Rebecca Lawton – Resume

[Updated April 2020]

REBECCA LAWTON
P.O. Box 1976, Bend, OR 97709
becca(at)beccalawton.com • www.beccalawton.com

SUMMARY OF EXPERIENCE

Rebecca Lawton is an award-winning author, scientist, and former river guide who focuses on language, nature, conservation, and water. Her essays and stories have been published in Aeon, Audubon, Brevity, Chautauqua, Hakai, High Desert Journal, Hunger Mountain, More, Orion, The San Francisco Chronicle Magazine, Shenandoah, Sierra, THEMA, and many other journals. She has published nine books on water, science, and the outdoors, and has teamed with other researchers on numerous technical articles.

Rebecca guided commercially and served as a National Park Service river ranger on the Colorado in Grand Canyon and other rivers for fourteen seasons. As a geologist, she has managed numerous projects in fluvial and erosional processes, assisted investigations of groundwater supply and quality, and contributed to large technical projects working across multiple agencies. She has researched and presented on climate and water communication, as a Fulbright Visiting Research Chair, invited speaker, and freelance writer.

From 2018-2020, she served as Executive Director of PLAYA Residency Program for Artists and Scientists, Summer Lake, OR. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Northwest Scientific Association.

EDUCATION

M.F.A., Creative Writing and Literature. Mills College, Oakland, CA. May 1993.

B.S., Earth Sciences. U.C., Santa Cruz. Honors in thesis on sediment transport in Jurassic streams. December 1976.

SELECTED AWARDS AND HONORS

• Winner, 2019 Nautilus Book Award, Silver, Ecology & Environment, for The Oasis This Time, April 2020.
• Finalist, 2020 Oregon Book Award, Creative Nonfiction, and 2019 Foreword INDIE Book Award, Ecology & Environment, for The Oasis This Time.
• Hemera Foundation Fellowship for Artists, Spirit Rock Insight Meditation Center. Woodacre, CA. 2017 and 2019.
• Finalist, 2018 Everything Change Climate Fiction Contest, Arizona State University Imagination and Climate Futures Initiative. Tempe, AZ. For “Tuolumne River Days.” Judged by Kim Stanley Robinson. 2018.
• Fulbright Canada RBC Eco Leadership Program Award. Ottawa, ON. 2017.
• Fellow, International League of Conservation Writers. Golden, CO. 2017 to present.
• Nominee, Best American Science and Nature Writing (for “Midnight at the Oasis”). 2016.
• Writing Residencies, PLAYA, Summer Lake, OR. 2015, 2017.
• Residency, U.C. Irvine Steele-Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center, Borrego Springs, CA. 2015.
• Fulbright Visiting Research Chair. University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB. 2014-15.
• Waterston Desert Writing Prize (for The Oasis this Time). Bend, OR. 2015.
• WILLA Award, Original Softcover Fiction (for Junction, Utah). Women Writing the West. Golden, CO. 2014.
• Writing Residencies, Hedgebrook Retreat for Women Writers. Langley, WA. 2009, 2013.
• Resident Fellowship, The Island Institute. Sitka, AK. September 2011.
• Pushcart Prize Nominations. Fiction, “The Road to Bonanza,” Midway Journal, June 2011; Nonfiction, “Faith in the Dry Season,” Tiny Lights. Petaluma, CA: Tiny Lights Publications, 2001; Poetry, “On Hearing about Ted,” the acorn: a journal of the Western Sierra. El Dorado, CA: El Dorado Writers’ Guild, 1995.
• Poetry Award, 21st Annual Mendocino Coast Writer’s Conference. Fort Bragg, CA. For “Passage,” “Where I Grew Up,” and “Burying the Barn Owl.” Judged by Alison Luterman. 2010.
• First Place, Poetry Competition, Redwood Writers Branch of California Writers Club. Santa Rosa, CA. For “Journal.” Judged by former Sonoma County Poet Laureates Terry Ehret and Mike Tuggle. 2009.
• Finalist, David Nathan Meyerson Fiction Prize. Southwest Review. Southern Methodist University. Dallas, TX. For “The Road to Bonanza.” Judged by Alice Hoffman. 2009.
• Finalist, Chautauqua Fiction Prize. For “The Wish.” Wilmington, NC: Chatauqua Institution. Judged by David Crouse. 2009.
• Desert Writer Award. Ellen Meloy Fund. Bluff, UT. 2006.
• Residency Awarded, Mesa Refuge. Oakland, CA. 2006.
• Finalist, Nature Book of the Year Award. ForeWord Traverse City, MI. For Reading Water: Lessons from the River. 2003.
• Personal Essay Award. Tiny Lights: Journal of Personal Narrative. Petaluma, CA. For “Scalping the Games.” Judged by Susan Bono. 2001.
• You Are Here Sonoma County Writing Award. Sebastopol Center for the Arts. Sebastopol, CA. For “Questions for the Creek.” Judged by Elizabeth Carothers Herron. 2000.
• Poetry Award. Utah Wilderness Association Review. Salt Lake City, UT. For “Ghost of a River.” May 1993.
• William Warner Henry Writing Award. Mills College, CA. For “On the Whiteness of the Whale.” April 1993.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS (chronologically within genres)

