When I arrived at The Women's Wilderness Institute's Moving Mountains fundraising event last Wednesday, I was instantly swept up in the excitement of the attendees. The Seawell Ballroom at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts was the perfect setting for the event: elegant and natural decorations in greens, blues, and all of the colors of fall reflected the life and energy in the room.

In attendance were more than 300 women and men from the Boulder and Denver area. The buzz throughout the place was, like I mentioned, unmistakable and contagious. Soon the lights went down and Laura, the executive director for Women's Wilderness, took the stage for an introduction.

From the beginning I felt caught up, heart and mind, by the provocative and inspirational words of each of the speakers: Laura, Alice Madden who is the House Majority Leader in Colorado, and finally Marie Wilson, the founder of the White House Project, co-founder of Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, and accomplished author. The topic for the night: women in politics, or rather how to get more women into politics and positions of leadership throughout our communities.

The Women's Wilderness Institute is founded on the idea of improving the confidence and leadership skills of women and girls through the challenge of outdoor adventure programs such as backpacking, rock climbing, and mountain biking. As Laura mentioned, many girls say that they are afraid of failing, that they won't be able to make it to the top of the rock or the mountain. They usually come back with exactly the opposite experience.

It hit me as these accomplished women spoke so intelligently and clearly about women in leadership roles: confidence, intangible and flighty as it may seem, carries far and travels well. Encouragement on the rocks is the same as encouragement in the political arena; girls and women already have everything that they need to succeed. It's just that dose of confidence that pushes them over the edge and makes the dream a concrete reality.

These are ideas that I can relate to, just as surely as any other woman out there. Their words embodied a common idea but packed it with the punch of experience and assurance that worked its way into my head throughout the night. The notion is a powerful and simple one: get up, get out, and get the ideas in your head moving so they can make a difference. Steel yourself with a strong group of women and men who will support you through the ups and downs, and most of all understand that the possibility for change is in your head and heart. Cheesy as it may sound on paper, it's the absolute truth.

Apparently this Moving Mountains event is a once-a-year phenomenon with a different speaker each time. If next year's event is anywhere close to as inspiring and realistic as 2006, you can count on me to be there, ready to listen and learn.