Ep. 4 - National Park History & Advocacy with Will De Man

In the aftermath of what’s been dubbed the “Valentine’s Day Massacre,” where the Trump Administration unceremoniously fired thousands of federal workers, Will C. De Man’s social media platform skyrocketed thanks to a post on Instagram expressing his empathy for the park rangers who lost their jobs. As a seventh-grade history teacher who also wrote the book A Short History of the National Parks: The Southeast, he hadn’t seen himself as an “advocate,” per se, but suddenly, with that one post, that is exactly what he became.Since then, not only has Will written another book (published last month!), Creating the National Parks: Yellowstone, Glacier and Grand Teton, but he has also become one of the prominent content creators on social media helping to spread the word about the stripping down of our public lands by this Administration. In this week’s episode, I talk with Will all about how he got here, interesting facts and information he’s learned while researching his books, how to advocate for your favorite public lands, and his favorite national park. You can find Will at nationalparkhistory.substack.com, www.nationalparkhistory.com, on Instagram at nationalparkhistory, and you can find both his books on Bookshop.com.Thanks for reading Charm of the Wilderness! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit charmofthewilderness.substack.com