Access to God’s beautiful creation and America’s great outdoors has been an incredible source of solace and healing as our nation confronts the COVID-19 pandemic and pursuit for true and lasting racial justice. The historic passage of the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) in the House of Representatives represents a critical step toward ensuring safe […]
July 4th will be quieter than usual this year, thanks to COVID-19. Many U.S. cities are canceling fireworks displays to avoid drawing large crowds that could promote the spread of coronavirus. But President Trump is planning to stage a celebration at Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota on July 3. It’s easy to see why […]
Describing the iconic South Dakota mountain carving that depicts the heads of famous U.S presidents as nothing but a monument to “our molesters,” the chairman of the Cheyenne River Sioux Nation Harold Frazier this week said he would willingly tear down Mount Rushmore if given the chance—with or without help—and pay for its destruction personally. […]
As we face the COVID-19 pandemic while once again confronting our greatest national sin—racism—coming together for reconciliation and healing is more important than ever. Passage of the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) in the Senate does just that. By Rev. Mitch Hescox Evangelical Environmental Network For many, the best place to seek freedom, healing, and […]
In a typical summer, millions of Americans head outdoors to national parks, hiking trails and rivers across the U.S. This summer, because of COVID-19 precautions, getting outdoors will be different, although how different isn’t certain. Utah’s Bryce Canyon National Park hosted more than 2.5 million visitors in 2019. Anqi Lu/Unsplash, CC BY By B. Derrick […]
In a move that environmentalists warned could further imperil hundreds of endangered species and a protected habitat for the sake of profit, President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation rolling back an Obama-era order and opening nearly 5,000 square miles off the coast of New England to commercial fishing. By Jake Johnson Common Dreams “We’re opening […]
With the current COVID-19 crisis, safe and easy access to the gift of America’s beautiful outdoors has never been more important for our spiritual, physical, and emotional health. Years of deferred maintenance have left our National Parks and other public lands with deteriorating infrastructure and crumbling trails, roads, and visitor centers. By establishing the National […]
In the early days of the COVID-19 lockdowns, social media was flooded with reports of animals reclaiming abandoned environments. According to one widely shared post, dolphins had returned to the canals of Venice. While many of those stories have since been debunked, conservationists are providing legitimate reports of cleaner air and water, and wildlife reclaiming […]
The Coronavirus pandemic has altered humans’ relationship with natural landscapes in ways that may be long-lasting. One of its most direct effects on people’s daily lives is reduced access to public parks. Looking south from New York City’s Central Park. Ajay Suresh/Wikipedia, CC BY By Richard leBrasseur, Dalhousie University The Conversation The COVID-19 pandemic has […]
Ancient trees in Australia were devastated by the recent bushfires there. Nightcap oaks have lived through a lot, but humanity’s influence could completely wipe them out. By Johnna Crider Cleantechnica Along the southern edge of Australia’s Nightcap Range, 200 or so gray trees were the last ones standing as the continent-crushing fires were finally put out. […]
On March 4th, Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Cory Gardner (R-CO) introduced an important bill that would address the growing National Park Service deferred maintenance backlog and provide full, permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). It is well past time to restore and repair our national parks and we are thankful […]
The Trump administration has undertaken a massive, unprecedented response to the climate crisis. In fact, they clearly see this enormous undertaking as their signature project – the legacy this administration will leave the nation. I’m not talking about some tree-planting pledge or a sudden change of heart about windmills. Folks, I’m talking about Trump’s border […]
Nearly two weeks ago, plaintiffs filed a pair of motions in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia seeking summary judgments against Donald Trump’s shrinking of two national monuments in Utah—Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante. “The proposed summary judgment motions will be ‘partial’ in the sense that they seek to resolve plaintiffs’ entitlement to relief on their core claims that […]
A few hundred yards from the Mexican border in southern Arizona lies a quiet pond, about the size of two football fields, called Quitobaquito. About 10 miles to the east, heavy machinery grinds up the earth and removes vegetation as construction of President Trump’s vaunted border wall advances toward the oasis. The waters of Quitobaquito […]
Even though several lawsuits challenging the shrinking of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments by the Trump regime are working their way through the federal courts, the Interior Department on Wednesday signed off on plans issued by the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service to allow mining, oil and gas drilling, and grazing on land that is within the Obama-set boundaries of the two […]