the exact amount of land currently protected varies depending on who you ask, but a 2018 report from the center for american progress estimates that only about 12% of the nation’s land and 26% of its waters are protected. the biden administration has a lot of work ahead of it if it’s going to increase these numbers, especially if they want to do so in a way that will actually benefit biodiversity, climate, and the myriad of other goals listed in the executive order.

blake alexander simmons, an ecologist with boston university, was the lead researcher on a recently released white paper that examined how the biden administration should go about delivering on his conservation commitments. the study created four maps of hypothetical protected area networks in the continental u.s. that could get the country to 30% protection, each with one of four different objectives in mind. the objectives were biodiversity preservation, climate change mitigation, connected landscape preservation, and ease of reaching the area goal by 2030.

together the maps revealed challenges for the biden administration going forward. for instance simmons noted how little land in the u.s. meets all the requirements listed by the administration: “even just with those four objectives let alone of all of the others that are in biden’s executive order it’s going to be really hard to find where we can get win, win, win, win; wins across the board. so tradeoffs are gonna come into play and that’s why it’s really important that we get clear very early on what objectives really matter.”

even the few regions that are highlighted in all four maps like northern maine, may be highlighted so often because of local ordinances mandating non-disclosure agreements for land sales, limiting the study’s data set and showing land prices as artificially low and attractive. the unfortunate challenge is that land that hosts biodiverse habitat does not necessarily hold a lot of carbon or sit upon property that can be cheaply bought and converted to conservation purposes.

for instance much of america’s unprotected biodiversity lies in the southeast where protected areas are rare and small. buying land to build new preserves could be prohibitively expensive due to the region’s high land costs, so other measures like conservation easements (agreements with landowners to manage their property for biodiversity) will be needed. it would be easy to just preserve large swaths of the west to reach the land goal but this would not deliver biodiversity or climate benefits.

jacob malcom, the director for the center of conservation innovation at defenders of wildlife, expressed hope that the biden administration was up to the task. his organization has been involved with the white house and numerous other stakeholders in the conservation community and beyond in developing the plan by which the 30% by 2030 will be reached. 

he said: “this is something that’s completely doable. we can do this and the fact that this is an all hands on deck — it’s everybody’s involved. it’s not a top down. it is the president setting a goal for the country, but it’s not a dictation of how this will be achieved. we can do this for nature, for climate, for people to be a part of these things.”

drawing inspiration from the vintage national park posters of the 1930s and ’40s, as well as from hannah rothstein’s national parks: 2050, i imagine a world where our parks are celebrated, not for the natural wonders within them, but for the resources we extract from them. i have chosen the top five most visited national parks in an attempt to bring this issue, that may seem far removed from the american public, closer to home. it is up to us to make our voices heard, before this worst-case scenario becomes our reality.

write to your state and federal elected officials and tell them why you care about public lands, support businesses that advocate for them, and get involved with organizations like outdoor alliance who are fighting fiercely to protect them. together, our support won’t move mountains, but keep them as they were meant to be, wild and free.

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for more information about the artist, visit: https://kaitevensen.wixsite.com/website

here are 10 things i learned at the society of environmental journalists 2017 conference.

1. some issues don’t have sides.

not everything is up for debate. when 97 percent of scientists have reached a consensus that supports the existence of climate change, less credence should be given to those who, without factual evidence, continue to disagree.

2. avoid equating environmentalism with liberalism when communicating outside of the echo chamber.

most environmental issues are not as partisan as it may seem; air, water, health, and land access are basics that many people care about. avoid making assumptions about the audience, and be careful about sticking the blanket “environmental” label on every story.

3. know when to put away your notebook or camera and just listen.

the best way to build trust is to physically be on the ground in communities and report from there. look for community organizations that can get you in the door. when reporting on environmental justice issues, be compassionate and human, but avoid showing pity or giving false hope.

4. don’t let a story drop.

showing up in a community for an environmental justice story and then disappearing is exploitive and will not help you build trust with sources. track the aftermath that continues after other reporters leave, and check up every few months with sources to see how their situations are progressing.

5. environmental crime is the fourth largest crime sector, according to unep, yet it lacks coverage in the united states.

it occurs in different forms such as illegal trade of natural resources and wildlife trafficking and can be hard to track because of its international nature. the convention on international trade of endangered species (cites) makes it easier to prosecute some crimes.

6. the threats we’re currently seeing to public lands are unprecedented.

from the federal land freedom act to interior secretary ryan zinke’s land review, there are myriad threats to american public lands right now. the federal government is attempting to pass some lands over to the states, and from there to privatization and industrial development.

7. eliminate false balance when one side is not backed by facts.

a basic tenet of journalism is including both sides of a story, but sometimes there is limited valid evidence to back one group’s views. in these instances, use stock lines like, “these views do not reflect scientific consensus.”

8. environmental activism is viewed as a luxury activity in developed countries, but it’s a matter of life and death in many other places.

environmentalism is sometimes perceived as a hobby of the rich, but activists in poorly regulated and policed areas and industries risk their lives because they often have no other choice. for example, over the last 10 years, 1,000 wildlife rangers have been killed on the job.

9. collaboration is key when there aren’t enough reporters on an issue.

many environmental issues, like climate change or natural disasters, get plenty of coverage. others, like conservation, can get passed over because they have less perceived shock value or readership potential. journalists can solve this through collaboration and combining beats.

10. there is still great power in good news stories, according to jane goodall.

in a personalized video message to the conference, goodall reminded attendees that stories of hope and progress can still inspire action, even when the future appears dim. and who can ignore words of wisdom from a legend like jane goodall?

next year’s sej conference will be held in flint, michigan.