Hill Magazine Spring 2023

Editor’s Note

Welcome back to Hill.

Although I view myself as more of a city lover, I do have a deep appreciation for the outdoors. I love the hammock spots, the trees surrounding Fayetteville, and my favorite spot on campus is the Agricultural Teaching Garden. I wanted to hear more stories from others who also appreciate the nature Arkansas provides.

This is the first Spring print edition of Hill Magazine and we felt it was only fitting to focus on the natural state during this time of year. In this magazine you will find a collection of stories that highlight all the beauty of nature. From going outdoors in Arkansas with farming, biking, and climbing to the ideas of sustainability through art and travel, this edition covers so many unique natural stories in the state.

I’d like to give a huge thank you to everyone who made this edition possible. Thank you to our contributors who added vivid visuals and poetry to this edition. To two time assistant editor, Emma Dannenfelser, who pulled off both fantastic stories and edits filled with the perfect mix of care and criticism. I’d like to thank Alyssa Riley for making a smooth transition to our new website and promoting our stories to the best of her ability.

A special thanks to Blaise Keasler for producing another beautiful magazine and their assistant designer, Erika Fredericks, who helped that design come to life preparing to fill the role of senior designer next year. I’d like to thank newly appointed department chair Professor Schulte for working with me despite his busy schedule. And finally thank you all for picking up this edition.

We hope you enjoy Hill: The Nature Issue.

Thank you,

Victoria Hernandez Editor-in-Chief

Victoria Hernandez Editor-in-Chief

Emma Dannenfelser Assistant Editor

Alyssa Riley Online Content Editor

Blaise Keasler Senior Graphic Designer

Erika

Contributors

Victoria Hernandez is a junior from Flower Mound, Texas studying English and journalism with minors in history and gender studies. She loves winter weather, coffee, and music.

Emma Dannenfelser is a senior journalism major from Houston, Texas. Her favorite pastimes are hiking, watching romantic comedies and spending time with her friends. After college, her dream is to work for a travel and lifestyle magazine.

Alyssa Riley is a senior journalism major from Graham, Texas. She is also the student life section editor for the Razorback Yearbook and loves all things writing! Her dream job is to work as a lifestyle and entertainment writer for Cosmopolitan Magazine.

Victoria Hernandez

Alyssa Riley

Editor-in-Chief

Online Content Editor

Emma Dannenfelser Assistant Editor

Marshall Deree

Staff Photographer

Sarah Wittenburg

Blaise Keasler

Senior Graphic Designer

Blaise Keasler is a senior majoring in graphic design from Kansas City. They are moving to Philadelphia post-graduation, and their dream is to open their own tattoo studio.

Erika

Fredericks

Junior Graphic Designer

Erika Fredricks is a sophomore from Cabot, Arkansas who is majoring in Graphic Design and minoring in Art History. She loves all things creative, from pottery to baking, and dreams of working to create media for fashion and lifestyle brands after graduating.

Staff Photographer

Sarah Wittenburg is a junior from Conway, Arkansas, majoring in physics and minoring in art history and journalism. She is also the Photo Editor of the Razorback Yearbook and has been a photographer for six years. She loves taking photos to document her travels and experiences.

Marshall Deree is a freshman from Fayetteville, Arkansas pursuing a degree in Journalism. He has lived in multiple countries and developed a love of photography after capturing beautiful places across the globe.

Peyton Farber

Poet

Peyton Farber is a freshman majoring in Journalism. She is from Wichita, Kansas. A fun fact about Peyton is she has seen the entire royal family (including the late queen) in person.

Jasmine Sylvia James Poet

Jasmine Sylvia James is a senior majoring in Marketing, Finance and Psychology from Singapore and moved to the United States four years ago. In her free time, she writes poetry and spends time with her rescue dog, Milo!

Kaitlyn Widener

Poet

Kaitlyn Widener is a sophomore with a passion for the arts who has always had a knack for writing. Currently, she is a sophomore English major with a focus in creative writing. She was raised in Blytheville, Arkansas.

Lydia Fletcher Writer

Lydia Fletcher is a senior journalism major from Jonesboro, Arkansas. She is also the Station Manager for the student-run radio station, KXUA. When not writing or playing music on the radio, she loves hanging out with her two cats or trying out a new recipe. After college she hopes to either work in the music industry or write for a major publication’s arts and entertainment section.

Anne-Elise Tidwell Photographer

Anne-Elise Tidwell is a sophomore majoring in journalism. She’s from Little Rock, Arkansas and absolutely loves photography. She hopes that one day she can be a photographer professionally.

Photographer Emma Boydston

Emma Boydston is a second-year student at the school of art working towards a bachelor’s degree in studio art. She is from West Memphis, Arkansas, and has been taking photos since 2018 when she got her first DSLR camera. The main focus of her photography is things found in nature that are untouched by society. Another focus she has is humor.

Contributors

Marin McGrath is a junior journalism major from Frisco, Texas. She is passionate about coffee, obsessed with all things music and loves to spend time outdoors. Her dream is to work for a magazine in Colorado.

Isabella Larue is a sophomore multimedia journalism major from Little Rock, Arkansas. She’s always loved to write as well as create art since she was a kid. Her dream is to have a best-selling book published along with continuing her art.

Natalie Murphy is a sophomore journalism major from Dallas, Texas. She is also the Visuals Editor for The Arkansas Traveler newspaper. She loves writing stories that highlight female and queer communities in NWA. She hopes to work for a major magazine publisher after college.

