In 1973, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers prepared to open a new dam project,
flooding miles of the Stanislaus River Canyon, a beautiful, pristine river
valley flowing from the western Sierra Nevada mountains into California's
Central Valley. In 1979, Mark Dubois chained himself to a boulder behind the New
Melones Dam and threw away the key. "If you guys are going to flood 9 million
years of evolution, why not take one more creature with you," he said.
Mark's action brought nationwide attention to the threats to our rivers and
built a growing movement to protect them, helping to bring a halt to major dam
building in the U.S. This is a story of a person who dared to fall in love
with life's miracle, this sacred Earth, and reminds us of what it means to
ignite our own passion and step into our life's purpose.