Book-Length Fiction

• Steelies and Other Endangered Species. Sarasota, FL: Little Curlew Press. 2014.
• Junction, Utah. Encinitas, CA: van Haitsma Literary and Wavegirl Books. 2013.

Book-Length Nonfiction

• The Oasis This Time: Living and Dying with Water in the West. Salt Lake City, UT: Torrey House Press. 2019.
• Cool Writing Tips: A Month of What You’d Call Guidelines. Vineburg, CA: Wavegirl Books. 2016.
• Sacrament: Homage to a River, with Geoff Fricker. Berkeley, CA: Heyday. 2014.
• On Foot in Sonoma: Twelve Walks in the Valley of the Moon, with Arthur Dawson. Glen Ellen, CA: Kulupi Press. 2004.
• Reading Water: Lessons from the River. Sterling, VA: Capital Books. 2002.
• Discover Nature in the Rocks, with Diana Lawton, Susan Panttaja, and Irene Guidici Ehret. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. 1997.

Short Fiction

• “Evacuees,” Chautauqua. Wilmington, NC: Chautauqua Institution. 2019.
• “Tuolumne River Days,”Everything Change, Volume II: An Anthology of Climate Fiction.  Tempe, AZ: Arizona State University Imagination and Climate Futures Initiative. January 2019.
• “An Exposition of the Development of the Earth,” Slippage. http://www.slippagelitmag.co.nr/. February 2014.
• “Steelies,” Connotations. Sitka, Alaska: The Island Institute. 2011.
• “The Road to Bonanza,” Midway Journal. http://www.midwayjournal.com/. June 2011. (Nominated for 2011 Pushcart Prize.)
• “The Wish,” Perigree: Publication for the Arts. Vol. 7, Issue 3. http://www.perigee-art.com/index-3.php. April 2010.
• “Sipapu,” Milk & Ink: A Mosaic of Motherhood Anthology. Denver: Outskirts Press. 2010.
• “Only Water,” performed by Page on Stage, Santa Rosa and Rohnert Park, CA: Glaser Center and KRCB Radio 91.1 fm. 2006.
• “The Middle of a River in Flood,” Standing Wave. Prescott, AZ: Elliot Treichel. 1997.
• “Sandstone,” THEMA. Metairie, LA: THEMA Literary Society. 1995. Also in Walking the Twilight II. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Publishing. 1996.
• “Change of Heart,” the acorn: a journal of the Western Sierra. El Dorado, CA: El Dorado Writers’ Guild. 1995.
• “What I Never Told You,” Walking the Twilight. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Publishing. 1994.

