by Michelle Doerr | Jun 10, 2026 | Leadership, Outdoor, Wellness
How conservation leadership culture silences the experiences that sustain it Picture a campfire. Not as metaphor yet. Just the thing itself. Imagine a circle. Everyone is equally distant from the center, with no head of the table, no podium, and no raised platform....
by Michelle Doerr | May 19, 2026 | Leadership, Wellness
Why leadership capacity and human capacity are not the same thing Conservation organizations typically evaluate leadership capacity by measuring performance, adaptability, and output. But leadership capacity and regenerative capacity are not the same thing. In...
by Michelle Doerr | Jun 17, 2025 | Leadership, Wellness
Let’s be real. Some days, it feels easier to push emotions down, check off the boxes, and pretend everything’s fine. That emotional silence was the norm in my family—and, as it turns out, also the unspoken rule in much of my conservation career. But it’s costing us...
by Michelle Doerr | May 3, 2025 | Leadership, Wellness
🔥 Conservation Leadership Is Burning Out—Here’s Why It Matters When I was in college—more years ago than I care to count—I didn’t worry much about the future. The path felt hopeful. The conservation jobs were there. The work ahead felt bright. But now, the emotional...
by Michelle Doerr | Jan 1, 2025 | Wellness
My Word for 2025 Each year, I choose a word to guide me—a lens through which I focus my intentions and actions. For 2025, my word is Trustfall. Inspired by Pink’s song of the same name, Trustfall is about leaning into bravery, embracing vulnerability, and trusting the...
by Michelle Doerr | Nov 6, 2024 | Coaching, Wellness
Eight years ago, I faced an experience that many people fear – I was terminated from my job unjustly. There was no evidence of wrongdoing, and the pain of that loss is something I carry with me even today. When I reached out to the board chair shortly after the...