Marin McGrath Writer

Isabella Larue Artist

Natalie Murphy Writer

Photo by Anne-Elise Tidwell.

by Marin McGrath

by Peyton Farber

by Jasmine Sylvia

by Emma Dannenfelser

by Emma Dannenfelser

Farming Fights Food Insecurity

Local nonprofit combats the NWA hunger crisis

by Lydia Fletcher

Photo by Marshall Deree.

As childhood hunger continues to impact Arkansas, many communities are working to end food insecurity, which affects 1 in 5 children in the state.

Tucked away at the edge of Gulley Park lies a farm not only cultivating crops but providing meals and education to equip children with tools to live a healthier lifestyle.

Apple Seeds NWA was founded in 2007 with the mission of introducing children to nutritious foods and inspiring them to make healthy choices. Volunteers soon discovered that many of the students they worked with did not have reliable access to fruits, vegetables, or other nutritious foods, as Arkansas is home to many food deserts.

Food deserts are areas that lack convenient options that provide affordable, healthy foods and Northwest Arkansas is home to both urban and rural food deserts, many of which impact low-income communities the most.

According to the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, “A community is a food desert or low food access location if residents must travel more than one mile in an urban setting or more than 10 miles in a rural setting to obtain a selection of fresh, nutritious food.”

Jordan Lanning, Director of Development became involved with Apple Seeds NWA in 2022 after wanting to help end food insecurity in NWA and also give students a sense of control over the foods they eat.

“I think as we get older we all forget what it’s like to be a kid,” said Lanning. “You spend 90 percent of your time being told what to do and how you need to do it. So this really gives kids the opportunity to take control of a portion of their life.”

As director of development, Lanning works to raise funds for and awareness about the organization. She said she thinks it is important for kids to be given the opportunity to know where their food comes from and what they can do with it.

The teaching farm occupies two acres of Gulley Park, where crops grow year-round. During the winter months, root vegetables like parsnips line the greenhouse, and the farming side of the program shifts to the culinary side of things. During the fall and summer, harvests are in full swing and students are given a closer look at everything that goes into gardening. Programming is offered year-round and over 15,000 students have visited the farm in person or through the organization’s virtual programming.

Programming includes allowing students to harvest, wash, prep, cook and eat vegetables, but to fully support the mission, Apple Seeds NWA also sends home those same ingredients and a recipe card. This allows students to recreate the meal with their families, and show off what they’ve learned. Recipes range from kale chips and sweet potato fries to zesty radish cream cheese or an apple beet crumble.

Regardless of the recipe, fruits and vegetables are brought front and center, encouraging students to try new foods with their peers, and then later with their families.

Though students may be apprehensive about trying a new vegetable, Programs Director Ryan Patterson said he tries to make sure they get to experience every aspect of gardening to ease some of the students’ worries.

“They’ve had so many different touchpoints by the time they try it, they’re more familiar with it,” said Patterson. “So 98 percent of the students were willing to try the snack we made during their field trip.”

Patterson has been with Apple Seeds NWA since 2020 and oversees all programming including those in schools and summer camps. He said he loves seeing students’ excitement when they learn about where their food comes from.

“It’s like magic,” said Patterson. “Being able to have them see that process happen in such a short amount of time while they’re here and see them connect those dots about where their food is coming from is just so cool.”

Patterson has helped provide the experience and education to over 60 schools, including through remote options offered to districts across the state.

Apple Seeds NWA works with the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance and Arkansas Children’s Research Institute to develop the Growing My Plate Program. This program is a food nutrition program focused on connecting students with fresh foods and the skills needed to cook them. This curriculum has been implemented all over the state, as the USDA recently gave the nonprofit a grant to expand this program.

The work Apple Seeds NWA does is felt consistently by the Northwest Arkansas community. In 2021, the organization donated almost 9,000 pounds of farm-fresh food to students and families in the community.

Patterson said, “It’s like magic. “Being able to have them see that process happen in such a short amount of time... and see them connect those dots about where their food is coming from is just so cool.”

Apple Seeds NWA donates food weekly to school food pantries and other youth organizations. Students who attend programming are sent home with recipe cards and the food needed to cook said recipe, but accessing healthy food daily is difficult for many Arkansans.

According to the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement, in 2019, there were only 1.7 grocery stores or produce vendors per 10,000 people in Arkansas, well below the national average of 2.1 per 10,000 people. Though corner stores and convenience stores may help fill this gap, the food they provide is often prepackaged snack foods and few pantry staples.

“What we see with the differences between urban and rural food deserts, is that in urban food deserts, there may be access to some kind of food, but it’s not necessarily healthy food or even affordable food,” said ACHI Senior Policy Analyst and Data Privacy Officer, Jennifer Wessel. “Versus in rural areas, it may just be limitations to getting to food in general.”

Though Arkansas is home to higher than the national average food insecurity, organizations and teaching farms like Apple Seeds NWA are working to end this epidemic and empower a generation to have access to the food needed to make healthy choices.

Apple Seeds NWA Associate Magdalene Bolton, photographed by Marshall Deree.

On the Road Again

People all over NWA are trading in traditional homes for one on wheels.

by Marin McGrath

Bill Harris adding finishing touches to a renovated van.

Photo by Sarah Wittenburg.

Thomas Rhines, 23, brought his passion for fixing cars to college at the U of A. After working closely with people who consider themselves “VanLifers” at Backwoods Adventure Mods, Rhines found his soulmate- a steel blue 1987 Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia.