Poetry

• “Swimming Grand Canyon,” and “The Great Unconformity,” Going Down Grand: Poems from the Grand Canyon. Anthology edited by Peter Anderson and Rick Kempa. Fruita, Colorado: Lithic Press. 2015.
• “Tiny Dancer,” Sonoma Valley Sun. Print and online. August 23, 2012.
• “Boatwomen,” Still Crazy, A Literary Magazine. Worthington, OH. 2011.
• “Bastion,” Adirondack Explorer. Saranac Lake, NY: Getting the Word Out, Inc. 2011.
• “The Bed,” Milk and Ink. Denver: Outskirts Press. 2010.
• “Passage,” “Where I Grew Up,” and “Burying the Barn Owl,” Todd Point Review. Mendocino, California: College of the Redwoods. Edited by Maureen Eppstein. 2010.
• “Journal,” Sonoma Valley Sun. Vol. VI, Issue 27. Sonoma, CA. October 9, 2009.
• “What’s So Feminine about a Mandolin?” Shenandoah: The Washington and Lee University Review. Lexington, VA: Washington and Lee University. 2006.
• “Seen near Loma,” Standing Wave. Prescott, AZ. 1997.
• “Night Noise,” Community Poetry Anthology, Festival Edition. Sonoma, CA: da Rosa Events and Readers Books. 1996.
• “On Hearing about Ted,” the acorn: a journal of the Western Sierra. El Dorado, CA: El Dorado Writers’ Guild. 1995. (Nominated for 1995 Pushcart Prize.)
• “Cougars and Mr. Redford,” Sonoma Poets Collection II. Sonoma, CA: Hilltop Publishing. 1995.
• “Ghost of a River,” Review. Salt Lake City, UT: Utah Wilderness Association. 1993.

