معرفی
Briget Eastep is an Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Public Lands at Western Colorado University's Clark Family School of Environment & Sustainability. She holds a PhD in Natural Resource Recreation Management from the University of Utah (2004), an MA in Recreation from the University of New Mexico (1996), and a BA in English and Environmental Studies from Cornell College (1992).
Her career focuses on public lands stewardship, outdoor recreation education, and youth engagement in conservation. She co-founded Southern Utah University's Outdoor Recreation in Parks and Tourism degree program and established the Internship and Career Center (IIC), placing thousands of students in public land internships with agencies like the National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management. Over one-third of these students transitioned into public land careers under her mentorship.
Key professional contributions include securing grants totaling millions of dollars for youth stewardship programs, trail development, and heritage preservation projects (e.g., Zion National Park ADA trail, Cedar Breaks National Monument trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante youth engagement). She currently chairs the Utah Trails Forum and participates in CorpsNetwork's Public Land Service Corps Steering Committee.
Her research emphasizes connecting students and communities to public lands through experiential learning. She brings expertise in marketing, wilderness education, and curriculum development (e.g., Outdoor Recreation Leadership Curriculum).
Grants include National Park Foundation funding for historic preservation at Pipe Springs National Monument ($31,019), a $545,000 NPS GIS Internship Program, and $286,000 allocated to Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument youth initiatives.
