This Land Needs Us
It’s been quite a month here at the Journal, not least because the Journal team headed to Colorado for several days to join colleagues from around the country at the annual Society of Environmental Journalists conference. The conference brought several firsts for me. For one, I peered through the lens of a fancy camera to see firsthand the methane and/or VOC emissions spewing from an active natural gas extraction site, emissions that are invisible to the naked eye. (Special thanks to Earthworks folks for sharing their equipment and expertise with us!)
I also had the unique experience of seeing Bureau of Land Management Acting Director William P. Pendley — who spent four decades advocating for corporate exploitation of public lands — participate on a conference panel, responding to, and often evading, questions about his climate denialism and past statements he’s made comparing immigrants to cancer. This was, I believe, the first time I’ve seen a Trump Administration official speak in person. It was as frustrating as I expected, but it was also motivating. It reminded me just how much I believe in the essential role of journalism and the work we do here at the Journal to shed light on environmental injustices and highlight the efforts of those fighting to save our public lands.
Zoe Loftus-Farren
Managing Editor, Earth Island Journal
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