Our Public Lands — The Gift that Keeps on Giving and Giving and…
Yet one more report underscores how important conserving our nation’s public lands is to the country’s economy. The newest report is from our country’s largest landlord, the Interior Department. It outlines Interior’s economic contributions for fiscal 2012 — $371 billion to the U.S. economy and 2.3 million jobs. Those jobs ran the gamut from outdoor recreation […]
I Get UP! – In the Wilds of Michigan
Many people know all about the mitt…and I’m not referring to the former governor turned Presidential candidate (though he was born here). The “mitt” that is Michigan is one of the most enduring monikers we have for an American state’s shape. In fact, astronauts say it’s one of the most recognizable and easily identified land […]
Don’t Fence Us Out of Our Public Lands
I didn’t grow up with fences. In the small Midwestern town where I grew up, everyone’s backyard was still “open range.” I joined the rest of the kids in my neighborhood to roam that open range, playing Hide & Seek and tag, tracking garter snakes and keeping a watchful eye on this spring’s litter of […]
Weekly News Roundup – March 15, 2013
Want to know what National Wildlife Federation was up to this week? Here is a recap of the week’s NWF news: NWF: On First Ever Carbon Pollution Limits, We Can’t Wait March 15–The Obama administration may delay first-ever limits on carbon pollution from new power plants, according to a report Friday by the Washington Post. Larry Schweiger, […]
A Budget Wildlife Can Live On
On Tuesday afternoon, Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray released the Senate budget (for our take on the budget released by the House Budget Committee on Monday, see here.) While the Senate budget still reduces non-defense discretionary (NDD) spending — the spending category that includes virtually all conservation programs — it reflects NWF priorities of protecting […]
Don’t Let National Parks Become A Casualty of Budget Battles
Since the Budget Control Act was passed in August, 2011—and we all had to start pretending we know what “sequester” means—NWF and our friends in the conservation community have known that sequestration will be devastating for America’s wildlife and treasured public lands. Although we knew that federal agencies were scaling back under the threat of the […]
Weekly News Roundup – February 15, 2013
Want to know what National Wildlife Federation was up to this week? Here is a recap of the week’s NWF news: NWF hails reintroduction of legislation conserving Colorado’s San Juan Mountains February 15-Colorado Sen. Mark Udall’s reintroduction of a bill that would conserve about 61,000 acres in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado is […]
New Bill Lays Out Responsible Development of Renewable Energy on Public Lands
Today, a bipartisan group of Western representatives and senators introduced the Public Lands and Renewable Energy Development Act of 2013. I am feeling giddy. Let me tell you why. Growing up on the East Coast, our town playground and basketball court were the extent of my understanding of public lands. Though our eastern states […]
Weekly News Roundup – February 8, 2013
Want to know what National Wildlife Federation was up to this week? Here is a recap of the week’s NWF news: NWF Interior Nominee a Strong Voice for America’s Great Outdoors February 06-President Barack Obama will nominate Sally Jewell, chief executive officer of Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), to head the Interior Department, as first reported […]
Will New Interior Secretary Put Conservation On Equal Ground with Energy?
On Wednesday, President Barack Obama nominated Sally Jewell, CEO for the outdoor outfitter REI, as successor to Ken Salazar as Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior. Conservation groups, senators and Western energy producers alike praised the selection as a smart choice to do everything from protecting land, connecting kids to nature, addressing […]