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As both a writer and a storyteller, I've delivered keynote addresses and readings to groups ranging from the Audubon Society, to Outdoor Retailer; from the Montana Wilderness Association, to Storylines Northwest, with Barry Lopez. During the past several years I've appeared on more than two hundred radio and television shows in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, Denver, Portland, Spokane, Minneapolis, St. Louis, and Cleveland. My nature-oriented commentaries and essays can be heard on National Public Radio affiliates throughout the country.
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Shouting at the Sky: New Hope for America's Teens
When it comes to America's teenagers, the numbers are troubling. Last year alone more than four million teens tried heroin for the first time, while one out of every five 8th graders used inhalants. According to figures recently released by the Bureau of Justice, kids 12 to 17 now commit roughly 25% of all serious crime. The suicide rate for teenage boys is four times higher than it was in 1960. Yet beyond these gloomy statistics, answers are beginning to emerge. Among the most promising are those rising from a dynamic set of specialized programs that are rekindling some rather ancient, yet remarkably relevant notions about growing up in the world -- notions that allow teens to find their voice, tell their truth, heal their lives. This presentation is based on a season Gary spent with one of the best such programs in the country - the Aspen Achievement Academy, in Loa, Utah. His initial research was capped by a year spent following a dozen of the program's graduates, writing about both their struggles and triumphs in the acclaimed book Shouting at the Sky, by St. Martin's Press. This address is rich with story, emotion, and above all, hope. It's an ideal, even essential presentation for parents, teachers, and mental health professionals - indeed anyone who works with or cares deeply about the future of America's children. |
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The Hero's Journey
You need not travel alone, Joseph Campbell often said about meeting the challenges of life in the modern world. Thousands of people, across countless centuries, have made the journey before you. The essence of that collective wisdom is known to scholars through a body of mythology called the Hero's Journey. Far from being a relic of the past, many of today's leading psychologists are discovering that the four stages of that mythical journey are in fact the essential steps for growth in the face of today's most pressing challenges. Perhaps poet Robert Frost was right: Most of the changes we think we see, he said, are merely old truths, coming in and out of favor. In this dynamic and inspiring talk, Gary allows his audience to see their most immediate challenges in light of the timeless growth cycle of the Hero's Journey. This is a deeply empowering message, one that will change profoundly the way the audience members relate to the problems of their personal and professional lives. |
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The Promise of the Wild
Few aspects of our culture offer more striking clues about who we are as a people than our relationship with wild places. It was in America, after all, where pundits of the 18th Century predicted we would produce more writers, artists and musicians than anywhere in the world simply because we spent so much time rubbing elbows with the woods. It was here that preachers from Boston and New York roamed the outback of Maine, gathering inspiration for their Sunday sermons; here that in 1913 a middle-aged artist became a major celebrity, touring Vaudeville for two years with top billing, after having stripped down to his underwear to live for two months as a wild man in the North Woods. A portion of this talk will chronicle the inspiring, humorous, and often passionate history of Americans coming to understand themselves through nature. This will not, however, be merely a trip down memory lane. Using a mix of research and nature mythology, Gary's presentation will also focus on the challenge of reawakening in the culture the value of wild places and in particular, the critical role outdoor professionals play in rekindling our sense of place. |
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Wolf reintroduction in Yellowstone, Benchmark for American Conservation
Of all the conservation efforts in American history, few have caught the fancy of the public like wolves coming home to Yellowstone. In addition to a fantastic array of ecological lessons, there is much to be said about what this effort has taught us of the power of myth, about the role of government in environmental issues, about the nation's loyalty to the principles of conservation. This sixty to ninety-minute presentation is based on a full year I spent following the opening movements of the first fourteen wolves released into Yellowstone, resulting in my 1996 title, The Yellowstone Wolves. It was this book that Dr. Mark Johnson, lead veterinarian for the project, declared to be "the best book on the wolf reintroduction ever published." This is a presentation rich in both nature and culture - one that can also be tied to an engaging slide show. Part and parcel of this program are remarkable tales of first encounters between the wolves and Yellowstone's elk, grizzly bear, coyote and moose, none of which had ever laid eyes on an intact wolf pack. There's the tragicomic saga of Chad McKittrick, who shot and killed the male wolf known as number Ten, as well as the frenzied struggle by biologists to rescue his mate and her eight pups. We'll also take a look at the rich mythology surrounding wolves: Nez Perce stories of having patterned tribal life on wolf society; the Catholic Church declaring in the Middle Ages that wolves were the devil's dog, living proof that Satan walked among us; ongoing efforts today to make the wolf a poster child for the anti-government movement. Finally, we'll discuss how the wolves are faring today In the past several years I've done over one hundred programs across the country on this topic, for groups ranging from the Graduate Wildlife Department at the University of California, Berkley, to the Political Science Department at Washington University in St. Louis, to the Northwestern School of Law. |
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References: Selected Presentations
National Writer's Voice Project Vital Ground Reading Series StoryLines Northwest (American Library Association) Annual Conference, National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs Association for Experimental Education Sierra Club Conference: Nature and the Human Spirit |
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Speakers Bureaus Representing Gary Ferguson
If you are interested in having Gary as a speaker at your event, please contact one of the following speakers bureaus, or email Anita Anderson, Gary's Events Planner for more information. AEI Speakers Bureau Jodi F. Solomon Speakers Bureau LA Times Syndicate |
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