Despite growing up in Sandpoint, it was when Emerson Kanning found herself out in the wilderness of Bonner County that she felt the most like herself.

Kanning described an intangible feeling of completeness standing out in the Pine Street Woods. So, when it came time for her to choose a career path and she was offered an internship at the Kaniksu Land Trust, there was an obvious choice. 

“In high school, I started doing environmental work, and it just felt right, I was happiest doing it,” Kanning said. “Everyone has this internal compass that leads them in the right direction, and I think to deliberately ignore that would be more detrimental than anything else.” 

Kanning’s story isn’t unique, ask any worker at one of the 500 nonprofits in Bonner County are you’ll likely hear the same reason for working: it feels right. It’s certainly the case for her coworker, Gabriella Meglasson-Barbieri, who was raised by a logger-turned-activist family on the Oregon coast. 

Barbieri described a similar feeling when spending time out in the forests and said her life has always been centered around the outdoors. In her position with the KLT as the rewild program coordinator, Barbieri is focused on connecting the youth of Bonner County with the surrounding environment. 

“It feels important, and I don't want my job to be something that I feel like I'm wasting my time at or wasting my life doing,” Barbieri said. “I want to enjoy the work I do, and this is an awesome way to do it, because we get to do so many different fun things and get our hands into so many different projects.” 

Currently Barbieri said she is working on a project at Kootenai Elementary, clearing off several acres of meadow behind the school. Barbieri said KLT is working on clearing the area of invasive species and creating a gathering place for the students to safely explore nature. 

Kanning serves as KLT’s water projects coordinator focusing on two projects: developing a map for the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail and conservation plan for Sand Creek. She said these projects allow her to develop relationships and further protect the community that raised her. 

“We did get to overlap one day,” Barbieri said. “When we did, we got to kayak and paddle board up to one of the KLT sites. And it was amazing. It was super fun.” 

While both went to school for a career in environmentalism, KLT is far from their first stop. Kanning is already in her second stint with KLT, after she left to work for a university in Toyoko for two years following the end of her internship. 

Kanning said she enjoyed her time there, but that she felt like the part of her that she felt in the Bonner County wilderness was missing.  

“This is my community that I was raised in, and so while I am interested in pursuing opportunities elsewhere, it's not nearly the same,” Kanning said. “I'm particularly and specifically interested in impacting the community of Bonner County, because that is the community that raised me, and those are the people who helped me grow into who I am. 

Both said they appreciate the ever-changing nature of their jobs where they are always learning and overcoming problems. Kanning said even on the days where she’s in the office, she gets fulfillment from the fact that her work allows residents to have access to spaces like the Pine Street Woods. 

“Even if I am not getting benefit from being out in nature, part of this job just gives me so much fulfillment, because there are so many people in our community who talk about receiving that gift and enjoying the gift of like Pine Street Woods or our lake or the mountains that surround our community,” Kanning said. 

Working for a non-profit organization like KLT, that often makes their projects available to the public for little to no cost, isn’t always the most lucrative career, which they both acknowledged. Barbieri said a lot of the seasonal workers at KLT, like herself, do have to work a second or third job to make ends meet in Bonner County. 

“Naturally, as people who need money to survive, there is a little bit of worry. I think most of us work other jobs, especially in the slow season,” Barbieri said. "There's naturally a little bit of stress, that goes into it, and it's just another funny thing, like the things we'll do for what we're passionate about, we'll work two or three jobs. It doesn't matter. It's fine. We'll make it work.” 

Kanning said that working at KLT has been a special experience because of her coworkers who she said she looks up to. Barbieri echoed a similar sentiment and said that it was incredibly meaningful as a young person having experienced people in their field that believed in her. 

“As a young person, it can be discouraging out there,” Barbieri said. "To have people who believe in you is really important, feeling like there are people who think you can do the work, and people who think you got it is so important. I feel so lucky and blessed to have that.”