Holly M. Paar is the Advancement Director for Dogwood Alliance, a Southern US based nonprofit mobilizing diverse voices to protect southern forests and communities from destructive industrial logging. Her work involves coordinating with frontline communities and partners at the intersection of climate, forests and justice, including Dogwood’s participation in the Justice First Tour, launched by Reverend Leo Woodberry in 2018. She and her team at Dogwood have also created Stories Happen in Forests, ongoing opportunities for unique, diverse voices to share stories with the general public about their physical, emotional and spiritual ties to the forest.
An LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS activist since age 13, Holly has integrated a life of service and spiritual reflection into careers that have spanned health, social justice, youth empowerment, outdoor leadership and now, forest protection. She is an avid painter, musician and composer and runs an occasional series of creativity, leadership and storytelling workshops.