Friend, last week, we shared how your support plays a critical role in safeguarding public lands nationwide. Thanks to your past advocacy, we’ve achieved landmark land conservation victories, such as passage of the Outdoors for All Act. Thank you for standing with us.
Despite these landmark wins, history reminds us that these achievements are fragile. In 2017, the Trump administration significantly rolled back public land protections and threatened to open cherished spaces to drilling, mining, and industrial use.
We don’t yet know what this second term will mean for our wild places and green spaces. But we don’t need to guess where certain members of Congress stand. Some want to sell federal public lands to their respective states to be leased for destructive development. Others want to cut the Land and Water Conservation Fund, hurting our ability to protect national forests, seashores, and wildlife refuges. We must be ready for these attacks on our national parks, monuments, and public lands. |
Below, you’ll find our 2025 roadmap to defend what we’ve built together so that we can secure the future of our country’s parks, iconic national monuments, and precious green spaces. |
1. Protect National Monuments |
Many iconic national parks we know and love—such as Grand Canyon and Arches—were first protected as national monuments through the Antiquities Act.
Yet despite our love for these special places, our national monuments and public lands face significant threats. During the last Trump administration, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments lost protections, opening these iconic landscapes to long-term development, habitat loss, and the desecration of cultural sites and historic artifacts.
This cannot happen again. We must protect our country’s most precious places today, or we risk losing the irreplaceable.
Urge your members of Congress to safeguard the Antiquities Act and fight back against attacks on our national monuments. |
2. Save America’s Forests |
Photo: Jerry and Marcy Monkman |
Forests are vital for clean air, water, and biodiversity. Yet they face significant challenges, including severe wildfires, drought stress, reckless development, and more. We must protect our forests through reforestation efforts, good forest management techniques, and climate change mitigation.
We are working in communities nationwide to protect our forests, but more needs to be done. Urge Congress to protect funding for the Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program, which will help communities protect and manage local forests sustainably. |
3. Safeguard Critical Climate Investments |
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 is one of America’s most comprehensive climate change laws. It invests in climate-smart agriculture and natural climate solutions, such as planting millions of trees crucial to reducing heat and absorbing stormwater in areas most impacted by extreme weather.
In 2023, with your help, we thwarted a deceptive attempt to repeal the act. But with changes on the horizon, we must stay vigilant and ensure this doesn’t happen again.
Your voice is crucial to safeguarding this critical funding. Tell lawmakers to oppose any cuts or rollbacks to the IRA. |
4. Transform Asphalt Playgrounds into
Green Space for Kids |
Photo: Carin van der Donk |
Every child deserves to play outside in a safe, welcoming environment. Yet millions of kids attend schools with asphalt landscapes for recess—with no trees for shade or engaging areas to play and learn. That’s why we’re working to transform schoolyards from blacktops into vibrant community play spaces—filled with trees, gardens, outdoor classrooms, and innovative play areas that benefit children's education and health.
With the help of TPL members, we’ve transformed 350 schoolyards so far—but with support from lawmakers, we can scale these critical efforts. Urge your members of Congress to take action. |
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Thank you for taking action, Friend. Your advocacy is the cornerstone to our success. Together, we can defend public lands, expand access to nature, and protect the legacy of our country’s extraordinary landscapes. |
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Myke Bybee
Senior Director of Federal Relations
Trust for Public Land
PS: Forward this to friends and family who share your passion for safeguarding our treasured public lands. With your help, we will make a resounding impact that can’t be ignored. |
How strongly do you feel about defending public land? |
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Connecting everyone to the outdoors. We create parks and protect public land where they’re needed most so that everyone will have access to the benefits and joys of the outdoors for generations to come. |
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This email was sent by Trust for Public Land to [email protected].
23 Geary St. Suite 1000, San Francisco, CA 94108 |
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