David Petersen has been a hunter since he was eight, a passionate traditional bowhunter since his first successful deer hunt at age eighteen, and a serious student of elk since moving to rural Colorado in 1980. With a BS in psychology and sociology and a BA in writing (with honors), Petersen has been a Marine Corps officer and pilot, a magazine editor, an adjunct college professor, former Colorado Field Director for Trout Unlimited’s public lands conservation programs, and a serial rescuer of unwanted dogs. Petersen and his wife, Carolyn, have been together for 35 years.
A prolific writer and editor, Petersen has contributed to a wide variety of magazines, written a dozen books related to nature and the ethics of hunting, edited of five more titles including A Hunter’s Heart: Honest Essays on Blood Sport and Confessions of a Barbarian: Selections from the Journals of Edward Abbey. In 2011 Petersen was honored as Sportsman-Conservationist of the Year by the Colorado Wildlife Federation (CWF). In 2012, CWF added to that honor with a Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2013, Petersen received the Backcountry Hunters and Angler’s (BHA) Chairman’s Award. From the press release for the BHA honor: “David’s many books and other writings related to hunting and conservation form the ethical foundation of BHA.”
Contributions to Humans & Nature:
- Hunting as Humanizer: Then and Now
A response to “Does hunting make us human?”
Noteworthy Links:
- Elkhart: A Personal Tribute to Wapiti and Their World
A book by David Petersen.
