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Book Tour to Save the Boundary Waters

Pedal to D.C.

    ABOUT THE TOUR

    A two-month, two thousand-mile book tour by bicycle to spread the word with thousands of readers.

    With our public lands under renewed threat, activists and authors and National Geographic Adventurers of the Year Amy and Dave Freeman will pedal 2,000 miles from Ely, Minnesota to Washington, D.C. to promote their book, A Year in the Wilderness: Bearing Witness in the Boundary Waters (Milkweed Editions) in communities large and small across nine states at over thirty events, and to continue their efforts to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW).

    BUT WE NEED YOUR HELP.
    To learn more about Pedal to DC and support our efforts, visit our active Kickstarter page!

     

    THE ISSUE

    THE BOUNDARY WATERS CANOE AREA WILDERNESS is a federally protected area that comprises 1.1 million acres of roadless land and water spanning northern Minnesota. America’s most visited wilderness area, the BWCAW is beloved by many as an annual canoe pilgrimage and is a critical habitat for several endangered and threatened species.

    ON DECEMBER 22, 2017, a critical decision was made by the Trump administration that puts the BWCAW region and watershed under an urgent threat. The U.S. Department of the Interior is reinstating two expired mineral leases first issued in 1966 that could allow Antofagasta, a Chilean mining company (and subsidiary, Twin Metals) to build a copper-nickel mine adjacent to the Boundary Waters and upstream from Voyageurs National Park. Sulfide-ore copper mines require a toxic mining practice that has never before been allowed in Minnesota. Supporters of the mine say it will create 650 jobs; however, it will also endanger 4,490 jobs in local tourism that depend on a clean Boundary Waters, including the Freeman’s work as dogsled and canoe guides. Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness plans to sue to challenge the decision.

    CONTACT US

    EVENT INQUIRIES, BOOK SALES, MEDIA BOOKING
    Joanna R. Demkiewicz, Publicist • joanna_demkiewicz@milkweed.org
    Jordan Bascom, Marketing Assistant • jordan_bascom@milkweed.org

    SPONSORSHIP & KICKSTARTER/CROWD FUNDING
    Meagan Bachmayer, Development Director • meagan_bachmayer@milkweed.org

    INFO ABOUT SAVE THE BOUNDARY WATERS
    Sam Chadwick, Deputy Campaign Manager • sam@savetheboundarywaters.org