Glenn Nelson
Based in Seattle, Wash., Glenn Nelson is the founder of The Trail Posse, which explores the intersection of race and the outdoors. He recently served as Community Director, leading antiracism activities for Birds Connect Seattle, where he also led the name change from Seattle "Audubon." He was included in the inaugural People of Color Environmental Professionals: Profiles of Courage and Leadership by the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Sustainability Initiative at Yale School of the Environment (JEDSI).
Nelson has won numerous national and international awards for his writing, photography and Web publishing, including second place in 2020 from Best of the West for his columns on race for Crosscut and South Seattle Emerald, first-place honors from the Society of Professional Journalists in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 for his columns on race for Crosscut and South Seattle Emerald, and Outstanding Beat Reporting (Race, Inclusion and Environmental Justice) from the Society of Environmental Journalists. His photography is published in Bird Photographer of the Year and has been honored by Nature's Best Photography International Awards, National Wildlife Federation, North American Nature Photography Association, the Audubon Photography Awards, Best of Nikonians, and Share the View.
Nelson also is a founding member of the Next 100 Coalition, a national alliance of civil rights, environmental and community groups advocating for more inclusive management of public lands, and a founding steering committee member of the Outdoor CEO Diversity Pledge, which advises outdoor brands on DEI work. A graduate of Seattle University and Columbia University, he was born in Japan and started his career at The Seattle Times. He later founded HoopGurlz (now at ESPN), which covered girlβs basketball and college prospects nationally, and helped found Scout.com, a network of sports websites. Nelson is the primary author of a teen book about the NBA, has been published in numerous magazines and book collections, had his photographic work appear at the Smithsonian, and has been profiled by NPR. He has served on the board of directors for several nonprofits, as well as the Washington Governor's advisory committee on outdoor recreation, the advisory committee for the Japanese American Remembrance Trail, and the Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Task Force.
Civil Rights Courthouses
Three courthouses in the South that helped galvanize the civil rights movement after Brown v Board of Education began the dismantling of the Jim Crow era were designated as national historic landmarks this week. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals courthouses join more than 2,500...
Mountaintop Chill
A key member of the first all-African-American ascent of Denali, Adina Scott also goes against type as a scientist and musician Almost as soon as their grand destination first came into focus, one of the most significant mountaineering expeditions in recent years was greeted, not...
Fee Waivers for NPS?
by Glenn Nelson In my op-ed piece for The New York Times this past weekend, Iβd originally floated the idea of entrance fee waivers as a means of attracting more people of color to national parks. The waiver would be triggered if a specific National...
NPS: No Confederate Flags
National Park Service Release WASHINGTON β Confederate Battle Flag sales items are being removed from national park bookstores and gift shops. βWe strive to tell the complete story of America,β National Park Service Director Jonathan B. J arvis said of the agencyβs reputation for telling...
New Book on AAPI Heritage
Even after a bullet skimmed his head, Private Edward Day Cohota fought valiantly during the Civil War’s Battle of Cold Harbor and carried a wounded comrade to safety. His remarkable story is one of many recounted in the new National Park Service book, βAsians and...
Bad Marks Against Parks
The sight is jarring and seems completely out of context. Itβs akin to, I donβt know, seeing an elephant walking down a city street. That unexpected, at least to me. This is how I saw what I saw, leading me to break this story at...