Michael Childers

Michael Childers is an associate professor in the Department of History at Colorado State University specializing in the modern American West and the environment – interests he developed while growing up in Colorado’s Fraser Valley.

His first book, Colorado Powder Keg: Ski Resorts and the Environmental Movement (University Press of Kansas, 2012), discussed the history of Colorado’s ski industry and the emergence of the postindustrial West, where mountains became more valuable as ski resorts than as rangelands. The book was awarded the International Ski History Association’s Ullr Award and was runner up for the Western Writers of America’s Spur Award in 2013.

His is currently writing his second book, “The Mountains are Calling Tourists and the Unmaking of Yosemite National Park,” examining the park’s history through visitors’ own experiences, and the environmental costs of tourism. 

Much of his research and teaching focuses on the environment and tourism, including courses on the history of outdoor recreation, world environmental history, and American environmental history.