GROUND FIRES: Essays on Land and Scouting

Author

Matthew R. Hart, University of MontanaFollow

Year of Award

2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

Master of Science (MS)

Degree Name

Environmental Studies

Other Degree Name/Area of Focus

Environmental Writing

Department or School/College

Environmental Studies

Committee Chair

Phil Condon

Commitee Members

Judy Blunt, Dan Spencer

Keywords

Boy Scouts of America, New Mexico, Philmont Scout Ranch, Wildfire, Outdoor Education, Fire Ecology

Subject Categories

Nonfiction

Abstract

Ground Fires is a collection of creative nonfiction probing the social and environmental complexities that marked the narrator’s long membership in the Boy Scouts of America. I grew up a Scout, part of a quirky, adventurous troop in a New England college town. After earning Eagle and graduating high school, I moved west, working for seven summers and a few more seasons at Philmont Scout Ranch in northern New Mexico. I led backpacking trips through the mountains and high desert, teaching teenagers about land I knew and loved, land that was changing fast. From bears to wildfire to challenging politics, these stories seek the colorful people and places behind a uniquely American institution, in hopes that Scouting might serve as a bright force in shaping the future of our diverse and wild country.

Recommended Citation

Hart, Matthew R., "GROUND FIRES: Essays on Land and Scouting" (2017). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 10994.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/10994