It was love at first sight for Rhines and the van after he set his eyes on the vintage machine and he as soon as he saw it he thought ‘yep that’s the one I want,’ Rhines said.

While the inspiration for buying the vintage van came from his job, Rhines said the nature and outdoor resources that are easily accessible quickly became a benefit to having an all-in-one mobile home.

“The van is very slow- it doesn’t go many places, but it’s so fun to just get it out, take it on some back roads and camp in it,” he said. “Camping, for me, in college was a really good way to connect with friends like you can hang out, you can go to Dickson, you can do whatever but none of that will compare to camping.”

In 2023, more and more people are moving their life into a home not much more than 300 square feet, and it can go anywhere there’s a road. For most people, a dream home has a vast amount of luxury features. Perhaps, a wrap-around porch on a big plot of land, a media room with a screen fit for the theater, a library full of books or a pool in the backyard but for others the dream is being able to travel all over.

James Henson (left) and Bill Harris, photographed by Sarah Wittenburg.

With the flexibility of working from home, more people are taking the opportunity to travel and work all at once. The trending lifestyle is known as “van life.”

According to Statista, over three million people live in vans as of 2022.

The state of Arkansas is ranked the third best van life state, according to Satellite Internet.

Arkansas is full of outdoor activities that allow for van life to grow as much as it has. The Buffalo River provides a fly fisher’s paradise, Hot Springs provides access to the Ouachita Mountains and Bentonville serves as a treasure trove for mountain bikers.

“The access you have to all these things is almost year round,” Rhines said while pointing to the green grass outside. “You get some snow and ice, but realistically you can go mountain biking in Bentonville in January, you can go fly fishing on the White River in February and the thing I took for granted most was the mild climate.”

With the Natural State being so high on the list for best van life states, there are various businesses in NWA that specialize in the renovations of these vehicles- turned-homes, such as Open Road Campers.

Co-owner Bill Harris, 40, started building a van for a family of five to live in full time in 2019. The project finished, the emails started flooding his inbox and he and his business

partner quit their full-time jobs to start their business.

“The challenge and creativity of building in such a small space and trying to fit so many of the creature’s comforts into that small space is challenging but very rewarding at the same time,” Harris said. “Each day is something new.”

The process consists of curating designs that fit the needs of the customer while taking into account the small scale of the van. Each renovation is usually custom due to the various uses of these tiny mobile homes, including aspects suited for adventure or everyday living. The home is fit for van owners are able to travel, work remotely and live a sort of vagabond lifestyle on the road.

“You can bring your toys with you and have a mobile base camp with your necessities in there, a spot to cook your food, a bed, and plenty of room to put all your things so it works really well for Arkansas,” Harris said.

These renovated vehicles typically have at least one bed, a kitchen and seating area all in the back where passengers would usually sit during the drive. Special customs for Open Road Campers have included indoor and outdoor shower attachments, flush toilets, hot air and water as well as a stove and oven combo.

According to Muse & Co. Outdoors the average price for a brand new camper van with high quality amenities can range between $200,000 and $300,000.

Harris said, “The challenge and creativity of building in such a small space and trying to fit so many of the creature’s comforts into that small space is challenging but very rewarding at the same time. Each day is something new.”

The amenities and creative freedoms that go into these vans act as a testament to how much the trend has taken off. On social media, the hashtag ‘#vanlife’ has been used over 14 million times and various accounts exist with pages dedicated to all things van living.

With the popularization of the van life culture, many people have reevaluated what matters to them and what the want to spend their life doing. Thomas Rhines was just a kid in college with a love of fixing things and the outdoors. Bill Harris started with just one custom build for a family who reached out.

Both of them have cultivated what most people would consider the dream life: roaming around the world and taking in the beauty in the most unexpected of places.

Photo by Sarah Wittenburg.

By Peyton Farber

Cherry B lossom

I stumbled upon a cherry blossom on my way to another bad day

The petals picked me out of my misery

Their vibrancy told me to look up instead of down

The bees sang me a song, reminding me that tragedy can come in the form of music

Around me the world crumbled

The ground shook, the sidewalk cracked into a million pieces, and we no longer have a place to stand

But the cherry blossom was my home for a moment. It was my refuge, my sidewalk, reminding me that unity remains for the bees, so it must exist somehow for us

Bringing the Outdoors In

How rock climbing is growing and adapting in the Ozarks

by Victoria Hernandez

Lori Rooney, a Springdale teacher and coach, is stretching out across the gravel at the Jamestown Crag, sweat dripping down despite the cool breeze. Even after nearly a decade of climbing, the rush still gets to her. She takes each crevasse of the rock pressed against her carefully, one at a time, making it to her destination with ease despite dangling above the ground below.

Rooney said she was always big into the outdoors. After moving from Wisconsin at a young age to avoid the cold, Rooney grew up in the South. She attended college at the University of Central Arkansas to run track from 2005 to 2009, but was drawn back to the vast outdoor opportunities of Northwest Arkansas in 2019.

She never rock climbed until a childhood friend of her husband’s took the couple out to a crag for the weekend. The couple climbed every weekend after that for two years.

Over the past few years, many people have taken to rock climbing like Rooney. The sport has moved from being strictly competitive to more of a trending hobby.

With the growth of interest, more indoor facilities have been created, making rock climbing more accessible. Boulders and Brews, a climbing gym and coffee shop located on Dickson Street, is one of those facilities.

Patrick Randall, a friend of Rooney’s, has moved on from just the hobby of rock climbing to entrepreneur, partnering with Fallon Cardoza and Jason Lan to create the business.