Essays and Articles

• “Beautiful Shards,” High Desert Journal. https://www.highdesertjournal.com/copy-of-issue-29-6. November 1, 2019.
• “Mountain Time: Geology,” Where the World Begins: Sonoma Mountain Stories and Images. Glen Ellen, CA: Sonoma Mountain Preservation. 2019.
• “Beautiful, Special, Caring Community’ Aids Fire-Damaged Nature Preserves” and “Fire Victims Humbled, Awed by Generosity,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. Jan 25, 2018.
• “Birding the Burn: Returning to a Landscape Transformed by Fire,” Audubon. http://www.audubon.org/. January 9, 2018.
• “Playing Our Parts”; “Crisis and Opportunity”; “Loss and Renewal”; and “Through the Flames,” Pepperwood Field Notes. Pepperwood Preserve, Santa Rosa, CA. https://www.pepperwoodpreserve.org. November and December 2017.
• “Nurse Turns Fairgrounds into Medical Clinic during Sonoma County Fires,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. November 20, 2017.
• “The Healing Power of Nature,” Aeon. Melbourne: Aeon Media Ltd. September 6, 2017.
• “Helping Wildlife Survive in the Heat,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. July 26, 2017.
• “Gazing at Summer Skies,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. June 28, 2017.
• “Health Benefits of Forest Bathing,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. June 15, 2017.
• “Starring Sea Monsters,” Hakai Magazine. https://www.hakaimagazine.com/. Victoria, B.C. June 9, 2017.
• “What Casablanca Taught Me about Resilience,” The Wisdom Daily. http://thewisdomdaily.com. June 5, 2017.
• “How to Develop a Spiritual Connection to Water,” The Wisdom Daily. http://thewisdomdaily.com. April 3, 2017.
• “Giving In,” Hunger Mountain: The VCFA Journal for the Arts. http://hungermtn.org/giving-in/. March 23, 2017.
• “Actor, Author Jane Alexander Turns Her Attention to Wild Things, Wild Places,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. October 20, 2016.
• “Why Trails Matter,” Ridge Lines. San Francisco: Bay Area Ridge Trail Council. 2016.
• “The Big Dam Era Is Not Over,” Undark. https://undark.org. Cambridge, MS: Knight Science Journalism, MIT. July 27, 2016.
• “Breaking the Rules Outdoors,” Aeon. https://aeon.co. Melbourne: Aeon Media Ltd. July 25, 2016.
• “Sleuthing for Sonoma Valley’s Oldest Streams,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. March 23, 2016.
• “Boatwomen,” Sweatpants&Coffee. http://sweatpantsandcoffee.com/. February 19, 2016.
• “Chasing Waterfalls,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. February 4, 2016.
• “The Twelve Days of Christmas Island,” Hakai Magazine. https://www.hakaimagazine.com/. Victoria, B.C. December 25, 2015.
• “Of Christmas Holly, Grizzly Bears, and Sudden Oak Death,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. December 24, 2015.
• “Zugunruhe and the Migration,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, CA. November 11, 2015.
• “Midnight at the Oasis,” Aeon. https://aeon.co. Melbourne: Aeon Media Ltd. November 6, 2015.
• “Consistently Lovely: The Exceptional Field Notes of Martin H. Moynihan,” Hakai Magazine. https://www.hakaimagazine.com/. Victoria, B.C. October 23, 2015.
• “Skunk Highway,” Press Democrat. Santa Rosa, California. September 6, 2015.
• “Getting the Drift,” Hakai Magazine. https://www.hakaimagazine.com/. Victoria, B.C. August 14, 2015.
• “Drought and the Ostrich Syndrome,” Aeon. https://aeon.co. Melbourne: Aeon Media Ltd. April 14, 2015.
• “The Place Where the Records Are Kept,” Newsletter. Victoria, Canada: Friends of the BC Archives. Vol. 14, No. 5. March 2015.
• “Pug Boat,” Women in Nature: An Anthology. Reading, Pennsylvania: Louise Grace Publishing. May 2014.
• “As the Eel Curves: The Life and Writings of Zara Raab,” The Redwood Coast Review. Point Arena, CA: Friends of the Coast Community Library and Independent Coast Observer. Spring 2014.
• “The Other,” The East Bay Monthly. http://www.themonthly.com/feature131202.html. Oakland, CA: Telegraph Media. December 2013.
• “A River, Three Gardens, and Two Summer Pies,” com. September 3, 2013.
• “Green River Valley, Utah,” in “The Place Where You Live,” Orion. https://orionmagazine.org. Great Barrington, MA: The Orion Society. July/August 2013.
• “Tortilla Soup,” com. June 14, 2013.
• “Here’s Looking at You,” Brevity Nonfiction Blog. https://brevity.wordpress.com/. May 28, 2013.
• “Eating Stone, Review of Eating Stone: Imagination and the Loss of the Wild, by Ellen Meloy,” torreyhouse.com. April 2011.
• “Take the ‘C’ Train,” Art, Literature, and Place: An Ecopoetics Reader. Toronto: Canadian Journal of Environmental Education. Volume 13 (2). 2008. Previously in A Mile in Her Boots: Women Who Work in the Wild. Palo Alto, CA: Solas House. 2006. Sonoma County Women’s Voices. Sebastopol, CA: Women’s Voices. May 2004. Also in Reading Water: Lessons from the River. Sterling, VA: Capital Books. 2002.
• Media Lounge Reviews of The Earth Knows My Name, by Patricia Klindienst, and The Fragile Edge, by Julia Whitty. Sierra. San Francisco: Sierra Club. May/June and July/August 2007.
• “Felling the Trees,” San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco: Hearst Corporation. July 22, 2006.
• “The Art of Starting Over,” More. NY: Meredith Publishing. July/August 2006.
• “Some of My Best Friends,” Sonoma Woman insert. Santa Rosa, CA: The Press Democrat. September/October 2006.
• “The Tongue,” The Best Women’s Travel Writing, 2006: True Stories from Around the World. Lucy McCauley, editor. Palo Alto, CA: Travelers’ Tales. 2006.
• “Possession,” San Francisco Chronicle Magazine. San Francisco: Hearst Corporation. 2006.
• “American Art,” “Moon River,” and “A Reluctant Geologist Writes about Rocks,” read on Word by Word. Rohnert Park, CA: KRCB Radio 91.1 fm. 2005.
• “The Company of Rocks,” Orion. Great Barrington, MA: The Orion Society. November/December 2005.
• “In the Oasis,” Tiny Lights. Petaluma, CA: Tiny Lights Publications. 2005.
• “Scalping the Games,” Tiny Lights. Petaluma, CA: Tiny Lights Publications. 2003.
• “Book Case,” “War Zone,” and “Wingin’ It,” in “Open Mic,” Northern California Bohemian. Santa Rosa, CA: Metrosa, Inc. 2000 and 2001.
• “On the Colorado River,” 365 Travel. San Francisco: Travelers’ Tales. 2001.
• “Faith in the Dry Season,” Tiny Lights. Petaluma, CA: Tiny Lights Publications. 2001. (Nominated for 2001 Pushcart Prize.) Also in Reading Water: Lessons from the River. Sterling, VA: Capital Books. 2002, and There’s this River: Grand Canyon Boatman Stories. Second Edition. Flagstaff, AZ: This Earth Press. 2006.
• “Headwaters,” The Gift of Rivers: True Stories of Life on the Water. San Francisco: Travelers’ Tales. 2000.
• “Imbrication,” Word Tastings. Summerland, CA: Santa Barbara Review Publications. 1998. Excerpted in A Woman’s Passion for Travel. San Francisco: Travelers’ Tales. 1999.
• “Down to Earth,” “Dynamic Duo,” “Growing with Expert Systems,” “Heavy Metals,” “Out of the Woods,” additional articles. Penn State Agriculture. University Park, PA: Penn State College of Agriculture. 1988.
• “Fear and Loathing on the Upper Yampa,” Wasatch Sports Guide. Salt Lake City: Mills Publishing. 1984.
• “Early History of the Tuolumne River Canyon,” Interpretive Guide to the American, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne Rivers. Berkeley, CA: Pacific Rivers Outfitters Association. 1975. 

