Environmental activist Robin Greenfield has spent the past year living entirely on foraged food as he travels across the United States, aiming to challenge modern assumptions about consumption and sustainability. His diet throughout this period has consisted of items he gathers from the wild, such as wild rice, acorns, nuts including wild pecans, black walnuts, and hazelnuts, as well as plums, fish, and deer.

Greenfield, who completed this yearlong experiment on October 10, does not necessarily advocate for everyone to live as he does, nor has he completely abandoned contemporary systems—he retains certain conveniences like a pressure cooker, relies on others for transportation to events, and borrows phones to communicate with journalists. However, his unconventional approach is intended to encourage people to reconsider what they accept as normal in their daily lives and to reflect on humanity’s long-term relationship with food and nature.

Describing his lifestyle, Greenfield acknowledges that while it is extreme compared to current societal norms, it aligns more closely with historical human experience. “Compared to the long-term arc of humanity, I would say I live a quite normal life,” he said. Throughout his journey, which has included leading foraging workshops in cities such as San Francisco and Ashland, Wisconsin, Greenfield has collected an array of wild foods including plums, wild brassicas, mustard greens, radishes, loquats, and fruits from the strawberry tree.

Critics argue that foraging as a primary means of sustenance is not a feasible option for the vast majority of the global population, given the scale of modern food systems and reliance on mechanized agriculture and fossil fuels. Lauren Robinson, who attended one of Greenfield’s foraging schools in Duluth, Minnesota, acknowledges this perspective but emphasizes that Greenfield’s efforts inspire people to rethink their own lifestyles. “His example brings me closer to my own ideals, and reaches people who would otherwise not look at their own lives and reassess how they’re living,” Robinson said.

Greenfield’s year included other awareness projects, such as a 4,000-mile journey from Panama to the U.S. to demonstrate faith in human kindness, and a campaign wherein he wore all the trash he generated over 30 days to highlight average American waste habits. After completing his foraging year, the first store-bought food he plans to purchase is local smoked whitefish and lake trout.

Ultimately, Greenfield’s mission centers on questioning the assumptions and norms ingrained in modern society, particularly regarding food and environmental impact. “Basically, I have no other option but to go to an extreme because of the extreme times that we live in,” he said.