“There’s a few (other places like Boulders and Brews). The space really allowed us, the Clubhaus gym that used to be here, it had a smoothie bar and so (having) coffee was really important,” he said. “Whenever you go out climbing, I have coffee with me and so it’s just part of that outdoor experience.”

Supplied by Onyx beans and Pinkhouse syrups, the coffee stays local because the business is local. Randall said places like Fayetteville are becoming rare and to keep that tight knit community, supporting each other wherever they can.

technology, VR,” Randall said. “The sport’s just going in all different directions and it’s exciting to see.”

Rooney’s passion for rock climbing grew from more than just a pastime like Randall’s. Less than a year into her journey, Rooney trained and competed in King of the Crag.

The King of the Crag competition takes place outside of Batesville at the Jamestown Crag. The contest raises money for rebolting and upkeep of the trail system to keep people coming out to enjoy the climbing. The outdoor sport climbing competition hosts three levels, including recreational, advanced and rock god. Rooney won first place for the recreational division only three months after starting the sport.

Following her win at King of the Crag, Rooney looked into more competing opportunities and set her eyes on Horseshoe Hell. In 2014, Rooney attended as a spectator to see her friend compete and left thinking ‘this is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.’

Boulders and Brews is an indoor climbing gym, but since they all came from the outdoors, the owners also want to give climbers the tools and information for all the outdoor climbing the state has to offer, Randall said.

The trio’s desire was to create a space where the outdoors can still be appreciated when the Arkansas weather gets in the way of climbing the crag, perfecting a place for friends to hangout and climb in an indoor atmosphere, Cardoza said. Beyond allowing climbing to continue despite the everchanging Southern weather, the indoor experience is becoming more incorporated into the previously outdoor only sport.

“There’s no real regulations on climbing. There’s no standardization. New boards have been coming out everyday, there’s new

By 2016, Rooney and a partner finally got the chance to compete in Horseshoe Hell. In order to qualify, the climbers had to complete 100 routes in 24 hours. Rooney and her partner managed to finish with 104.

“She had actually gotten second place in it and people apply from all over the world to get into this so she was like a legend and I didn’t know who I was with,” said Randall about his first experience climbing with Rooney. Everyone was coming up and talking to them since “she was basically like a celebrity out there.”

“We spent the entire day (climbing) and after that day I bought the shoes, I bought the harness, I bought everything I could and just fully dived in,” Randall said.

Like Randall, Cardoza and Lan are fellow rock climbing enthusiasts.

Randall said, “We spent the entire day (climbing) and after that day I bought the shoes, I bought the harness, I bought everything I could and just fully dived in.”

Cardoza began rock climbing five years ago, living out of a van and climbing all across the U.S. and Canada. Arkansas is a really big mecha for sports climbing with some of the best sandstone around, she said.

“When you’re on the wall, the prong is just like a challenge against yourself and the wall and not like someone else,” Lan said. “The problem solving aspect of climbing and having the physical strength. It’s pretty much a physical thing where the stronger that you get, the better you’ll do so I’ve always loved that you’re not dependent on whether you have a good racket or if you’re bad or whatever, it’s like you, yourself, so I’ve always loved that.”

Beyond the sport side of rock climbing, there’s the spiritual side of battling fear and relying on your abilities, Randall said.

“Not many sports offer that opportunity so it is much more of you battling yourself, battling your own internal voice that you set for yourself. It’s whenever you’re reaching for a hole you’re like ‘man I can’t do that’ but the only way you’re ever going to try to get that climb in or to get that send or get that next step is to reach past that fear that you set for yourself,” he said. “I mean that applies for not just climbing, but anything in life. That anything is achievable if you just give it a shot.”

Rock climbing allows for growth physically, mentally, spiritually and socially. These characteristics behind it have built up the sport with a strong community.

“We don’t know where the sport is going and that’s why it’s much easier for us as business owners to know that regardless of wherever the sport goes we know that everyone is looking for connection,” Randall said. “Everyone has something to say. Everyone wants everyone else to listen and offering a space that is not too big where you feel alone, but that’s not small enough to where you’re crawling on everyone, where you feel claustrophobic. It’s the perfect size that allows strangers to communicate and try routes out together. It’s just been such a cool experience to witness.”

Randall said. “The sport’s just going in all different directions and it’s exciting to see.”

Jason Lan (left), Patrick Randall (center), and Fallon Cardoza, photographed by Sarah Wittenburg.

Everything about my garden is perfect

The tomato plants my parents obsess over

The buzzing bees milo never stops chasing

There’s something about watching nature grow and blossom That feels like magic

Truth be told, I hate gardening

Perhaps I’m just a little jealous

Even the little sapling milo loves to dig out

Seems to have stronger roots Than I do

by Jasmine Sylvia James

Striving for Innovation, Inclusivity and Accessibility within the Mountain Biking Community

Bentonville serves as the new Home of the U.S National Mountain Bike Team for good reason.

by Emma Dannenfelser

Photo by Marshall Deree.

In December 2022, United States of America Cycling, the national governing body for bicycle racing across the U.S, announced that Bentonville would be replacing Colorado Springs as the official “Home of the U.S National Mountain Bike Team.”

While this announcement may come as a shock to many, those familiar with Northwest Arkansas and the way mountain biking has become interwoven with work, play and community service, it is no surprise.

The blossoming of the mountain bike scene over the last few decades is nothing new to Northwest Arkansas, said Ozark Off-Road Cyclist club member HB Fink. Fink, a Fayetteville native, began mountain biking in the ‘80s when he was living in Fort Smith and the only real accessible trails for biking were located at Devil’s Den State Park, nearly an hour away.