Refereed Technical Papers and Posters

• “Story as a Way In: Response to Change in Climate and Water,” in Living on the Edge of Change: Exploring the Dimensions of Restoring Fire Resilient Landscapes, Culture, and Economies on the Cascade Range’s Eastside: Proceedings of the 87th Annual Meeting of the Northwest Scientific Association. Bend, OR: Central Oregon Community College. March 23-26, 2016.
• “Measuring Sediment in Sonoma Mountain’s Streams,” with Laurel Collins and Arthur Dawson. Poster in Copeland Creek Watershed Symposium. Cotati, CA: Sonoma State University. 2013.
• “Addressing the Sediment Problem in Sonoma Creek Watershed,” with Deanne DiPietro, Laurel Collins, and Arthur Dawson. Poster in Annual Watershed Symposium, Napa County, Napa, CA. 2011.
• “A Look at Watershed Health: Developing the Sonoma Creek Scorecard,”
  with Caitlin Cornwall, Deanne DiPietro, Mark Newhouser, and Alex Young. In Proceedings 28th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference and the 44th Annual American Fisheries Society Cal-Neva Conference, Fisheries Restoration and Science in a Changing Climate. calsalmon.org. 2009.
• “Estimating Sediment Production for the Sonoma Creek TMDL,” with Laurel Collins and Arthur Dawson. Poster at State of the Estuary Conference, Oakland, CA. 2007.
• “Measuring Sediment in Jack London’s Streams, Sonoma Creek Watershed, Sonoma County,” with Kristine Camacho. Poster at State of the Estuary Conference. Oakland, CA. 2005.
• “Monitoring Suspended Sediment Concentration and Turbidity, Sonoma Creek Watershed, Sonoma County,” with Jenny Tribo. Poster at State of the Estuary Conference. Oakland, CA. 2003.
• “Volunteer Monitoring of Suspended Sediment Concentration and Turbidity, Sonoma Creek Watershed, Sonoma County, CA,” with Rich Hunter and Jeanna Menze. Advances in Science and Restoration in the Bay, Delta, and Watershed. CALFED Science Conference. Sacramento, CA. January 14-16, 2003.
• “Taphonomy of the Dinosaur Quarry, Dinosaur National Monument,” Contributions to Geology, volume 15. Laramie, WY: University of Wyoming. 1977. 

