Mountain & Prairie with Ed Roberson

Sammy Matsaw Jr. – Salmon, Sovereignty, and the Long Work of Healing

Sammy Matsaw Jr. is the Director of the Columbia Basin Program at The Nature Conservancy, where he works at the intersection of salmon recovery, tribal sovereignty, and large-scale river restoration across one of the most complex watersheds in North America. In this role, Sammy helps guide conservation strategies that span state lines, political boundaries, and cultural histories—while keeping people, relationships, and responsibility at the center of the work. Sammy grew up on the Shoshone-Bannock Reservation, surrounded by salmon stories, land-based learning, and a deep sense of responsibility to place. He served in the U.S. military, including combat deployments overseas, before returning home to heal, reconnect, and rebuild—eventually earning advanced degrees in ecology, policy, and conservation science. Along the way, he's navigated life as a soldier, scientist, ceremonial practitioner, husband, father, and now grandfather, carrying Indigenous knowledge forward while engaging directly with Western institutions and systems. In this conversation, we talk about salmon restoration as a healing journey—not just for rivers, but for communities and cultures shaped by loss, displacement, and change. We dig into Indigenous knowledge alongside Western science, the role of humility and trust in conservation, and why Sammy believes real progress only happens through relationships and long-term commitment. We also explore his vision for the Columbia Basin, his leadership inside TNC, and what it means to show up—day after day—with curiosity, care, and what he calls "barefoot trust-building." This is a thoughtful, hopeful, and vulnerable conversation, and I greatly appreciate Sammy taking the time to chat with me. I hope you enjoy. --- Sammy Matsaw Jr., Director of TNC's Columbia Basin Program TNC's Columbia Basin Program Full episode notes: https://mountainandprairie.com/sammy-matsaw --- This episode is brought to you in partnership with the Colorado chapter of The Nature Conservancy and TNC chapters throughout the Western United States. Guided by science and grounded by decades of collaborative partnerships, The Nature Conservancy has a long-standing legacy of achieving lasting results to create a world where nature and people thrive. During the last week of every month throughout 2025, Mountain & Prairie will be delving into conversations with a wide range of The Nature Conservancy's leaders, partners, collaborators, and stakeholders, highlighting the myriad of conservation challenges, opportunities, and solutions here in the American West and beyond. To learn more about The Nature Conservancy's impactful work in the West and around the world, visit www.nature.org --- TOPICS DISCUSSED: 3:00 - Intro, where and how Sammy grew up 10:03 - Sammy's decision to join the military 15:34 - Readjusting to home 20:48 - What helps heal 24:58 - Sammy's academic journey 32:12 - Salmon work 39:09 - Entry into TNC 43:55 - Salmon restoration as a healing journey 50:09 - Layers of the job 57:31 - Book recs 1:01:18 - Wrapping up --- ABOUT MOUNTAIN & PRAIRIE: Mountain & Prairie - All Episodes Mountain & Prairie Shop Mountain & Prairie on Instagram Upcoming Events About Ed Roberson Support Mountain & Prairie Leave a Review on Apple Podcasts

Ed's Appearance on "My Favorite Things"

Today's episode is a bit of a departure from the usual format. I'm re-sharing a recent conversation I had on my friend Brendan Leonard's new podcast, My Favorite Things. I'm sure most of y'all are already familiar with Brendan's work, but for those of you who aren't, he's an author, illustrator, filmmaker, and creator of Semi-Rad. Brendan's new podcast is built around a simple but fascinating premise: conversations about the books, films, art, and creative works that have helped shape a person's life and career. In this conversation, we spend less time on what I do, and more time on what's influenced how I think and live — from Theodore Roosevelt and Sebastian Junger to a Winslow Homer painting and a movie that's been oddly entertaining and instructive over the years. (I bet y'all can guess the movie.) There are already several excellent episodes live featuring thoughtful, interesting people, and Brendan has created something both entertaining and instructive with this podcast. If you enjoy this conversation, I'd encourage you to subscribe, explore the rest of the episodes, and share the show with any of your friends who might enjoy it. Thanks so much for listening and here's my appearance on My Favorite Things. --- My Favorite Things: Apple, Spotify, YouTube Episode Website Semi-Rad.com --- TOPICS DISCUSSED: 2:10: Background — Mountain & Prairie, family, and the "strenuous life" 5:00: Favorite Thing #1 — Jimmy Buffett liner notes 11:30: Favorite Thing #2 — The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt 20:00: Favorite Thing #3 — Winslow Homer's The Gulf Stream 28:15: Favorite Thing #4 — Tribe by Sebastian Junger 39:30: Favorite Thing #5 — Road House 52:15: Closing reflections --- ABOUT MOUNTAIN & PRAIRIE: Mountain & Prairie - All Episodes Mountain & Prairie Shop Mountain & Prairie on Instagram Upcoming Events About Ed Roberson Support Mountain & Prairie Leave a Review on Apple Podcasts

