Ian is the impetus for the “Gear for the Garhwal” initiative. He is also a minor celebrity in the villages of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, known for his singing of Appalachian folk songs. Currently, Ian is involved in restorative forestry in the Southern Appalachians. He has been conducting workshops and conferences on restorative forestry and along with his partner Josh Hayes, owns a company called Swangle Tree Logging. Their company applies restorative forestry practices, logging with teams of horses, taking the worst timber first in order to improve and promote the quality of the forest.