A little about me

Howdy, thanks for checking out the site. I’m Nate Bender, a trail runner and environmental advocate based in Missoula, MT. I love dogs and hate tomatoes. My cat Mesa is also pretty great.

Most of the writing here centers on running and scrambling in the mountains, but I also dabble in rock climbing, rafting, and backcountry and cross-country skiing…most of the usual outdoors suspects.

Outside the mountains, I move climate solutions forward by working at the intersection of social and data science. I pair a master's degree in Resource Conservation, which focused on decision-making and social systems related to the environment, with another master's degree in Business Analytics. This education primes me to think holistically about the social causes of environmental issues and use data science to explore patterns in data, visualize what's happening, and use statistics to rigorously test the effectiveness of programs.

I also work on the marketing for Footprints with Dakota Jones, a nonprofit incubator for climate action where our mission is to develop leaders for climate action within the trail running community. We’re building something that feels special and I’m really excited to see the impact we can make in the coming years.

I am passionate about how marketing, communications, and behavioral science can drive behavior change within conservation and other environmental issues. If you’re interested in that sort of stuff let me know; I love talking about these areas. And if you’re a student or young professional looking to get started in these areas, feel free to reach out. I know just enough to be dangerous in some areas, and embarrassingly little in many more. I’ll help if I can.

The site’s name comes from advice my great-uncle gave me years ago when I asked for help choosing a career. He cheekily paraphrased a Buddhist koan and told me I’d only ever find happiness if I was able to “climb all ten mountaintops and return home before lunch.”

Sometimes I interpret it as an impossible task. So if it’s impossible, it’s best to be judicious in choosing the challenges you tackle if you’re going to make it work with the rest of life. Quality over quantity.

Other times I feel it’s more about the appeal of a challenge you haven’t quite done yet; something right on the edge of possible. Climbing ten mountains before lunch seems impossible, but maybe it’s not. Maybe pushing towards those edges helps you learn things about yourself and the world you never would otherwise. I’m drawn to those rare, fleeting moments of surprise and awe when your body or mind taps into unknown strength.