Non-Refereed Technical Papers

• Sonoma Valley Historical Hydrology Project, Phase I, with Arthur Dawson of Baseline Consulting and Alex Young of Sonoma Ecology Center, for Sonoma County Water Agency. 2016.
• Technical Memorandum, Sonoma County Integrated Groundwater Potential Recharge Model, with Bryan Sesser, Sonoma Ecology Center, for Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District and Sonoma County Water Agency. June 12, 2014.
• Final Report, 2013 Sonoma Biochar Initiative Citizen Science Project, with Raymond Baltar, Donald Osborne, and Autumn McElroy. 2013.
• Developing Prioritization Criteria for Reach-Scale Enhancement and Erosion/Incision Projects in Sonoma Creek Watershed, with Arthur Dawson, Deanne DiPietro, Zhahai Stewart, and Alex Young of Sonoma Ecology Center and Laurel Collins of Watershed Science. 2013.
• Sonoma Valley Groundwater Recharge Potential Mapping Project, Technical Report, with Deanne DiPietro and Bryan Sesser of Sonoma Ecology Center and Marcus Trotta of Sonoma County Water Agency. 2011.
• A Transferable Protocol to Identify and Prioritize Sites for Watershed Restoration under Clean Water Act Programs, with Deanne DiPietro and Alex Young of Sonoma Ecology Center and Laurel Collins of Watershed Science. 2010.
• How Are We Doing? Developing A Watershed Scorecard for the Napa River and Sonoma Creek Watersheds, with Caitlin Cornwall, Deanne DiPietro, Chris Farrar, Rainer Hoenicke, Frances Knapczyk, Lisa Micheli, Kat Ridolfi, Peter Vorster, Alex Young, and Bob Zlomke. 2009.
• Sediment Source Analysis, Sonoma Creek Watershed, California, with Sonoma Ecology Center, U.C. Berkeley Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Stillwater Sciences, Tessera Consulting, Talon and Associates LLC, and Watershed Science. Prepared for San Francisco Bay Area Regional Water Quality Control Board. 2006.
• Stream Stewards Project, A Five-Year Report of Volunteer Monitoring, with Michelle Orme and Lisa Micheli of Sonoma Ecology Center. 2004.
• Volunteer Monitoring of Suspended Sediment and Turbidity, and Watershed Monitoring of Road Remediation in Annadel State Park, with Rich Hunter and Jeanna Menze of Sonoma Ecology Center. Prepared for San Francisco Bay Area Regional Water Quality Control Board. 2002.

