Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 29 O C T O B E R 7 , 2 0 2 4 AWA R D 4 0 U N D E R 4 0 Our first pop up show in 2019 in my apartment in Portland. The power on the peninsula went out but we decided to continue with the show. We rented a generator and lit the show with construction lights. Since everywhere else in the city was dark, the place was packed. It had an electrifying energy and we were immediately hooked. It is where our name came from. Audacious goal: To raise $6 million dollars to fully renovate our Lights Out's building in Norway, Maine, into an arts and community hub. Favorite quote: "Take chances, make mistakes, get messy" — Ms. Frizzle, "Magic School Bus" series Influential book: "Hello Mr." — a magazine with 10 issues by Ryan Fitzgibbon Favorite podcast: "S-Town" or "This American Life" Best way to recharge: I love to kayak. At age 60: I see myself supporting a group of excited young people that want to build an organization that will have a huge impact. Naturalist educator on a mission Hazel Stark, 35 Co-founder and CEO, Maine Outdoor School L3C; registered Maine guide Significant professional accomplishment: Beyond co-founding Maine Outdoor School L3C in 2016, getting to the point where I was able to be full-time and salaried within my own business during the early years of the pandemic. Not having to have so many side jobs to make ends meet was a particular accomplishment. Current state of mind: My mind is busy these days, constantly trying to strike a sustainable work-life balance, alongside a working-on-the- business vs. working-in-the-business balance. Passion project: I spent the last seven years producing and writing half the epi- sodes of a five-minute weekly podcast and radio show called "The Nature of Phenology," all about what's going on outside through the seasons. It was a rewarding outlet for bringing lessons from nature to a different audience than I reach by my work at Maine Outdoor School. In June, I stepped away from that project to focus on some self-care and to start dreaming up my next pas- sion project — stay tuned! 'Lightbulb' moment: At the very end of college, just when I seemed poised to go down a path of ethnobotanical research, I realized that what I loved about ethnobotany was the human-plant relationships, not the research. So I took a leap and moved from Maine to California to work at an outdoor school where I taught sixth-graders science outside in the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas, in giant sequoia groves, and in a cave. That year was the lightbulb moment when I realized that teaching people about nature outside to build positive human- nature relationships had to be my career path. Audacious goal: To work myself out of a job because all Maine public schools inte- grate outdoor education so effectively that they don't need me anymore. Favorite quotes: It's a tie. "In the end we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we under- stand; and we will understand only what we are taught" — Baba Dioum. "The environment, after all, is where we all meet, where we all have a mutual interest. It is one thing that all of us share. It is not only a mirror of ourselves, but a focusing lens on what we can become" — Lady Bird Johnson. Influential book: "The Other Way to Listen," by Byrd Baylor Favorite podcast: "Ologies" with Alie Ward Best way to recharge: Quiet nature time, especially hiking, canoeing or camping with my dog At age 60: Retired early, watching Maine Outdoor School continue to thrive without me, so I can spend even more time adven- turing outside and working on other passion projects that yield a healthier planet. See the difference we're making in Northern Maine. See the difference we're making in Northern Maine. www.nmdc.org www.nmdc.org We're proud to support the next generation of Maine's We're proud to support the next generation of Maine's economic and community development leaders. economic and community development leaders. Congratulations to the 2024 Mainebiz 40 Under 40 recipients! Congratulations to the 2024 Mainebiz 40 Under 40 recipients! C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y

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