Mike Schaedel - Restoring Balance to Fire-Adapted Landscapes

Mike Schaedel is the Western Montana Forest Restoration Director for The Nature Conservancy, where he leads some of the most ambitious and collaborative forest restoration work happening anywhere in the West. Based in Missoula, Mike works at the intersection of science, community partnerships, and land stewardship—helping restore fire-adapted forests, reduce wildfire risk, and improve the health and resilience of landscapes across the region. Mike's career path is super interesting and anything but traditional. He grew up in Portland, fell in love with the mountains through rock climbing, and eventually landed in Missoula, where the combination of wild landscapes and a rich literary community drew him in. After earning an undergraduate degree in creative writing, he found his way into forestry and fire ecology through conservation corps work, hands-on restoration experience, and a graduate program focused on forest dynamics and fire. In this conversation, Mike offers a clear overview of how Western Montana's forests came to look the way they do today—shaped by millennia of tribal burning, transformed by railroad-era land grants and industrial logging, and altered further by a century of fire suppression. He explains why effective restoration now depends on combining mechanical thinning with prescribed fire and on working across ownership boundaries with partners ranging from local communities to tribes and federal agencies. We also discuss some of the innovative collaborative efforts underway in the region, as well as a memorable story of a prescribed burn that came together through quick problem-solving and deep trust. This is a rich, informative, and hopeful conversation about what it takes to restore forests at scale—and why the future of these landscapes depends on both ecological understanding and strong community partnerships. Enjoy! --- Michael Schaedel, Western Montana Forest Restoration Director Reserved Treaty Rights Lands Program: The Power of Partnership Complete episode notes and links: https://mountainandprairie.com/mike-schaedel --- This episode is brought to you in partnership with the Colorado chapter of The Nature Conservancy and TNC chapters throughout the Western United States. Guided by science and grounded by decades of collaborative partnerships, The Nature Conservancy has a long-standing legacy of achieving lasting results to create a world where nature and people thrive. During the last week of every month throughout 2025, Mountain & Prairie will be delving into conversations with a wide range of The Nature Conservancy's leaders, partners, collaborators, and stakeholders, highlighting the myriad of conservation challenges, opportunities, and solutions here in the American West and beyond. To learn more about The Nature Conservancy's impactful work in the West and around the world, visit www.nature.org --- TOPICS DISCUSSED: 3:02 – Intro, Mike's love for Missoula 6:04 – Getting a creative writing degree 8:21 – And fighting back into forestry 12:26 – Early writing influences 13:39 – Switching sides of the brain 15:32 – First job out of grad school 20:08 – And that work now 23:38 – Checkerboard landownership 33:04 – Conservation accomplishment 34:56 – Fitting in forest health 39:33 – Fire scars 45:52 – The Big Burn 52:59 – Fire playing a beneficial role 58:51 – And the role mill workers play 1:02:03 – Projects down the pipeline 1:12:00 – Book recs 1:13:49 – Parting words --- ABOUT MOUNTAIN & PRAIRIE: Mountain & Prairie - All Episodes Mountain & Prairie Shop Mountain & Prairie on Instagram Upcoming Events About Ed Roberson Support Mountain & Prairie Leave a Review on Apple Podcasts