Many times, biking trails would be difficult to distinguish from hiking trails, often resulting in a “Hike-A-Bike” situation, meaning the rider must resort to carrying their bike on their shoulders, Fink said with a chuckle.

The transformation into what the mountain biking scene looks like today can be largely credited to one man, Tim Scott, Fink explained.

Scott, working at Devil’s Den State Park, began the mountain-biking crusade in September 1989 when he brought, probably, the first ever mountain biking festival and race in Arkansas to the park. Local bike shops helped host the event and around 100 people joined in the action, Scott added.

In 1997, the Ozark Off-Road Cyclist Club (OORC) was formed, unifying like-minded cyclists, racers and bike-shop owners. The club’s main goals include building, preserving and maintaining the majority of bike trails throughout the state, additionally serving as advocates for fellow off-road cycling enthusiasts, Rob Reno, the current trails coordinator for the OORC, said.

The club has more than 300 members and hosts cycling events across Northwest Arkansas, such as their annual Upper Buffalo Headwaters Challenge. The event, which covered two days, was at one time the largest group mountain bike ride in the state, with 200 to 300 riders embarking on the challenge, Fink said. This year, the race was attended by riders from sixteen different states, Reno added.

However, what makes up a sizable aspect of not just the OORC, but also the Northwest Arkansas biking community as a whole, is dedication to serving the community and giving back. Volunteers maintain, improve and patrol trails, keeping them safe and clear for Northwest Arkansas residents and visitors from out of town alike.

Recently, the OORC has begun partnering with trail running, hiking and other outdoor recreation clubs to maintain the trails that each group uses for their individual sports, Fink said.

“In the past, 99.9% of trail maintenance and building was done by mountain bikers,” Reno said. “But trail runners and hikers are actually some of the trail’s biggest users. So, now we have the trail running groups coming out, and the Northwest Arkansas branch of the Trail Sister’s, an all-female hiking club, which is great to have more people helping with the work.”

The biking community also emphasizes supporting the next generation of mountain bikers in the area. The organization Pedal It Forward works with community members to refurbish and repair used bikes that are then donated to children and adults in need of transportation, or just the freedom that a bike can offer, Executive Director, Kenny Williams, said. According to the Pedal It Forward website, since 2014 the organization has donated over 6,500 bikes to those in need.

Williams said,“We never know exactly what a bike can do for a kid, but there’s a good chance that it could be something that significantly changes the quality of their childhood.”

Lake Fayetteville biking trail, photographed by Marshall Deree.

“We just believe that a bike is kind of a simple thing but it provides a lot of freedom and affordable outdoor time to a kid and can really be a positive influence in their life,” Williams said. “We never know exactly what a bike can do for a kid, but there’s a good chance that it could be something that significantly changes the quality of their childhood.”

According to the Walton Family Foundation, Northwest Arkansas has 484 total miles of trails, comprising 322 miles of “natural surface” trails and 162 miles of “multi-use paths.”

While Arkansas may lack the breath-taking scenery and rugged mountains that other popular outdoor recreation destinations, such as Utah or Colorado, its proximity to numerous trail heads and its community’s dedication to maintaining those trails is what earned it the title of “mountain biking capital of the world.”

Today, Northwest Arkansas is exemplary in the mountain biking community for numerous reasons, but the most unique aspect is the region’s unmatched accessibility to safe, well-maintained, and innovative trails.

“Access is the number one thing that sets Northwest Arkansas apart. You can’t beat it here,” Reno said. “I can just open my garage, get on my bike and be on the trails in five minutes. In Bentonville, you just have to leave the downtown area and you’ll hit the trails. With the new Fayetteville Traverse being built, you’ll be able to bike a circle around the entire Fayetteville area.”

Northwest Arkansas’ innovation and passionate biking community is on full display with developments like the world’s first ever bikeable building, a community-hub called Ledger, in downtown Bentonville that will hold retail spaces, offices and bookable event space.

Accessibility is also a factor in making mountain biking a more inclusive activity for all men, women and children alike. Programs like Trailblazers strive to advocate for more, and safer, Greenway systems across Northwest Arkansas in order to better serve minority and low-income families, Ciara Logan, a project manager at Trailblazers, explained. Biking can not only serve as a hobby, but also as a form of transportation to work and other necessities.

“One of the biggest reasons we do so much advocacy for more Greenway trails is because we want every single family, especially in low-income areas, to be able to leave their house, hop on a Greenway and ride to school, or work or the grocery store, and not worry about having car,” Logan said.

Trailblazers also creates inclusivity to the biking community by offering adult “FirstRide” bike riding classes. The class teaches adults who have never been on a bike how to ride and currently has a waitlist due to its high popularity, Logan said.

Fayetteville as a whole has a steadfast dedication to community and service, the biking community found within Northwest Arkansas is no different. Club members, park employees and community organization leaders are striving to not only create a biking scene that is competitive with the best biking trails in the world, but also a place that is constantly innovating more ways to be inclusive throughout the community.

Reno said, “Access is the number one thing that sets Northwest Arkansas apart. You can’t beat it here.”

Photo by Marshall Deree.

“Mr. Frog” by Emma Boydston.

Arkansas

by Kaitlyn Widener

The mockingbird sings over the natural state, as it soars over the sprouting rows of cotton in the spring breeze. Returning from a vacation further south, he remembers his journey from the Ozarks to the river, down the valleys and towards the flatland.

