On January 26, 2012, redrock activists from Colorado asked President Obama to protect Greater Canyonlands by holding up banners at a presidential appearance at Buckley Air Force Base.

If you live in Colorado, you can sign up to volunteer for future Banner Brigades by clicking here.

No matter where you live, visit www.greatercanyonlands.org to get involved in the campaign to protect Greater Canyonlands!

Posted by Terri Martin

Last night I sat knee to knee in a theatre packed to the brim with almost 800 people and listened to Aron Ralston – the inspiration for the movie 127 Hours – tell his story. Out for a “walk in the park” down a slot canyon in the Greater Canyonlands area in 2003, Aron dislodged a boulder which crushed and pinned his right hand.  After six days of entrapment, he used a cheap multipurpose tool knife blade to amputate his right hand and hike to a miraculous rescue.

Aron Ralston speaking at the Boulder Theater, March 8, 2012

Aron described how it was the images of his mother, father and sister — and an unexpected vision of his yet-to-be-born (in fact, yet to be even imagined!) two year old son laughing joyously as Aron lifted him to his shoulder with arms that lacked a right hand – that pulled him from the certainty that “I wouldn’t see the dawn” to a inner knowledge that he would find a way to live.  Splashed across the trailer to the movie 127 Hours are the words, “There is no stronger force than the will to live.”  But Aron said, “I think there is something deeper – the will to love.”

Aron’s presentation last night was an act of love.  A year and a half ago, while filming 127 Hours in Salt Lake City, Aron called up the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and insisted on coming down to the office.  He wanted to talk about how he could help protect Utah’s redrock canyon country, including the landscape where his accident took place – Greater Canyonlands.

Last night Aron stood on stage and not only shared his personal story, but also described the beauty and wonder of Greater Canyonlands and asked the audience to call on President Obama to protect the area by proclaiming it a national monument.

“When you die and get you life back, you know what’s important to you,” Aron said.  “It’s not enough to go out in places like Greater Canyonlands and have fun.  You also need to give back.”

And last night became an extraordinary evening of giving back.  The 30 plus students and residents who had volunteered to help collected over 600 postcards asking President Obama to protect Greater Canyonlands and took hundreds of photographs of people posing with “President Obama: Protect Greater Canyonlands” fliers.  (Click here to see these and other “Protect Greater Canyonlands” photos).  And scores of people left with packets of postcards and photo message fliers, vowing to recruit friends and family to also call on the President.

Aron Ralston (center) along with redrock activists who volunteered at the Boulder Theater event.

Aron’s story is testimony to the power of the canyon country to enrich and transform our lives. It is also a reminder that we need to “give back” to these landscapes by using our voice to call for their protection.  “President Obama can do this,” Aron concluded.  “He can proclaim Greater Canyonlands a national monument and protect it for all time. But we need to give him the courage and political support to act.  We need to make sure he hears from all the people who love and cherish the desert.”

To ask President Obama to protect Greater Canyonlands, go to: www.greatercanyonlands.org

“Beyond 127 Hours: An evening with Aron Ralston to protect Greater Canyonlands” was hosted by the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, CU Wild (a wilderness advocacy student group at CU Boulder) and Coloradans for Utah Wilderness at the Boulder Theatre in Boulder, CO on March 8.  Thanks is due to Aron Ralston and all these organizations for making the evening possible.

Posted by Terri Martin

Hurray for the team of Colorado citizen activists who recently turned out to hold banners and signs when President Obama came to Denver last month!  Their bright black-on-yellow “Protect Greater Canyonlands” signs sent a clear and compelling message to the media, Obama campaign staff and dignitaries who traveled to the Buckley Air Force Base where the President was speaking.  Many people driving into the base waved and some gave the thumbs up!  “We saw a lot of press and important people out here today,” said one activist, “and I think we got our message across that Greater Canyonlands needs to be protected.”  Asked why he took the morning off from work to participate, another citizen said, “My wife and I have been bringing our boys to the Greater Canyonlands area since they were infants.  We want President Obama to protect that beautiful area so our boys can take their children there some day and experience it the same we have.”

Kris Wallack, Sandy Sherman, John Wallack, Gina Iannelli, and Doug Yohn were part of the "Banner Brigade" in Denver.

Judith Sellers, Stephen Bartlett and Brett Ruckman at the Buckley Air Force Base.

Go to www.greatercanyonlands.org to sign up to participate in future “Banner Brigades” and to learn other ways to ask President Obama to protect Greater Canyonlands.

Posted by Terri Martin

When President Obama flew from California to Denver yesterday, did he look out the window?

If he did, the “purple mountains majesty” that graced the horizon were a reminder that the American West contains some of the last remaining and most magnificent wild landscapes in the world. As President, Obama has the ability to significantly influence the future of these lands – if he chooses to act.

And Colorodans are asking him to act. Earlier this month, sixteen outdoor business owners from seven different communities in western Colorado sent a letter to Obama (opens in PDF) urging him to “provide the highest level of protection for the Greater Canyonlands area.” They wrote:

Many of us have hiked, rafted, climbed and camped in the Greater Canyonlands for years and can attest to the area’s world class scenic, recreational, cultural and ecological values. As people who make their living in the outdoor industry, we also know how important preserving the wild landscapes of the Greater Canyonlands is to the outdoor and tourism-related economy of Colorado.

Over this summer, more than 2,000 Colorado citizens signed postcards urging President Obama to provide protection for the Greater Canyonlands area. In addition, a number of elected officials personally wrote the administration, urging President Obama to use his administrative authorities to protect Greater Canyonlands.

All of this reflects the widespread enthusiasm that exists across Colorado for protecting Greater Canyonlands. While Coloradans love the mountains for which their state is famous, many residents consider Greater Canyonlands part of the landscape they call “home” and cherish this awe-inspiring area as a place of recreation and renewal with family and friends. Their plea to Obama is provide Greater Canyonlands with the kind of meaningful protection it truly deserves. Let’s hope he is listening.

Posted by Terri Martin