SHED SESH: September & October 2025 Book Recommendations

This month marks ten full years of my bimonthly book-recommendations project—a decade of weird little paragraphs about the books that grab my scattered attention. Whether you've been here since the beginning or signed up five minutes ago, thank you. I'm still baffled anyone reads these things, but I'm grateful all the same. To mark the occasion, I recorded a late-night solo episode from The Shed, diving deeper into each of my September & October picks: why I chose them, what stayed with me, and the sometimes-unexpected lessons I gleaned from each of them. Or you could just describe it as a guy sitting in his garden shed talking to himself. Your choice. You can read all of the recommendations here, or, if you're clamoring to receive more emails, you can sign up for the list here. Thanks for listening, thanks for reading, and here's to 10 more great years of great books. – September & October 2025 Book Recommendations Ed's Bimonthly Book Recommendations Sign up for the list – BOOKS DISCUSSED: 00:00 — Intro + 10 years of book-rec emails 05:45 — Burn by Peter Heller 11:00 — Jaber Crow by Wendell Berry (related rec) 11:45 — The Way Out by Devon O'Neil 17:10 — Simple Fly Fishing by Yvon Chouinard 21:50 — Pheasant Tail Simplicity by Yvon Chouinard 25:40 — Little Woodchucks by Nick Offerman 29:20 — Dirtbag Billionaire by David Gelles 35:00 — Shoe Dog by Phil Knight (related rec) 35:55 — Apple in China by Patrick McGee 40:45 — When McKinsey Comes to Town (related rec) 42:10 — The Devil's Hand by Jack Carr 46:15 — Closing thoughts --- ABOUT MOUNTAIN & PRAIRIE: Mountain & Prairie - All Episodes Mountain & Prairie Shop Mountain & Prairie on Instagram Upcoming Events About Ed Roberson Support Mountain & Prairie Leave a Review on Apple Podcasts

Devon O'Neil — On Nature's Power and the Price of Adventure

Devon O'Neil is a journalist, author, and longtime friend of mine whose new book "The Way Out: A True Story of Survival in the Heart of the Rockies" is one of the best pieces of outdoor nonfiction I've read in years. The book tells the harrowing true story of a backcountry ski trip near Leadville, Colorado, that turned tragic—and the years-long process of understanding what really happened, and how a mountain town wrestled with loss, resilience, and the complicated relationship we all have with risk and wild places. It's gripping, deeply reported, and beautifully written—equal parts survival epic, community portrait, and meditation on how we find meaning in the aftermath of tragedy. Devon has spent more than two decades as a writer and reporter based in Summit County, Colorado, covering everything from adventure sports and avalanches to the cultural and emotional undercurrents of life in mountain towns. Before turning his attention to this book project, he worked in newspapers, wrote for Outside, Men's Journal, and ESPN.com, and somehow managed to balance all of that with being a hardcore athlete and a dedicated dad and husband. He's one of those rare writers whose empathy and endurance match the people that he writes about. In this conversation, Devon and I dig into the story behind "The Way Out"—how he first heard about the tragedy, earned the trust of a close-knit community, and spent years piecing together a complete and compassionate account. We talk about the ethical tightrope of telling other people's hardest stories, how his own brushes with danger shaped his perspective on risk, and what this project taught him about the fine line between adventure and recklessness. We also get into his childhood growing up on a sailboat in the Virgin Islands, his evolution as a journalist and athlete, and the hard-earned wisdom that comes from spending a lifetime chasing stories in the mountains. "The Way Out" is available now wherever you get your books, so follow the links in the episode notes to grab your copy. Big thanks to Devon for the chat, and thank you for listening. Enjoy! --- Devon O'Neil "The Way Out" by Devon O'Neil Full episode notes and links: https://mountainandprairie.com/devon-oneil/ --- TOPICS DISCUSSED: 2:23 – Intro and finding The Way Out story 6:59 – Making people comfortable 11:10 – The story in Devon's words 16:29 – Mountain town people 20:48 – Lifestyle overlaps 24:20 – Devon's own accidents 30:10 – It's all great until someone gets hurt 33:03 – The bonds of risk 35:18 – Adjustments 39:22 – Growing up on islands 43:43 – How Devon got to Colorado 47:34 – Pros and cons of different types of writing 51:22 – Book writing advice 55:42 – Not just about getting it right 1:00:09 – Book and writer recs --- ABOUT MOUNTAIN & PRAIRIE: Mountain & Prairie - All Episodes Mountain & Prairie Shop Mountain & Prairie on Instagram Upcoming Events About Ed Roberson Support Mountain & Prairie Leave a Review on Apple Podcasts