As a young boy from Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, Gabriel Vasquez had a very negative experience when his father first introduced him to camping, fishing and enjoying the outdoors on public land in New Mexico. Gabe's father was undeterred. The resoluteness displayed by his dad had a profound impact on Gabe who went on to become an avid outdoorsman and a professional conservationist. Currently Gabe works for HECHO [Hispanics Enjoying Camping, Hunting and the Outdoors]. Prior to that, he worked for the New Mexico Wildlife Federation. In his role with NMWF, Gabe introduced countless youth to the outdoors by providing them with transformative opportunities to connect with nature. Gabe shares one story set in the Gila Wilderness wherein he tricks a group of teens to scale a formidable peak by implying they would obtain a cellular signal from the summit that would allow them to check their social media accounts. By the trip's end, looking at the screens on their phones was far less desirable to them than enjoying meaningful adventures in the wild. Jesse Deubel and Gabriel Vasquez are also joined by NMWF staffers Adrian Angulo and Ray Trejo who both serve on the board of directors for the Nuestra Tierra Conservation Project. Founded by Gabe and headquartered in Las Cruces, New Mexico where he resides, Nuestra Tierra has quickly grown into a powerful conservation organization gaining recognition on the national stage for their incredible work. You'll have to listen through some laughter on this one, but we sure hope you enjoy the listen!

For more info:
https://www.hechoonline.org/
https://nmwildlife.org/