Describe where you live and work, and what is it you do.

I live and work in Hailey, Idaho. As president of Lava Lake I oversee all the business and conservation activities of our company across a million acres in central Idaho.

I am also co-founder and principal of Pioneer Mountain Group where I lead a conservation advisory business focused on conservation and land-based businesses.

Does your work allow you to feel a connection to life and its sustainability, not just through the product you provide but by how you acquire it and work with that product?

Yes, the connections to the land, to wild animals and to the people who live and use that land, are deep, and our priorities are to maintain these connections through sustainable management and responsibility.

What makes you happy and content? How do you spend your moments of leisure if there are any? What do you give thanks for?

Spending time with loved ones. Getting out into the mountains, on ski and on foot and on bike. I give thanks for love, health, and the opportunity to be a leader and to have great adventures.

Visit Mike Stevens at:

www.lavalakelamb.com

My work is guided by my values and by my love for the land and wildlife. I view my work as my most important form of self-expression and my means of contributing to my community and society. Its is a central commitment in my life, after my commitment to family and friends.

It has been said that modern day, conventional farming on a large scale no longer involves the intelligent input of the farmer as everything comes out of a packet for maximum yield and uniformity of shape and size. How involved are you in the process of what you do and provide?

Is your work part of what defines you as a person? If so, why?

Our work is deeply personal and human, whether it is managing sheep grazing over huge swaths of country, restoring streams, or engaging people in the work. There is an enormous amount of thought, attention to detail, and mental flexibility required in what we do.