Charity Leader Seeks to Fill His Predecessor’s Size 14 Boots

As the new executive director of the Northcoast Environmental Center, in Arcata, Calif., Greg King knows he has big shoes to fill.

Mr. King, 46, has taken over the job that was held for more than 35 years by Tim McKay —

a prominent environmentalist in Northern California.

Mr. McKay, who died last year, was known nationwide for his leadership on environmental issues and lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill. His key accomplishments include winning further protection and expansion of public lands, says Northcoast’s board chairwoman, Claire Courtney, a retired Congressional aide.

“Tim was in fact an icon, but I think Greg King is up to that kind of challenge,” Ms. Courtney says. “He brings a new perspective on how to approach the position and brings gravitas of his own to the job.”

To honor Mr. McKay — and as a steady reminder of the hurdles the 36-year-old Northcoast Environmental Center faces without him — Mr. King is getting a pair of his predecessor’s size 14 boots bronzed. They will be placed outside the front door of the environmental center.

“The ‘big shoes to fill’ comment is the most commonly uttered phrase I hear,” Mr. King says. “The first month on the job I heard it three or four times a day. Tim did incredible work and never let up. I am focused on being my own person, but I know I have big expectations to fulfill.”

Mr. King comes with his own set of impressive environmental-activism credentials, however. In the early 1980s, when he was a newspaper reporter in Northern California, he learned about the threat that unchecked logging posed to giant redwoods. He decided to quit journalism to work full time on saving trees.

In David Harris’s 1997 book The Last Stand, which chronicles the battle to save redwood forests, Mr. King is credited with discovering, mapping, and naming Headwaters Forest in 1987, which was then home to the world’s largest unprotected ancient-redwood groves. (In 1999, Headwaters received permanent protection.)

In the mid-1980s, Mr. King also founded the Humboldt County, Calif., chapter of Earth First, a group known for the controversial tactics it uses to protest development and logging.

“Earth First really was the thing that was needed at the time,” Mr. King says. “We were fighting against what I viewed as very radical corporations that were cutting the world’s last ancient-redwood groves. Our group was one of the more grounded of the Earth First organizations. We very quickly publicly swore off tree spiking. We did a lot of civil disobedience.”

The group’s protests included such techniques as sitting in trees and blockading roads.

Mr. King says the Earth First efforts, and ensuing publicity from national news media, including Time, Newsweek, and 60 Minutes, ultimately led to lawsuits by the Environmental Protection Information Center that halted a dozen logging plans for old-growth redwoods.

After his work with Earth First, Mr. King founded and ran three other nonprofit environmental groups in Northern California. He still heads the board of Siskiyou Land Conservancy, a nonprofit land trust.

In his new position leading the 4,000-member Northcoast Environmental Center, for which he will be paid $43,600 annually, Mr. King will focus on expanding protected wild areas and creating more livable communities by reducing car traffic, increasing local organic-food production, and cleaning up the region’s rivers. He also places a high priority on fund raising for the organization, which has a $350,000 annual budget and four full-time employees.

In an interview, he talked about his new job and how his past experiences shape his vision for the future.

What has it been like to follow an influential leader like Tim McKay?

I knew it would be a challenge, but what has been so incredible has been the unqualified support I’ve received. A lot of people, frankly, didn’t know if the NEC would go on without Tim McKay. But I haven’t heard anyone say that I can’t do this job. I do feel the pressure to succeed and keep the NEC well funded. I have a knack for looking around the room and seeing what needs to be done and who are the most-effective players to get it done, so I think we will be successful.

How are you approaching this new position?

I approach it knowing there is going to be an immense learning curve. This is a very powerfully supportive organization, which has been a spectacular boon to my work. But there are also many different interests. We need to evaluate the past projects and focus on what is really needed right now. The big question is, what is it that the communities want from the organization?

How are you figuring that out?

By doing a lot of listening. The disparate communities that we have here can have very different perspectives. I’m trying to hear everyone’s story and have it make sense in terms of our organization’s mission. How can I take the story and perspective of a river irrigator? How can I empathize with that person and still make sure there is clean water for the fish? Everyone has a story and it’s about trying to respect everyone’s situation.

For instance, I have learned how a viable timber industry is important up here. I can now look at a forest and say, “You could thin that here and there.” If you have a soft, gentle touch on the land, you can take trees out and still be good to the forest.

What were the lessons you learned from Earth First?

As a young person, I gained insight into what people are really like. I learned a lot about politics and how people interact with one another. In hindsight, we were kind of arrogant. We came in and told people who lived and worked here for generations that this is how you should do things. I learned very valuable lessons in organizing people and listening.

How has the role of nonprofit environmental groups changed since you first got involved more than 20 years ago?

With the exception of climate change and the Al Gore stir, the public discussion of environmental protection has died down significantly. It’s the biggest issue we face, but it’s getting buried. Our role has evolved from one of alerting the world about such global issues as pollution and habitat destruction to creating and facilitating local solutions to local problems.

What is the advantage of having a large and active membership?

There is a lot of power in that. One of the first people to call me up after I got this job was a local congressman, which told me people recognize the importance of our organization. One of the roles of an executive director is gaining the wisdom of knowing when to flex that power and when to hang back and keep the big stick in the closet. There needs to be a lot of face time in this job. People want a leader who is a pollinator of good ideas and opinions.