In 1998 Gloria Flora was appointed supervisor of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest in Nevada, the largest national forest in the lower forty-eight states. In less than two years, Flora resigned in a highly public protest. This resignation was accompanied by Flora’s use of Albert Hirschman’s (1970) exit option to shine a spotlight both on the plight of Forest Service employees charged with administering the nation’s land management policies and on the vulnerability and deterioration of the land itself. And, pace Hirschman, she gave voice to these same issues in public forums across the country. This is the story of her decision and her moral episode (Hart 1992) and why Gloria Flora is an exemplar.
