May 7, 2019
An
American citizen, Jessica Dacey was born in Canada. Her family left
the U.S. when she was nine years old, living in South Africa for a
few years before heading to England. After finishing her schooling,
Jessica got the travel bug which lead her to Mongolia where, on the
last day of her visit, she saw and applied for a job as Editor of
the local newspaper. Jessica got the job, moving and living there
for a year.
On a
month long van trip traveling through the southwest with her
husband, Jessica landed in Joshua Tree, one of the last and longest
stops of their trip. There was an attraction to the space, the
quiet and the beauty. They returned to Switzerland and two
years later Jessica found herself applying for and landing a job at
Mojave Desert Land
Trust (MDLT) in Joshua Tree. Jessica recalls making the
decision to leave Switzerland one of the most difficult of her
life, as she had become
accustomed to an organized and progressive way of life in
Switzerland, though she admits, "the comfort became a little bit
stifling after awhile" and she felt the need for some new
challenges.
The
non-profit MDLT has been in existence for 12 years and, to date,
has protected over 80,000 acres of the Mojave
desert.
As
MDLT's Director of Communications, Jessica finds herself helping
people understand the importance of the desert, changing their
minds from thinking of it as a wasteland. With that in mind,
in this episode we
also talk about why the construction
of a proposed new development, on the south edge of Joshua Tree
National Park is detrimental to the area.
Jessica intimates that while the chocolate and
cheese in Switzerland are pushed to the forefront, the balance of
their culinary history relies mostly on a heavy German food
influence. Looking to eat lighter fare, while on a visit home to Bath, England, Jessica
took a two-week class at Demuths Cookery School to learn vegan
recipes and techniques. Returning to Switzerland with these skills,
opportunities arose allowing Jessica to make food for musicians
playing at a well-known music venue in Switerzland as well as at a
refugee center.
A
'global citizen', Jessica says she was surprised at the
transformative effect the desert has had on her. Her travels have
taught her we all share a common humanity and she encourages people
to travel and experience other cultures when they have the
opportunity.