SELECTED PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

• Board of Directors, Northwest Scientific Association. Spokane, WA. 2019 to present.
• Presenter, Waterston Desert Writing Prize “A Desert Conversation.” High Desert Museum, Bend, Oregon. July 2018.
• Presenter, “Women Writing Science.” The Sitting Room. Penngrove, California. October 7, 2017.
• Presenter, First Annual Litcrawl. Copperfields Books, Sebastopol, CA. June 17, 2017.
• Presenter, “Creative Nonfiction: What It Is and How to Write It.” Redwood Writer’s Academy. Santa Rosa, California. June 3, 2017.
• Speaker, “Your Brain on Climate Change: Story as a Way In.” Victoria Natural History Society, Victoria, B.C., and Search for Meaning Bookfest, Seattle, WA. February 14 and 25, 2017.
• Presenter, “In Conversation with Jane Alexander on Wild Things, Wild Places: Adventurous Tales of Wildlife and Conservation on Planet Earth.” Copperfields Books. Petaluma, CA. October 20, 2016.
• Presenter, “Equal Voice for the Earth: Women Writers and the Environment.” Hedgebrook Retreat Benefit at Pepperwood Preserve. Santa Rosa, CA. July 21, 2016.
• Speaker, “Convergence of Arts, Humanities, and Ecology in Inspiring Northwest Landscapes: A Series of Short Talks by Writers, Artists, and Scientists.” Northwest Scientific Association Meeting. Bend, OR. March 24, 2016.
• Presenter, “From Raw to Cooked: Water, Climate, and Creative Writing in the American West.” Women Writing the West Conference. Bend, OR. October 11, 2015.
• Reader, Award Presentation, “The Sentinels.” Waterston Desert Prize, High Desert Museum. Bend, OR. June 25, 2015.
• Presenter, Writer’s Workshop, “Publication 101.” Friends of the Sonoma Valley Library. Sonoma, CA. 2014 and 2015.
• Presenter, Visiting Author, “You Don’t Miss Your Water: Creative Writing and Megadrought in the North American West.” Fulbright Lecture at University of Alberta and Royal British Columbia Museum. November and December. 2014.
• Technical Advisor, Natural/Cultural Resource Committee, Jack London State Historic Park. Glen Ellen, CA. 2014.
• Presenter, Visiting Author, “Sacrament,” Gateway Science Museum, College of Natural Sciences, California State University, Chico, CA. April 2014.
• Presenter, “Lessons from the River,” Texas Grain and Feed Association 116th Annual Meeting and Exposition. April 2014.
• Advisory Board, Friends of the River, Sacramento, CA. 2014 to present.
• Board of Directors, Friends of the River. Sacramento, CA. 2012 to 2014.
• External Advisor, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Program, Sonoma State University. Rohnert Park, CA. 2011 to 2016.
• Instructor, Point Reyes Field Institute. Point Reyes National Seashore, CA. 2013 to present.
• Lecturer, Watershed Series, “Sustainability in My World,” Sonoma State University. Rohnert Park, CA. 2013.
• Presenter, North Coast Redwoods Writer’s Conference, College of the Redwoods. Crescent City, CA. 2012 and 2013.
• Member, Technical Advisory Committee, Groundwater Management Plan, Sonoma County Water Agency. Sonoma, CA. 2009 to present.
• Presenter, The Island Institute. Sitka, AK. 2011.
• Presenter, Redwood Writer’s Club, First Annual Conference. Santa Rosa, CA. 2009.
• Presenter, Literature Readings on “Control,” SOMArts Cultural Center. San Francisco. 2009.
• Presenter, Writer’s Workshops, Mendocino LitFest, Mendocino Community College. Ukiah, CA. 2009 and 2012.
• Presenter, Writer’s Workshop, Creativity and Education Series, Copperfield’s Books. Petaluma, CA. 2009.
• Presenter, Deep Storytelling and Nonfiction Workshops, Mendocino Coast Writers Conference. Mendocino, CA. 2007.
• Member, Technical Advisory Committee, Laguna de Santa Rosa. Santa Rosa, CA. 2007.
• Presenter, Writing with Nature Workshop. Writers Forum. Petaluma, CA. 2006.
• Literary Judge, Bay Area Middle School Poetry Out Loud Contest. Berkeley, CA. 2006.
• Presenter, Writer’s Sampler Series, Sebastopol Center for the Arts. Sebastopol, CA. 2005 and 2009.
• Literary Judge, Sense of Place Poetry Contest, Kulupi Press. Glen Ellen, CA. 2005-2008.
• Presenter, Writing Nature Workshop, Women on Writing Conference, Skyline College. San Bruno, CA. 2005.
• Lecturer, Author Reading, Self-Discipline Series, Pleasanton Public Library. Pleasanton, CA. 2004.
• Presenter, Author Readings and Panels, Sonoma County Book Fair. Santa Rosa, CA. 2003, 2006, and 2008.
• Presenter, Visiting Author, Science and the Environment Series, Rocky Mountain College. Billings, MT. 2003.
• Facilitator, Writer’s Retreat, Wellspring Renewal Center. Philo, CA. 2002 to 2006.
• Member, Consulting Writer, Earth Stewards Committee, Sonoma First Congregational Church. Sonoma, CA. 2002 to 2003.
• Presenter, Author Reading, Sonoma County Literary Salon. Petaluma, CA. 2002.
• Literary Judge, On Water Contest, Sebastopol Center for the Arts. Sebastopol, CA. 1999.
• Presenter, Sonoma Writer’s Circle, Sonoma Community Center. Sonoma, CA. 1998.
• Literary Judge, Annual Sonoma Valley Writing Faire. Sonoma, CA. 1998 to 2012.
• Poet-Teacher, California Poets in the Schools. Sonoma, CA. 1996 to 2002.
• Presenter, Women in Grand Canyon, Friends of the River Conference. San Francisco. 1995.
• Instructor, Poetry and Spirituality Workshops. Sonoma First Congregational Church. Sonoma, CA. 1994 to 1997.

WORK EXPERIENCE

Writer, Consultant, 2014 to present
REBECCA LAWTON CONSULTING, Sonoma, CA

Executive Director, Nonprofit Organization, 2018 to 2020
PLAYA RESIDENCY PROGRAM, Summer Lake, OR

Visiting Research Chair, 2014 to 2015
FULBRIGHT CANADA, Edmonton, AB, Canada

 Director of Research, Director of Programs, Nonprofit Organization, 2000 to 2013
SONOMA ECOLOGY CENTER, Sonoma, CA

Project Geologist, Geological Consulting, 1996 to 1999
HARDING LAWSON ASSOCIATES, Novato, CA

Technical Editor and Writer, Geological Consulting, 1989 to 1996
RESNA and HARDING LAWSON ASSOCIATES, Fremont and Novato, CA

Science Writer and Editor, Education and Research, 1986 to 1988
PENN STATE UNIVERSITY, University Park, PA

Park Ranger and Technician, Research and Recreation, 1984 to 1986
U.S. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, Grand Canyon, AZ, and Dinosaur, UT

Wilderness Leader (Seasonal), Guiding and Interpretation, 1973 to 1983
AMERICAN RIVER TOURING ASSOCIATION, Oakland, CA