The alluring beauty of the state is captured in the river that glistens like diamonds in the sunset, and the apple blossoms that pinken like blush in the springtime, The richness of the state is cultivated in the rice fields that green in the summer and are gathered in the fall, to make way for the corn that will be harvested next season. The prosperity of the state is found in its diverse population of people and wildlife who grace even the most remote corners.

Still, as the mockingbird continues its memorable flight, the beauty of the state continues to surpass expectations day and night. Many come and go from the state they have barely gotten to know, but only the mockingbird embraces it as it calls him home.

Mother Nature & Her Creative Daughters

by Natalie Murphy

Photo by Sarah Wittenburg.

Nature mirrors what it means to be a woman. In the way wind dances in hair, making it full of knots and twists, exasperating one’s feminine urge to look put together. Or its ability to imprint and fossilize aspects of character much like a mother does with her daughters.

It feels particularly poetic to be able to experience nature as a female. Maybe it is the nurturing tendencies, the ability for new growth or the resemblance of beauty that has created the reference of mother nature, understood so deeply throughout the world, but in a place like Fayetteville, it feels symbiotic.

Arkansas, known as the Natural State, lives up to the title in more ways than one. Between the surrounding Ozarks that are masked by towering trees and the peaceful water of the streams that flow through Northwest Arkansas, there is much to be captured by eye, camera or paintbrush.

Coexisting alongside Mother Earth are female creatives at the University of Arkansas. Inspired in a state known for its many hiking trails, shimmering rivers and vast wilderness, it’s not surprising there are many female students who choose to implement this connection in their work. And for each of their creations, there is a different approach and identity attached to this incredibly complex relationship.

For most, the immediate illusions that come to mind when characterizing nature and femininity are beauty and elegance. Both in delicacy and strength, it is easy to admire beauty, but sophomore art student Celestia Petrykozy takes a more somber approach to the topic.

“I gravitate towards things that have a lot of contrast and emotional weight. So things that look ditsy but are a lot heavier,” she said. “I feel like, especially as a woman artist, that’s kind of how I feel empowered. To buy into those stereotypes and then subvert them.”

Petrykozy works within the medium of photography, largely capturing images of female confidants in frilly dresses masked by a bareness of trees and desolate surroundings. Her artistry highlights the delicateness of both nature and women and the effect the world has on the livelihood of each. Captured are also themes of death and decomposition in her art, used as reference to rebirth.

“The opportunity that comes from death like animals’ bodies fertilizing soil which transforms energy and so on was kind of the aspect I was really into,” she said. “I do like to draw parallels from roadkill to girlhood in my work. That’s a recurring metaphor for me that I like to revisit.”

Similar to mankind’s yearning to control and tame nature is the idea of the submissive and

objectified woman. Both underappreciated, yearning to be seen and allowed to grow in a world that constantly cuts them down. Petrykozys work is a testament to that as she uses “young, beautiful girls in the most oppressive landscapes,” she said.

A different approach to this narrative can also be viewed in much of sophomore Ava Obert’s work. The art major’s delicate paintings of watercolor landscapes of Arkansas never goes without the construction of humanity, a theme she portrays stunningly.

Much of her work consists of power lines, cars and buildings amongst greenery and overgrown vegetation: proof of the Earth’s ability to overtake much of human kind’s creations. Obert said it almost feels wrong for her to not include mankind’s imprint into her landscapes.

“I’m always attracted to mother nature and humans colliding. I love painting alleyways with ivy forcing its way into the scene,” Obert said.

It’s the persistence in nature she enjoys painting that can also be seen in women to reclaim their rights, bodies and peace. She recognizes her most serene moments as the times spent with her mentor Duane Hada, an Arkansas landscape painter, and credits him as part of the reason she fell in love with the craft. On their painting trips to the Buffalo River, capturing the mighty currents and white water rapids made her “feel alive” she said. This feeling is one she experiences often and hopes others can continually search for.

Petrykozy said, “I feel like, especially as a woman artist, that’s kind of how I feel empowered. To buy into those stereotypes and then subvert them.”

Art by Drew Webb.

Preservation in this sense is a key factor in many U of A artists. The sustainable approach taken on by many is a true testament to the symbiotic relationship with nature. And with the conversation largely surrounding the fashion industry, the university’s fashion merchandising majors are working to redirect towards a sustainable narrative while finding space for women in the outdoors.

Ashlee Andress, a senior, has taken her love for nature and implemented it into her work throughout her time at the university. In her projects, she takes crucial steps to utilize sustainable materials such as reusing old scraps. One of her biggest pieces made for her Advanced Apparel Production class used thrifted and repurposed items along with the technique of quilting, something she resonates with because of her grandmother.

“My grandmother quilts and has made us quilts. And it’s kind of something you get to pass down, in the same way, if we are good stewards with our Earth, we get to pass that down to our future generations,” she said.

Second to creating sustainably is her urge to pave a solid foundation for other women in the outdoor communities. It is one of the reasons she said she wants to create her own athleisure brand that inspires women to enjoy nature by means of exercise. Her goal is to produce clothing for women such as Obert who enjoys camping and hiking like Petrykozy in Arkansas, finding artistic inspiration from their outdoor experiences.

The ambiance of Fayetteville’s outdoor community is one to be explored by these women. For Petrykozy and sophomore graphic design student Drew Webb, they immerse themselves in Wilson park, finding uniqueness in the running creeks and the strong trunks of trees. Their creative senses are seemingly heightened, they both said.

