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About the Author
Luis Benitez is the emerging face of the outdoor industry’s political movement. He is a former international mountain guide who found his calling as an advocate, and currently serves as the Chief Impact Officer at Trust for Public Lands, a national nonprofit that is committed to making the outdoors accessible for all, for generations to come. During his guiding years with Adventure Consultants, he led famed blind mountaineer Erik Weihenmayer to the summit of Mount Everest. In 2015, Benitez was appointed the inaugural director of the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office by Colorado’s then-governor John Hickenlooper (now Senator). In 2019, he was named vice president of governmental affairs and global impact for VF Corp, parent company of outdoor industry giants The North Face, Smartwool, and Eagle Creek. Luis lives in Colorado with his wife and daughter, and spends ample time with his extended family in Ecuador.
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Higher Ground invites readers to explore the outdoor industry from the point of view of a renowned mountain guide who put his first-hand experience to work as a politician and advocate. The Outdoor Recreation industry is becoming a recognized economic force in the United States, now valued at $1.1 trillion annually (bigger than the automotive and pharmaceutical industries combined). From a family-owned ski resort in New Hampshire to Yellowstone National Park’s Old Faithful Inn, from fishing guides plying the Florida Keys to gear companies headquartered across the West Coast, the outdoor recreation sector employs more than 5 million people and directly touches countless lives across the country each year.
Through Higher Ground, readers will be taken on a personal journey of struggle and redemption, will understand the history and current impact of the outdoor industry, and will gain insights on the political action needed to ensure that our natural resources are recognized as critical infrastructure for the United States. Higher Ground shows us that this bipartisan economic powerhouse is poised to save the world.
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"The passion that led Luis to climb his first mountain continues to guide him to this day. He has been a true servant-leader, and this book is a remarkable look at how one life, and by extension, almost any life, can affect great change." -Senator John Hickenlooper
"Full of key data points as well as compelling anecdotes about its value and power, Higher Ground is well worth the time for outdoor recreation advocates of all shapes and sizes. But Higher Ground, is far more than an educational policy paper: It’s a compelling read capable of touching a far broader audience as well.
While painting a big picture and making a big ask is clearly the goal of the book (why else would the subtitle be How the Outdoor Recreation Industry Can Save the World), it’s the storytelling around Benitez’ life in the outdoors that is where “Higher Ground” moves from being pertinent to being a page turner. Those tales are wide ranging and intimately personal, including discovering his passion for climbing as a Missouri high schooler, early days guiding in the high altitude Andes, some poignant moments of racial awareness, and how he ended up at the heart of an international incident while climbing Cho Oyu. These are stories that will stick with you." - Drew Simmons, Elevation Outdoors