I grew up outside of New York City and received a B.A. in Human Ecology from College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine. Drawn by the openness of the vast Pacific landscape and California’s innovative spirit, I moved west in search of what felt like some “intangible, infinite thing.” I learned to scuba dive, raced sailboats. I loved what the ocean seemed to demand of us: elemental truths such as camaraderie and grace in overwhelming situations. I worked as an editor and writer for over fifteen years and authored my first book, Talking Politics, a series of oral-history interviews with top television journalists such as Tom Brokaw, Larry King and Robin MacNeil. In the year following the book’s release I began to do radio commentary. But I also was in an accident in which I nearly lost my life. The combination of those two experiences – a book launch and an acute reminder of how precious each moment is – caused me to reassess my work. Over time I realized my greatest passion was to help others connect with nature and inspire them to participate in forging a sustainable future. With much of my work I seek to create “the magic of the encounter” – to take the audience deeply into an experience, whether it be in an oral-history interview or an illustration depicting what it might be like to quietly look into the eyes of a trunkfish in an underwater cavern. For me that sense of connection is the “intangible and infinite thing” I so sought when I came west and I think it’s key to our future. Our future depends upon seeing connections – biological, cultural, economic, political – and crafting our collective and individual lives with them in mind.