From Canoe Trips to Climate Leadership: Garrett Marino's Journey to Protecting Our Most Precious Resource
Sitting by Lower St. Regis Lake in the Adirondacks, we recently had the pleasure of speaking with Garrett Marino, the Climate Leadership Coordinator at The Wild Center in Tupper Lake, NY. At 24 years old, Garrett's journey to this role is a testament to immersing oneself in nature and a commitment to meaningful work.
Initially eyeing a corporate career in New York City after graduating from Skidmore College, Garrett found himself steering toward something he called a little more grounded and full of heart and meaning. Drawing from his deeply immersed experiences on the waters of Northern Ontario, he knew he needed to find a career focused on protecting Earth’s lands and waters. He came across his current role at The Wild Center, which, as he put it, “felt very auspicious,” aligning his love for paddling with his desire to empower young people and protect ecosystems.
An Intense Introduction to the Power of Water
Garrett's profound connection to water began early in his life, during month-long canoe trips in northern Ontario with a camp he attended and later worked for. These remote trips taught him invaluable lessons about patience and humility, particularly when navigating rivers. He observed how “the rushing water is immense and can crush you if you don't respect it."
Beyond personal challenge, these trips also exposed him to the destruction humans can have on aquatic ecosystems, such as dammed rivers and their devastating downstream consequences on the flora, fauna, towns, and villages. This experience instilled in him a deep sense of responsibility: "Water is immensely powerful, but can also be harmed and obstructed in these really big ways by human impact." For Garrett, having access to water, especially in places like the Adirondacks, is a privilege that demands stewardship to ensure its cleanliness and enjoyment for future generations.
Exposure: The Key to Environmental Stewardship
Garrett believes his core passion for environmental care derives from his exposure to nature. Referring to a quote from David Attenborough, he emphasizes that if people, especially young people, aren't exposed to nature, they won't understand why it's worth protecting. His own canoe trip experiences fostered a deep connection to nature, and he firmly believes that if people saw its grandeur and its beauty, they would feel strongly compelled to take care of it and to protect it. This is why he prioritizes providing opportunities for people to connect with wild places like the Adirondacks or Canada.
His experiences guiding those demanding canoe trips, sometimes paddling 25 to 40 km a day from 6 AM to 10 PM, honed his leadership skills and instilled a powerful sense of capability. Facing situations with "no copouts, no quitting, there's just paddling and portaging," taught him immense self-reliance but also the importance of group support, ultimately leading to a "renewed sense of confidence and camaraderie."
A Love for Empowering Youth
As the Climate Leadership Coordinator, Garrett's work at The Wild Center primarily focuses on supporting young people who want to be involved in the climate change movement. A significant aspect of this involves addressing water-related impacts in the Adirondacks, such as flooding and increased precipitation, and educating communities on building resilience to extreme weather events.
A tangible example of his work is the Youth Climate Connections Retreat. This 4-day, 3-night event brings together about 30 students from several different states to a mini summer camp centered on climate change, connecting to nature, and recreation. The retreat emphasizes balancing climate change education with a deep connection to nature, making it fun rather than solely focusing on the doom and gloom of our future. Garrett argues that while fear can motivate, it's not sustainable. True, lasting motivation, especially for young people, needs to come from an ethic of love, care, and reciprocity with the planet. At the retreat, students spend four days on Round Lake, living, playing, and learning about climate change impacts and how to reverse them through action.
Garrett and The Wild Center advocate for an expanded view of what climate careers can look like. He points out that climate change is an interdisciplinary and multifaceted problem requiring people from every sector across the world, whether it's the economy, technology, energy, or agriculture. His own English degree, which he initially didn't envision leading to a climate career, now helps him form relationships and scale impact in his community. The Wild Center highlights alumni working in politics, science, and even art, with one student winning an art competition for a piece inspired by local food production and community involvement.
Community and Unexpected Allies
Garrett's daily motivation stems from living in the Adirondacks and a deep belief in people. He finds inspiration in how rural communities, despite often being asset-limited and resource-constrained, come together creatively, leveraging strong community ties and social capital to achieve large-scale projects.
He champions overcoming division, urging people to engage with those who hold different opinions, “even if they don't believe in climate change or protecting water quality." He believes empathy and understanding the origins of these differences are crucial, rather than immediately dismissing them. Garrett argues that diversity and differences make us better and encourages challenging one's own beliefs through having hard conversations.
He also highlights the importance of recontextualizing who climate allies are. Some of the most effective stewards of the natural world aren't the activists on the streets or the scientists in the institutions. Instead, groups like Ducks Unlimited or Trout Unlimited, deeply connected to nature through hunting and fishing, offer environmental education opportunities and will put up staunch opposition to anyone who wants to pollute the water. For Garrett, making enemies with others helps no one; forming alliances, partnerships, and working together is far more powerful.
Local Action, Global Impact
Beyond The Wild Center, Garrett is highly engaged in local and statewide initiatives. He serves on the board of John Brown Lives, a racial justice organization working to make the Adirondacks a welcoming place for all people. He chairs Saranac Lake's Climate Smart Communities task force, which has impressively reduced the village's greenhouse gas emissions by 37% since 2017, nearly meeting a 40% reduction goal by 2030, a feat many larger communities struggle with. He's also on the board of directors for the New York State Association of Conservation Committees and an advisory member for the National Wildlife Federation Task Force, advocating for comprehensive climate change education across New York State.
Garrett remains optimistic, emphasizing that humans, who caused climate change, also possess the immense capacity to enact global change for the better. He asserts that we have the technology and the collective will to live reciprocally with the planet and tackle climate change.
Forever Wild
When asked about his favorite place to paddle, Garrett names the William C. Whitney Wilderness Area, particularly Lake Lila. He cherishes its remote, wild, and pristine nature, kept undisturbed by a bumpy, hour-long dirt road. It's a place that is so calming and so peaceful, embodying every reason why he moved to the Adirondacks.
Connect, Engage, and Collaborate
Garrett's advice for young people is a powerful call to action: water is fundamental to life, beauty, and human connection. He urges everyone to regularly ground themselves in nature to understand why they're doing this work and why it's important. He stresses the necessity of getting involved in climate and water protection, whether through a career, a litter pickup, a gardening club, or volunteering. While many aspire to lead, he highlights the crucial need for people to support the ongoing initiatives that are already happening. Finally, he underscores the power of civic engagement in America's democracy, particularly in small communities where local leaders are more accessible and responsive to engaged citizens.
For Garrett Marino, protecting our waters and addressing climate change isn't just a job; it's a life's mission driven by love, community, and the belief that collective human action can change the world for the better.