Staff Geologist (Seasonal), Geological Research, 1979 to 1983
U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY and R&M CONSULTANTS, CA and UT

PUBLICATIONS AND AUDIO/VIDEO ABOUT MY WORK

Rulf, Rick and Chelsea Peil, “Shaped by Water with Author Rebecca Lawton,” by Culture and Ecology: Stories from the Confluence Podcast on Anchor. https://anchor.fm/culteco/episodes/Shaped-By-Water–With-Author–Rebecca-Lawton-ecjg7m?fbclid=IwAR0Jtmlm7zD0wuVin9R6N0P_QFrDvVbNhG79R0HPnxYlams78N2Smdfwry8. April 9, 2020.

Stadtmueller, Maria Theresa, “Humans and Water: Big River Guide, Fluvial Geologist, and Writer Becca Lawton.” The Big Chew Podcast. http://meetyourmyth.com/reading-water-big-river-guide-fluvial-geologist-writer-becca-lawton/. September 2017.

Rosenfeld, Jordan. “Rebecca Lawton: The Wilderness Inside and Out.” Write Livelihood. http://jordanrosenfeld.net/6119-2/. February 29, 2016.

Olsen, Erica, “Steelies and Other Endangered Species by Rebecca Lawton.” Necessary Fiction. http://necessaryfiction.com/reviews/SteeliesandOtherEndangeredSpeciesbyRebeccaLawton. November 9, 2015.

Stephanie Naiman, “So You Want to Be a . . . River Guide.” Auntie Venom. http://auntievenom.com/so-you-want-to-be-a-river-guide/. November 2015.

Boon, Sarah, “Environmental Writer Interviews.” Watershed Moments: Thoughts from the Hydrosphere. https://snowhydro1.wordpress.com/2015/06/22/environment-writer-interviews-rebecca-lawton/. June 22, 2015.

Beck, Jeannie, “Scientist and Author Goes with the Flow.” Borrego Sun. Vol. 64, No. 7. March 26, 2015.

Chang-Yen Phillips, Chris, “What Graphs Cannot Tell.” Terra Informa. http://terrainforma.ca/2015/02/23/what-graphs-cannot-tell/. CJSR-FM. February 23, 2015.

Cumbo-Floyd, Andrea, “Stay Light about It All.” andilit.com. http://andilit.com/2015/01/24/stay-light-about-it-all-a-writers-write-interview-with-becca-lawton/. January 24, 2015.

Kallen, Christian, “River Runner, Writer, Publisher Tells How It’s Done.” http://healdsblog.com/community-news/river-runner-writer-publisher-tells-how-its-done/. January 13, 2015.

Necessary Fiction, “Research Notes: Steelies and Other Endangered Species.” http://necessaryfiction.com/blog/ResearchNotesSteeliesandOtherEndangeredSpecies, August 8, 2014.

Little Curlew Press, “Steelies and Other Endangered Species: Stories on Water.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZsoXWwpk5A. February 12, 2014.

B.R.A.G., “Author Interview: Rebecca Lawton.” http://www.bragmedallion.com/authors-chat/junction-utah-rebecca-lawton. December 13, 2013.

Book Goodies, “Interview with Author—Rebecca Lawton @LawtonRebeccaC.” Interviews with Authors. http://interviewswithwriters.com/interview-with-author-rebecca-lawton/. 2013.

Likowski, Jim, “Junction, Utah.” http://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Lawton/e/B001K7UN7M/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1. January 12, 2013.

Teal, Louise, “Becca Lawton.” Breaking into the Current. Tucson, Arizona: University of Arizona Press. 1996.

LaBastille, Anne, “Rebecca Lawton.” Women and Wilderness. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books. 1980.

ORGANIZATIONS

• Authors Guild, New York, New York
• After Oil, Faculty of Arts, University of Alberta, Edmonton
• Friends of PLAYA, Summer Lake, Oregon
• Fulbright Association, Washington, D.C.
• International Exchange Alumni, U.S. Department of State, Washington, D.C.
• International League of Conservation Writers, Golden, Colorado
• Mills College Alumni Association, Oakland, California
• Northwest Scientific Association, Spokane, Washington
• University of California Santa Cruz Alumni Association, Santa Cruz, California
• University of California Natural Reserve System, Oakland, California