“The way you feel nurtured by nature feels feminine,” Webb said. “It flushes out all my

anxiety when it comes to being creative. I walk outside and being creative makes sense.”

Between the stresses of school work and maintaining inspiration, Webb said she acclimates better when she isn’t surrounded by such man-made aspects of the world. She takes much of her design inspiration from insects such as beetles and the overall textures and colors of the Earth’s vast palette.

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Ashlee Andress

Enclothe Fashion Show, a showcase of sustainable garments designed by U of A students.

Many draw creative inspiration from the Natural State, such as the scenery of Riverside Park.

Photographed by Sarah Wittenburg.

They can even be seen implemented into her clothing with the use of decorative felt patches of her graphics that reflect nature’s “organic flow”.

Some of Webbs most thought provoking ideas come from her walks along the Razorback Greenway. Her love for tree’s shines bright as they line the paved path she takes to her classes everyday. It’s these moments of outdoor connection provided by Fayetteville that she appreciates so much.

The same is said by Obert, who has an art studio at Mount Sequoyah. Met by the spectacular views of the city provided by the popular look out spot and the common wildlife, she often finds herself painting on sight, capturing any moment she feels is one to emulate.

“I remember every painting, especially if I painted it on site. I know the story of the painting and who I met and what the weather was like. Getting to be there is just a lot more personal. Getting a sunburn from painting is like a memory. It’s just an imprint on your body of that day and of the painting,” she beautifully explained.

Not only does the painter share her space with nature and its creations, but also other female creatives who have personal studios within the higher grounds of the mountain, such as her studio neighbor, author Crescent Dragonwagon. The two of them even enjoy a nook together at the very end of the long shared hallway, furnished almost in accordance with the windows’ picturesque view.

Webb said, “It flushes out all my anxiety when it comes to being creative. I walk outside and being creative makes sense.”

Photo by Sarah Wittenburg.

Exuberant inspiration comes from female friendships in the creative community and it is even more special when it’s being shared outside.

“There is nothing like being in nature with other women. I can be creative all I want on my own and that feels right, but the type of creativity you feel when you’re with women in nature; you can tell something special is happening,” Webb said.

With the help of her roommate, the graphic designer has taken up the project of illustrating and writing what they like to call the “Willow Fables”, a collection of tales featuring the trinkets and knick-knacks found around their apartment as they explore the ins and outs of Fayetteville. It’s creations such as this that are direct outcomes of female confidants’ exposure to the outdoors.

Petrykozy’s photography is also a picturesque representation of what working with an all female team is like. Her friends are always the focal point of her work and bring a sense of euphoric girl power to her pieces.

Despite whether or who it is shared, the connection these creatives have with nature is one of nurtured and intellectual understanding. The outdoor spaces utilized are keeping them in touch with themselves as well as the world around them.

“You can be disconnected from people in a room, but it’s hard to be disconnected from wind touching your face or just the tactile experience of nature,” Petrykozy shared.

These experiences yearn to be shared through their artistry and it is what will continue to create pathways for other women creatives. In doing so, the connection and poetic metaphors between mother nature and her daughters will live on for generations, not just as means for inspiration but as an appreciation for one’s self and surrounding.

“We have so much more influence than we think we do in our environment. And I think that we, as human beings, get to be the ones to steward it well,” Andress said. “It’s our responsibility to take care of this earth that we live on. If we don’t, people aren’t going to be inspired by it in the future and enjoy it the same level we do.”

“Amidst the Moss” by Isabella Larue.

Tick, Tick, Tourism Boom

Northwest Arkansas has become the pinnacle of modern work and play, with visitors traveling from across the globe. With the combination of increased tourism and slews of new residents every day, what will be left for Ozark natives?

by Emma Dannenfelser

With the tourism boom and increasing emphasis on outdoor recreation in the last 20 years, concerns have been raised that burgeoning rates and impending over-development will eventually force lower-income Northwest Arkansas residents out of the Ozark region that has been their home for generations.

Jared Phillips, a history professor at the University of Arkansas, explained that organizations like the Walton Family Foundation are following the template of the “absentee landlord” mentality by coming into the region and seeing potential for an extractive economy of some sort.

“To have a tourism economy, you have to have affluence,” Phillips said. “Poor folk don’t do these things, as a general rule. At least not in the way we see it being done right now.”

Northwest Arkansas saw the change when the early 2000s endured a shift from a primarily agricultural economy to an outdoor recreation and “experience”-based economy. Unfortunately, what historically happens in many situations is that national “fads” and trends will shift and leave behind an economic wreckage for locals, Phillips said.

“You can see that in the legacy of the damming towns and the mining towns. Just the archeology of disaster, you can see it going through that arch,” Phillips said.

One of the main consequences of the recreation economy is that it fundamentally does not address the poverty throughout the community. Instead, it leads to rising costs in housing and food that will eventually drive away Arkansas natives who can no longer afford the Northwest Arkansas area.

Phillips used popular Colorado tourism destinations, such as Pagosa Springs and Durango, as examples of tourism driving housing prices through the roof and eradicating families that had been there for generations from the region.

While many housing studies do suggest that tourism can cause poverty levels to shrink, it’s usually not because poverty is “fixed” but actually because low-income residents are forced to leave, Phillips explained.

Phillips is a proud Northwest Arkansas native whose family has called the Ozarks home for generations and his fierce loyalty and dedication to the community is a clear reflection of that. For some, like Phillips, who wear the age-old Ozark “hillbilly” nickname like a badge of honor, organizations like the Walton Family Foundation, and others that aim to reshape the economy and culture of the area, are met with caution.

