Environmental activist is hit and killed by an SUV while walking across America barefoot to raise awareness about climate change

  • Mark Baumer, an environmental activist, was struck by a SUV on Saturday
  • He planned to walk from Rhode Island to California barefoot on the side on roads
  • The 33-year-old hiked across the country in 2010 but wore shoes on that trip 

Mark Baumer, 33, was hit while walking along Highway 90 in Florida to raise awareness for environmental issues

A man who was hiking across America barefoot on the side of highways to 'save the earth' was struck by a Buick SUV and died Saturday.

Mark Baumer, 33, began his shoeless trek in October. His journey aimed to raise awareness and funds for the FANG Collective, a Rhode Island organization that supports nonviolent resistance to the natural gas industry.

Florida Highway Patrol confirmed Baumer was hit on the side of Highway 90 in Walton County. He was pronounced dead on the scene during the 101st day of his trip.

The vegan, climate advocate was a web content specialist at a library in Providence, Rhode Island. He graduated from Brown University with a MFA in 2011. 

He was supposed to end up in California by May and hoped to raise at least $10,000 according to his YouCaring page.

After his death on Saturday, a wave of donations poured in and Baumer's goal was surpassed by $2,000. 

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Baumer would post 'foot selfies' of his swollen feet to document his journey on his Instagram
A few local papers would profile the activist as he walked through their cities

Baumer would post 'foot selfies' of his swollen feet to document his journey on his Instagram (left). A few local papers would profile the activist as he walked through their cities (right)

Baumer walked across the country in just 81 days in 2010 but was wearing shoes during this trip. He published a book about this trip titled 'I am a Road.'

During his hikes he wore a bright orange vest to be visible to drivers. 

He told Vice that going barefoot made his feet hurt and it was more comfortable to walk on the white line grazing the edge of the road because it is the smoothest.

He told the website that people gave him strange looks for walking barefoot in such a dangerous location.

Baumer said: 'Something weird happens when you're in a car. I feel like your mentality changes. You're blocked off from the world, and you're like, ONLY I MATTER. ONLY WHERE I'M GOING MATTERS.' 

He also said he would not move for cars but would heed to trucks because: 'They'll really mess you up.'

Baumer was a poet and would post poems along with 'foot selfies' of his swollen feet on Instagram. He wrote blog posts and poems on the website for his journey titled 'notgoingtomakeit.com.' 

The chilling photo for his final blog post shows a yellow arrow and text reading 'killed' on a road.

Baumer didn't intend to travel to Florida but the harsh Ohio snow pushed him to take a bus to Jacksonville to continue his hike.

This was the final image Baumer used for a blog post on his website 'notgoingtomakeit.com' published on the day he was hit by a car

This was the final image Baumer used for a blog post on his website 'notgoingtomakeit.com' published on the day he was hit by a car

After Baumer's death, a wave of donations poured in and his goal was surpassed by $2,000

After Baumer's death, a wave of donations poured in and his goal was surpassed by $2,000

In his final vlog uploaded yesterday, Baumer shows the small sack he slept on during his hike. He also complains about American consumerism and walks in the rain from Defuniak Springs to Mossy Head, Florida.

He ends the video by yelling: 'Your ignorance is killing people.'

Some key issues issues that concerned him were the fossil fuel industry and plastic consumption.

After his death, the FANG Collective posted: 'Mark was an amazingly compassionate, emphatic, humble, joyful, generous, mindful and caring person.' 

'He was a talented poet and artist with an ability to tap into the human experience with his work.' 

Several newspapers covered Baumer's walk as he passed through their cities. The Tallahassee Democrat spoke to Baumer who said: 'The big overall goal is raise awareness and fight climate change.'

'The more specific goal of that is to raise awareness and funds for an organization back in Rhode Island that’s fighting climate change.' 

Baumer was able to fund his trip when he won a $5,000 poetry fellowship through the state of Rhode Island to work on a creative project.

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