Running transcends the physical act; it can serve as a time for connection and reflection… Could approaching running in this way encourage us to reconnect more with ourselves, each other and the environment? Could running, when viewed through this lens, becomes an act of responsibility—each step reminding us of our connection to the natural world and our responsibility to care for her?

How we think ripples out to how we behave, so we can embrace change within running culture and shape it in a way as to benefit us all, or we fight it until we realize the fight against change, against representation and intersectionality, the fight to keep whiteness centered, has led to such environmental degradation that we are being forced into some very uncomfortable changes.

“Unions to me represent the biggest opportunity to address the societal woes that the government is either incapable of or unwilling to address because they conflict with corporate interests. And that's how I view the greater project of what I do through unions. Even more so than getting people on the same page with each other, I think most importantly and most immediately for me, is this is the counter force to corporate influence. I think running clubs are another opportunity for that on a cultural level.”

…towards the end of our time together, I asked Margot, “If gender is the least important thing about you, what would you say is the most important thing about you?” Their answer: Existing in a state of awe.

Change is happening, it is always happening—as Octavia E. Butler says, “the only lasting truth is change.” Yet, some folks try desperately to keep things the same, uphold the status quo, and stay deep in their dissonance. Take a look around. What are we trying so desperately to hold onto?