Phillips said he hopes that these organizations will focus on Northwest Arkansas natives even as hoards move to the area from across the globe. Arkansas has undeniably unique employment statistics, with only 4.4% of Arkansans unemployed yet 60% qualifying as what Phillips called “ALICE,” which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained and Employed; this shows that an emphasis on providing affordable housing and striving to eradicate food scarcity should be considered.

Northwest Arkansas is home to some of the largest and most influential, powerful companies in the world, Tyson Foods and Walmart. According to an article by Olivia Paschal, a historian, writer and Arkansas native, these larger-than-life companies have a disproportionate impact on the economics and politics of the region.

Arkansas is ranked seventh highest for poverty rates across the U.S, according to the Citizens Guide to Understanding Arkansas Economic Data, and Arkansas Business News reports that Walmart and Tyson currently hold the second and third spots for top

Arkansas employers. Because of this, a huge portion of Northwest Arkansas residents work for these companies, many times for far-less than a fair wage, creating a cycle of poverty for some that elevates those at the helm.

Many of these workers who are making below a living wage are facing sky-rocketing housing and general cost-of- living prices due to large companies outsourcing corporate and tech employees, thus driving up prices, Paschal said.

“We have a lot of folks working at Walmart, Tyson or J.B Hunt that are making below living wage, such as workers on poultry processing lines, new immigrants or people who work at the various manufacturing factories we still have here, and we want to keep them right? But, where are those folks supposed to live?” Paschal said. “A lot of them used to live in downtown Springdale, but now it’s also being developed for Tyson’s new headquarters. Figuring out where these people are supposed to live should be a priority.”

The funding behind these developments, including the hyper-focus on tourism, is particularly narrow, coming in huge doses from the top companies in the area, which means the control they have seems even more severe, Paschal explained.

In the case of Walmart’s very own Walton family, who combined have a networth of $247 billion as of 2020, one of the primary means that their power and influence in the community is retained is through their philanthropic organization, The Walton Family Foundation, Paschal said. The Walton Family Foundation works on three main areas including K-12 education improvement, protecting rivers, oceans and the communities they support as well as investing in their home region of Northwest Arkansas.

Many programs funded by the Foundation are beneficial for all members of the Northwest Arkansas community, with an array of initiatives focusing on access to nature in Arkansas. “These elements to the

Phillips said, “Thirty-million dollars not spent on recreation that only a very small portion of the population can access, would have radically altered, for the better, life for thousands of families in these counties.”

Ledger, the world’s first bikeable building, located in downtown Bentonville.

Foundation’s work are really good, because a lot of these kinds of organizations don’t have access to other funders,” Paschal said.

One organization funded by the Foundation is the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust, an organization that strives to buy back land in order to preserve it and remove some of the developmental stressors from the region, while protecting the immense natural beauty and diversity that makes Northwest Arkansas so unique.

The Greenway Trail system that the Walton family largely funded throughout Northwest Arkansas is one excellent example of something funded by the Foundation that provides accessibility to nature and can be enjoyed and utilized by a vast array of Northwest Arkansas residents, Phillips said.

However, not every initiative funded by the Foundation is as accessible as the Greenway Trails. In 2019, the Foundation invested $30 million into mountain bike trails in Northwest Arkansas. According to Phillips, that $30 million could have eradicated food scarcity in at least two counties within Northwest Arkansas for several years.

“Thirty-million dollars not spent on recreation that only a very small portion of the population can access, would have radically altered, for the better, life for thousands of families in these counties,” Phillips said.

The effects of tourism are not only applicable for the economy and lower-income residents in the Ozarks, it is also impacting the very landscape that beckons visitors every year. The negative effects of tourism can not only impact natural resources, such as the Buffalo River, but also can completely change the structures of the surrounding community, Missouri State University professor, Bernard Kitheka, said.

Construction and development alone are detrimental to the environment since concrete is known to produce significant amounts of heat-trapping greenhouse gasses. MIT’s Climate Portal reported that

as of 2016, concrete alone made up 7% of all greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

“Bentonville, it’s beginning to get too constructed. The more you pave the community, build walls and the more you construct it, the more you change the structure of the community and people begin to become subjects and objects,” Kitheka said. “Instead they should be able to just enjoy these beautiful, forested and peaceful areas where you can raise kids in a way that is connected to nature. But now, it is just more construction, more cars and more parking lots.”

In cities where ecotourism is highly focused on, the residents are often the ones who suffer instead of benefit. Even though the nature attractions bring in business and money, residents are forced to endure excess waste, traffic and crime due to the influx of visitors who have their own customs and ways of living, Kitheka said.

The increase in development has severely impacted many of the rivers in Northwest Arkansas, said Kitheka. Runoff of chemicals, waste left by visitors and overall mistreatment of trails or nature attractions have all contributed to rivers turning green, fish dying and diverse ecosystems breaking down, Kitheka said.

Before Northwest Arkansas became the sexy, sleek and modern metropolitan experiment that it is known for today, there was art, culture, work and families who proudly loved and built the region for generations upon generations.

“In an interview, Alice Walton said that ‘before she brought Crystal Bridges to Northwest Arkansas there was no culture here.’ Frankly, that’s bullshit.” Phillips said. “That erases the legacy of not just my family, but it erases the legacy of millions of families who have lived and worked and died and cried, got married and painted and written and done all kinds of stuff here. They built lives of beauty here.”

“A Bug’s Point of View” by Emma Boydston.

“Shrooms” by Emma Boydston.