Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Prioritiesi
** The legacy of E.O. Wilson and Thomas Lovejoy
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Tuesday, January 4, 2022
E.O. Wilson in 2003. Jim Harrison ([link removed]) , CC BY 2.5 ([link removed]) , via Wikimedia Commons
Two titans of ecology died over the holidays, but their conservation legacy lives on in the optimism of a new generation of scientists and advocates. Edward O. Wilson and Thomas Lovejoy coined the term "biological diversity," ([link removed]) later shortened to "biodiversity."
Lovejoy focused his research on the Amazon rainforest ([link removed]) and the growing threat of climate change, hosting policymakers and celebrities at his research camp in Brazil, as well as in Washington. Wilson was an expert on insects who later in life led the call to protect 50 percent of the planet ([link removed]) in order to prevent mass extinction.
Science journalists including Elizabeth Kolbert ([link removed]) and Andrew Revkin ([link removed]) published thoughtful tributes to Wilson and Lovejoy, not just looking back at their careers but also forwards at the next generation of scientists advancing their legacy.
In 2020, Wilson's Half Earth Project named Ricardo Guta its first Half Earth Scholar ([link removed]) . Guta, who was born in Mozambique, studies insect biodiversity at Gorongosa National Park. A network of institutions have also pledged to create an endowed fellowship in Lovejoy's name to study biodiversity and sustain Lovejoy's camp in the Amazon.
** America’s conservation atlas: your turn
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Wilson's call to quickly protect more lands and waters is the cornerstone of the 30x30 goal ([link removed]) adopted by President Biden in his America the Beautiful initiative. On Monday, the Interior Department announced a series of public listening sessions ([link removed]) on the forthcoming American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas, which will track protected lands in the U.S. The public can also submit comments ([link removed]) through March 4th.
Quick hits
** How climate change primed Colorado for a devastating December wildfire
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NBC News ([link removed]) | Boulder Reporting Lab ([link removed]) | Colorado Sun ([link removed]) | Denver Post ([link removed])
** Celebrating the lives of conservation giants E.O. Wilson and Tom Lovejoy
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Sustain What ([link removed]) | The New Yorker ([link removed]) | Washington Post ([link removed]) | New York Times ([link removed]) | WBUR ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
** Hunters arrested for tresspass challenge "corner crossing" ban in court
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Wyofile ([link removed])
** Colorado River basin tribes fight for their share of water as climate change dries the West
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Buzzfeed News ([link removed])
** Could a 500-year-old, 17-story Sitka spruce be sold for $17,500?
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Washington Post ([link removed])
** Border remediation may not be enough to restore the Arizona Trail after Trump's damage
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Arizona Daily Star ([link removed])
** New owners of Nevada gold mines start union busting
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High Country News ([link removed])
** As miners chase clean energy minerals, tribes fear a repeat of the past
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New York Times ([link removed])
Quote of the day
The [Colorado] river is so altered and contained now, I call it a big canal. This isn’t the river we knew. It used to be just wild. Where I swam, the water was blue and it was clean. It was our playground. … I remember it as a great blue lagoon.”
—Former Fort Mojave Tribe Chair Nora McDowell
Buzzfeed News ([link removed])
Picture this
** @mypubliclands ([link removed])
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Public lands are an incredible place to enjoy the dark skies! Utah in particular is a wonderful destination as it has the highest concentration of International Dark-Sky Association-certified locations. So bundle up and enjoy the show! ✨🌟🌠🔭
📸 Perseid Meteor Shower in Utah's Valley of the Gods, Bob Wick.
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