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Picturing climate change in the West

Picturing climate change in the West

What began as a hobby for 91福利社 economics undergrad Lucas Gauthier came together as a photographic portfolio documenting the already-evident and potential effects of climate change


Lucas Gauthier and his family moved to Colorado when he was in 6th grade, and after a decade of fairly frequent moves鈥攂oth parents were in the military鈥攖his is where everything made sense: mountains for climbing, runs for skiing, trails for hiking and rivers for rafting.

They took some convincing, but eventually his parents let him venture out on his own鈥攆orays that grew longer and longer and took him farther and farther into the Colorado wilderness.

Lucas Gauthier in Colorado mountaintop under blue sky

Lucas Gauthier, a senior majoring in economics, has photographically documented his adventures in western landscapes since he was in high school.

About four or five years ago, he began taking pictures along the way, usually on his phone. The photography wasn鈥檛 the point, necessarily, 鈥渂ut I found that, especially in Colorado, hiking puts you in some very beautiful places,鈥 he explains. 鈥淚 hike, and the pictures happen while I鈥檓 hiking.鈥

A through line for what had become a large portfolio of photographs emerged in spring 2024. Gauthier, a senior majoring in economics with a focus on natural resource management, was taking , a class that requires students to complete three projects during the semester.

The first two projects were more technically focused, but the third emphasized creating something of personal value. So, Gauthier thought about all the places in Colorado that he loves, scrolling through both his memories and his photos. He realized that what began as an almost offhanded hobby was actually documenting places that would be or already were altered by climate change.

From that realization was born , a multimedia project that incorporates not only data about things like wildfire, heat wave and drought risk and their potential for significant economic impact, but makes it personal with the scenes of incomparable beauty he has witnessed and documented.

鈥淢y interest in water specifically came from my interest in hiking and skiing and an interest in all outdoor sports,鈥 Gauthier says. 鈥淲hen people say there鈥檚 going to be less rain, less precipitation, that鈥檚 a big deal for me.

鈥淚 worked and lived in Breckenridge, which is a tourism-dependent area, so if there鈥檚 not enough water, that鈥檚 weeks of ski season that are lost, and there might not be a rafting season, so that鈥檚 where you start to see the overlaps between how climate change is affecting natural systems and the actual economic impacts on livelihoods.鈥

Capturing what he sees

鈥淢y interest in photography has been in capturing this broad swath of environments that we get to play in鈥攁s a way to memorialize the experience for myself, and also to share it with others,鈥 Gauthier says.

pink sunset in Colorado mountains

He took two photography classes in high school, neither of which focused on outdoor or landscape photography, 鈥渂ut I do think those gave me a good idea for how to compose photos and set them up, how to look for different lighting and visual elements,鈥 he says. 鈥淭hey got me in the mindset of thinking, 鈥楾his is something that strikes me, and I鈥檒l see if I can frame it in way that works with what I want to capture.鈥欌

Gauthier was also in high school when he began tackling ever-more-ambitious climbs and started working his way through Colorado鈥檚 58 fourteeners, a goal he completed over the summer. Of those 58, he climbed at least 45 solo.

鈥(Climbing solo) is kind of a mix of preference and necessity,鈥 Gauthier explains. 鈥淚t鈥檚 easier when the only person you have to plan for logistically is yourself. And when you鈥檙e trying to beat lighting and thunder, it鈥檚 best to move light and fast.鈥

However, he never moves so fast that he can鈥檛 look around and, if he鈥檚 able, to capture what he鈥檚 seeing in a photograph. And he returns to certain favorite places, enough that he can compare them season by season or year by year.

鈥淲e鈥檝e had a mix of good and bad snow years, but it鈥檚 been very noticeable when a particular area that usually has good (snow) coverage into May or June has already melted,鈥 he says. 鈥淎nd there have been times when I鈥檝e hiked through area and a few years later it鈥檚 a burn scar, which is avery visceral sense of change in the environment.

鈥淭hen there are little things like aspens are yellowing at a different date, wildflowers are blooming and stop blooming at different times. While it鈥檚 not as black and white a change, moving those transition points is definitely something that adds up in aggregate.鈥

Factors of climate change

Now, as he works his way through Colorado鈥檚 100 highest peaks鈥攈e鈥檚 summited more than 80鈥攁nd completes his bachelor鈥檚 degree, he still is conceptualizing what it all means. Many climate change models are forecast to take decades鈥攊f not centuries鈥攖o happen, but Gauthier is already seeing anecdotal evidence of them. What does that mean for how he exists in the outdoors and what he鈥檚 going to do after he graduates?

鈥淚 feel like there is a lot of doom and gloom, and I definitely feel that, but at the same time I am very much a person who feels like I have to say what I鈥檓 going to do about it,鈥 he says. 鈥淲ith my area of emphasis in environmental economics, it鈥檚 about acknowledging that we have these issues and asking how we address them through actual, tangible means. For me, that means engaging in actual political and broader social processes. When I鈥檓 engaged in something, I feel less powerless.

鈥淚 think the main point that I wanted to communicate with this project was emphasizing how each of these different factors of climate change are integrated,鈥 he says. 鈥淔ires affect water quality, flooding affects agriculture and all of it impacts places that I and a lot of other people love.鈥

sand dune in Great Sand Dunes National Park under blue sky
Colorado creek edged by green-leafed aspen

Colorado mountain view of evergreens and slopes covered in snow
Red rock and Colorado mountains under blue sky with scattered clouds


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