Age: 40

Hometown: New York, USA

Occupation: Wilderness Skills Educator

Jaclyn “Jacks” Genega grew up in central New Jersey, USA, alongside her parents, step-parents, brother, Greg, and twin sister, Jen. Jacks was a full-time video editor living in New York City and Amsterdam before becoming a full-time van-lifer teaching wilderness skills across the United States.

Her journey into immersive survival training began when solo traveling across the UK and Europe. Having witnessed earthquakes, bypassed flash floods, traversed some of the Alps’ highest peaks, and brushed with dangerous encounters with wildlife all while also studying bushcraft with Woodland Ways (UK) leading up to the completion of their Northern Forest Year, a year-long intensive in Scotland’s East Lothian region, home to the famous mountaineer, John Muir. She then carried her love for the craft back to the U.S. training with and working for various experts in the fields of emergency and wilderness survival.

Jacks hopes to share her love of all things bushcraft and survival to not only help others develop a shared skill set, but to aid in a sense of resilience through self-reliance through her school and brand, Wildcard Wilderness. In the wilderness, one can encounter a wildcard situation albeit a storm, getting lost, wildlife encounters, etc; but with skills, wisdom and guts one can become the wildcard and overcome any situation against all odds.