My first book, Voices from Bears Ears: Seeking Common Ground on Sacred Land, was published in October 2018 by the University of Arizona Press. Featuring photographs by Stephen Strom and a Foreword by renowned historian Patricia Nelson Limerick, Voices is in its second printing and was a finalist for the 2020 Oregon Book Award in the General Nonfiction category.
From the back cover of Voices:
In late 2016, President Barack Obama designated 1.35 million acres of land in southeast Utah as Bears Ears National Monument. Rich in history and unsurpassed in natural beauty, Bears Ears is at the heart of a national debate over the future of public lands.
In Voices from Bears Ears: Seeking Common Ground on Sacred Land, writer Rebecca Robinson and photographer Stephen Strom capture the passions of those on opposing sides of the Bears Ears battle. Native American tribes seek to protect sacred ancestral lands; a coalition of conservation-minded citizens and organizations have supported them. Those who oppose the monument see a federal "land grab" that threatens to rob local people of an economic future by limiting income from ranching and mining. What unites these individuals is a reverence for a homeland that defines their cultural and spiritual identity. Therein lies hope for finding common ground.
Read an excerpt from Bears Ears Country here.
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Along with Voices photographer Stephen Strom, I have read at more than 20 venues and events including independent bookstores, universities, and book festivals. I launched and maintain the website BearsEarsCountry.com, featuring the latest news pertaining to all things Bears Ears.
(L to R) Speaking at the Tucson Festival of Books, March 2019; signing books at the University of Colorado Boulder, November 2018; being interviewed for a student newspaper at the University of Colorado Boulder, November 2018; viewing an exhibit at the Canyon Country Discovery Center in Monticello, Utah, featuring Stephen Strom’s photographs accompanied by text from Voices from Bears Ears.