Rooting yourself in community and place

Episode 2 of Season 1 — Hosted by Leslie Parra.

Farrahn Hawkins (she/her) is a self-described “community and economic development enthusiast” who loves helping people achieve their life goals through education and the lens of nature. A former park ranger at Yosemite National Park and now based in Baltimore, Maryland, she volunteers to help youth and young adults root themselves in community and place. Leslie Parra caught up with Farrahn to discuss what it means to develop a sense of place, and what it feels like to come face to face with giant sequoia for the first time.

Follow Farrahn on Instagram @never_typical_37.

Farrahn Hawkins
Farrahn Hawkins. Photo by Kim Grossman.

I’ll Go If You Go, a Save the Redwoods League podcast.

Through conversations with Black, Indigenous, and people of color who explore and work in the outdoors, we’re building community and illuminating how Californians from all walks of life think about and experience nature and conservation, in the redwoods and beyond.


About the host of Season 1

Leslie Parra Leslie Parra (she/her) connects diverse communities to redwood and sequoia forests. She has garnered significant recognition for her leadership in community civic action, STEM and environmental education, and diversity, equity, and inclusion work over the past 15 years. Her professional calling is to cultivate enrichment programs with multicultural and international perspectives, driven by and in collaboration with communities. During her free time, she loves to go hiking with her partner Eric and their dog Mishqui (which means “sweet” in Quichua, the native language of Ecuador—a place she calls home).


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