have been a naturalist ever since my earliest memory. I grew up in a mostly empty country and spent much of my childhood roaming fields, observing wildlife, and discovering beauty missed by most. My journey included mandatory military service in a country ravaged by war. I have loved and lost and continue to love. Yet, throughout, wilderness has been my sanctuary. The mountains, deserts, oceans, and rivers have a healing effect for me and at times when the human-made world was too much to bear, there was always the real world to escape to.

For the last decade I have been living in the American West which I believe to be one of the most beautiful regions of this world. Its sublime views and amazing diversity have provided me with an infinite source of inspiration. Yet it has also been my misfortune to see much of the West fall victim to shortsightedness and profiteering. I have made it part of my life's mission to discover its hidden beauty beyond that of the well-known icons that are already legally protected. By making this beauty available I can convey to humankind that it is the responsibility of everyone to preserve it and other miracles of nature on this planet.

I currently live with my lovely redheaded wife Sarah and our clan of cats and dogs in Utah, where most of the Colorado Plateau's breathtaking grandeur can be found, and where issues of preservation and land-use are among the most prominent on the political agenda.

Guy Tal
Utah, USA