Maddox Distinguished Speaker Series Presents: Pete McBride & Kevin Fedarko

New York Times best-selling author of A Walk in the Park and The Emerald Mile, Kevin Fedarko brings to life the wild places we share and the adventurers who find their solace in nature. Pete McBride is a National Geographic photographer and filmmaker who documents wild places and fresh water to inspire a sustainable future.

Kevin Fedarko has spent 20 years writing and speaking about adventure, conservation, exploration, and the Grand Canyon. His writing has appeared in National Geographic, The New York Times, and Esquire.

Kevin’s latest book A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon recounts his 14-month odyssey through the Grand Canyon with National Geographic photographer Pete McBride. Their ordeal, launched with very little preparation, revealed a place that was richer and far more complex than anything the two men had imagined—and nearly killed them both. A Walk in the Park is a New York Times Bestseller, winner of the 2024 National Outdoor Book Award in Outdoor Literature, winner of the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, named a Best Book of the Year by The New York Times, Air Mail, Smithsonian Magazine, and Financial Times.

Pete McBride is an award-winning photographer, filmmaker, writer, and speaker known for his powerful storytelling at the intersection of adventure and environmental conservation. Born and raised in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Pete has spent over 20 years capturing the planet’s most awe-inspiring landscapes and natural wonders from Everest and Antarctica to relocating African elephants and swimming with orca in the Arctic.

A National Geographic Explorer, Adventurer of the Year, and Sony Artisan of Imagery, McBride has worked in more than 75 countries, combining his skills in photojournalism and filmmaking to spotlight pressing environmental issues, particularly those involving water scarcity, public land protection, and climate change.

After the presentation both Pete McBride and Kevin Fedarko will be signing books in the lobby of Tydings Auditorium. Books will be available for purchase and all proceeds benefit the students of University of the Southwest.

Since its inception in 1989, the Jack Maddox Distinguished Speaker Series has been hosted by University of the Southwest. The purpose of the series is to contribute to the quality of life in Lea County, New Mexico and the surrounding area by providing nationally recognized speakers for intellectual stimulation and entertainment. Admission to the lectures is free; however, you must have a ticket to attend.