Darien Fernandez is in the middle of his third term as a council member for the Town of Taos, New Mexico. He studied political science and English at the University of New Mexico Professionally, he serves as the Executive Director of the Taos Land Trust and side gigs as an outdoor guide and wilderness medicine instructor. His love for the outdoors drives his professional career in the preservation of public lands and the promotion of land use policy that respects cultural traditions. He is a public lands champion and has led support to get Outstanding National Resource Water designation for New Mexico’s Rio Hondo, and the designation of Cerro de la Olla (Pot Mountain) and Cerro del Yuta (Ute Mountain) as wilderness areas in northern New Mexico. Volunteer activities include search and rescue and serving on the board of the Friends of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. He was born and raised in Taos, with roots throughout northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, and has also lived in the Texas Rio Grande Valley. He is the father of three sons. He’s an outdoors enthusiast and can be found fly fishing, floating a river, backcountry skiing, or on a camping adventure any given weekend. He’s also a musician and brings a guitar wherever he goes.