People's Tree Stands

Dec 4th, 2023 5m 29s

Immediately following my return from Washington D.C. - I mean on the flight home – I was inundated with kind words of support and condolences for the demise of my Christmas Tree. Due to excessively high winds early in last week of November 2023

Eric Cedeño ~ The Bicycle Nomad

Apr 18th, 2023 29m 10s

For those of us who really love bicycles, I think what we enjoy most is the sense of freedom we get from travel on the open road under our own power. This mechanical device allows us to engage both our minds and bodies to pedal long distances o

National Park Service Director Charles Sams

Dec 19th, 2022 29m 6s

The protection of public land requires the broad ranging vision and leadership of federal service professionals at the highest levels. As the 19th Director of the National Park Service Charles F. Sams III is guiding the management of a complexe

America Outdoors ~ An Interview Baratunde Thurston

Jul 4th, 2022 35m 40s

When the folks at the Public Broadcasting Service went looking for a charismatic personality to host their latest documentary film series on the natural world, they reached out to a man with just the right skills to bring the outdoors into ever

Full Circle Everest: The Story of Demond “Dom” Mullins

May 30th, 2022 33m 18s

On May12, 2022, history was made as the first team of Black American climbers successfully ascended to the summit of Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world. Known as the Full Circle Everest Expedition, this group of six men and one woman,

In The Words of Robert Stanton

Mar 9th, 2022 31m 10s

A few weeks before his 80th birthday, I had the rare pleasure to speak by phone to the 15th director of the National Park Service Robert Stanton. From his home in Maryland, Mr. Stanton shared with me a personal history of his career as a leadin

Exploring Mammoth Cave ~ An Interview with National Park Ranger Jerry Bransford

Feb 18th, 2022 27m 44s

Long before the National Park Service was established, the geological site commonly known as Mammoth Cave in the state of Kentucky was a popular tourist attraction. Open to the public for guided tours beginning in 1830’s this massive labyrinth

An Interview with Perry Yung

Mar 29th, 2021 41m 38s

During the global Covid-19 Pandemic one of my favorite programs to watch on television was the Cinemax miniseries called “Warrior”. Set in San Francisco’s Chinatown during the late 1870s, this amazing show, inspired by the writings of Bruce Lee

Gloryland: An Interview with National Park Ranger Shelton Johnson

Mar 5th, 2021 47m 42s

Even though we might be seeing the back end of the global Covid-19 Pandemic many of us are still stuck at home wading through endless meetings over Zoom and other teleconferencing platforms. With the hopes of creating a little community spirit

From The Barbershop To The Backcountry

Jan 13th, 2021 22m 26s

The Black Men Northwoods RetreatHey everybody. Happy New Year! I know things seem to be getting off to a rocky start. How’s that for an understatement. But I sincerely believe that by working together we can get past our differences and move

Greening Youth ~ A Conversation With DEI Subject Matter Experts

Jan 13th, 2020 38m 3s

Hey everybody it’s January 2020 Happy New Year! In fact happy new decade for the 21st century. It’s kind of cool to be living in the future, a time I tried to imagine as a kid growing up in the 80s. But here we are. It’s amazing to see how far

One Tough Mother ~ Remembering Columbia’s Gert Boyle

Nov 10th, 2019 12m 27s

Early in November Columbia Sportswear matriarch and outdoor industry icon Gert Boyle passed away. She was 95. Having fled Nazi Germany with her family in advance of World War II Gert’s father started the Portland, Oregon-based company that toda

A Conversation with Author Eddy Harris

Oct 4th, 2019 30m 7s

Very early in my career, way back in the 90’s I received the gift of a book, South of Haunted Dreams by Eddy Harris. As a young Black man venture out into a professional environment that was mostly white I took great comfort in this remarkable

Hike It Baby! ~ A Conversation With Founder Shanti Hodges

Sep 27th, 2019 24m 24s

Wherever you are in the world I hope you had an amazing summer. I know I did. Over the last several months I’ve been on the road collecting stories for a broad new initiative to explore how people find their way into the outdoors. With grant fu

Pattie Gonia ~ Queen of the Great Outdoors

Feb 13th, 2019 28m 27s

Just a few days before the 2019 Outdoor Retailer Snow Show in Denver I got my reporting assignments. Among the various topics I was tasked to report on was a human interest profile on a young man attending OR for the first time. Wyn Wiley is a

The Pledge ~ A promise of DE&I in the Outdoor Industry

Jan 28th, 2019 7m

On Friday the Trump administration signed legislation to reopen the federal government. For many of us, an end to the longest government shutdown in U.S. history couldn’t have come soon enough. The announcement arrived just in time for the 2019

The Shutdown Trickle Down ~ Impacts On Our National Park Gateway Communities

Jan 25th, 2019 28m 58s

For 34 days The United States Federal Government has been in a partial shutdown. Pretty much since the beginning, the natural environment has been feeling the effects. Big Cities and small towns from coast to coast that serve as gateway commun

The Four Footed Shadow ~ An Interview with hunter Jessi Johnson

Jan 14th, 2019 28m 4s

Being an environmentalist doesn’t necessarily limit your outdoor recreation pastimes to hiking, mountain biking, skiing or rock climbing. Those of us who indulge these so-called action sports should remember that we share the natural world with

Blood On The Crack ~ A Conversation with Adventure Film Maker Heather Mosher

Jan 7th, 2019 14m 51s

From the opening frames, a recent movie by Canadian adventure film maker Heather Mosher lets viewers know exactly what they’re in for. World class rock climber Kevin Jorgeson mugs at the camera and chuckles while his partner Jacob Cook holds up

Jon Jarvis ~ an interview with the 18th Director of the National Park Service

Jan 1st, 2019 29m 59s

Hey everybody! It’s January first, 2019. Happy New Year! If you’re anything like me you’re excited to make this year better than the last and if you’re listener to this podcast that means getting into the outdoors. But at the moment of this pos

Girl Trek ~ Morgan Dixon Aspires to Get One Million Black Women Walking

Apr 16th, 2018

Hey everybody! Yeah I know it’s been way too long since the last edition of the Joy Trip Project podcast. As it happens I’ve been crazy busy traveling, writing and yes conducting interviews. But most of the audio I’ve been recording over th

Alice’s Garden

Oct 20th, 2017

It was the summer of 2017 and I was just coming off a major reporting project. I’d spent the better part of a year working on series of stories about the private land owners, farmers and ranchers and their relationship with the natural world. M

The Upward Spiral of Chaos~ an interview with Ranger Betty Reid Soskin

Jul 12th, 2017

At 95 years young National Park Ranger Betty Reid Soskin is a national treasure. Stationed at the Rosie The Riveter/World War II Homefront National Historic Park in Richmond, California she interprets the cultural narrative of life in America d

The Delicious Wind – An Interview with Rahawa Haile

Jun 22nd, 2017 28m 46s

Outside Magazine recently featured a wonderful essay by the writer Rahawa Haile. This young woman from Miami, Florida had successfully through-hiked the Appalachian Trail. Walking solo, she made the journey of 2,179 miles from Georgia to Maine