ACES Wild Perspectives Speaker Series Presents Corsets to Harnesses: A Reflection of Women’s Climbing History from Ruthie Brown and Kim Levin’s Adventures in Corsica and Beyond

Join the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) and The Collective Snowmass for the winter speaker series, Wild Perspectives. The series features exciting accounts of world travel, adventure and the natural world through stories and visual media.

About this week’s presentation:
Women started rock climbing in corsets and long skirts in the 1800s–all for the love of adventure. These courageous forerunners cleared the way for other women to follow. Join Brown and Levin, a pair of modern-day climbers, as they explore the serene beauty of remote places in Corsica and beyond. Learn a hint of fascinating Corsican culture and history while this duo climbs high above the Mediterranean Sea, challenging themselves to live in the focused moment of rock climbing.

• Brown was born and raised on a third-generation ranch in the RFV. After living and working in Alaska, she became a world-class cross-country skier and runner, competing in cross-country around the world. She later returned to Aspen to raise two children and became director of the Rocky Mountain Nordic program and a coach for the Aspen Ski and Snowboard Club. Brown now owns and operates the world’s largest single-phase hydroelectric facility powering up Creede, Colo.
• Levin was raised in a renovated barn in a small town in western Massachusetts. She grew up skiing and adventuring in the mountains of the northeast. Inspired by her fascination with medicine and desire to help others, she attended medical school in North Carolina, followed by residency training in California. Eventually, she landed in Aspen where she combined her professional goals as an emergency medicine physician with her passion for outdoor pursuits: skiing, trail running, biking, alpine touring, hiking and rock climbing with friends. In addition to her work as a doctor, she is the county medical officer and physician advisor for Aspen Expeditions.

Wild Perspectives is free and open to the public. Please consider making a $10 suggested donation to benefit ACES’ programs in environmental science education. Seating is first-come, first-served and patrons are encouraged to arrive early.