Melissa DiNino - Building a Unique Life in Big Sky Country

Melissa DiNino is a biologist, artist, and designer who currently lives and works in Montana’s legendary Tom Miner Basin. A native easterner, Melissa moved West soon after college to work as a range rider-- a job that involves monitoring livestock on horseback in an effort to encourage the successful coexistence of livestock and apex predators in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. In her role as a range rider, Melissa developed a deep appreciation for Montana’s spectacular landscapes, the challenging relationship between people and predators, and the importance of compassionate communication between all stakeholders. • Melissa grew up in Connecticut, and developed an early love of adventure and the outdoors while spending time at her family’s cabin in Maine. She’s also a committed athlete and played competitive basketball from age five through college. As you’ll hear, Melissa is humble and soft spoken, but she has a track record of pushing herself hard, both in academics and athletics, as well as in her present-day professional work and art. Although only in her mid-20s, Melissa is wise beyond her years and is committed to doing meaningful work in a place that she loves, surrounded by a supportive community… and she’s making it happen in an inspiring way. • I know regular listeners will really enjoy this conversation, but it will be especially valuable to anyone who is in the early stages of their career, looking to do work that is meaningful and fulfilling. Melissa and I discuss her path to Montana, as well as some of the challenges and funny mishaps of adjusting to life in the West. We talk about the realities of piecing together a variety of different jobs and artistic endeavors, while remaining focused on the big picture of doing work that matters. We chat about lessons learned from athletics, the value of being competitive with oneself, and importance of being willing to “put yourself out there” in creative pursuits. We also dig into some details around wolves, grizzlies, and the importance of civil discourse when discussing emotional subjects like wolves. And as usual, we talk about favorite books, films, and places in the West. Links to everything are in the episode notes. •Thanks so much for listening, and I hope you enjoy this conversation with Melissa DiNino! ••• Notes: http://mountainandprairie.com/melissa-dinino/ https://www.melissadinino.com ••• 3:30 - How Melissa describes her work 4:50 - Range riding explained 9:30 - Balancing grazing and predators 11:15 - The human element of range riding 13:00 - How Melissa started range riding 14:45 - Transition to Montana 16:15 - Embarrassing Montana story 19:45 - Growing up in Connecticut 20:30 - Adventures in Maine 21:30 - Parents’ influence 24:10 - Basketball 25:55 - Competition and lessons learned from sports 29:00 - Why she chose to study wolves 32:25 - Tips for having tough conversations 36:00 - Stories of collaboration 37:30 - Crazy stories from range riding 38:45 - Books about wolves 42:00 - Background in design 43:15 - Art and watercolors 46:10 - Artistic mentors 48:00 - Future plans 50:00 - Mentors 51:20 - Favorite books 53:00 - Favorite films 54:00 - Weird hobbies 55:20 - Most powerful outdoor experience 1:01:00 - Favorite location in the West 1:02:00 - Request of the listeners 1:02:50 - Connect with Melissa online