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There’s no denying it: the election of Donald Trump to another term in the White House has been a blow for social movements in the U.S. Prior to Trump’s election, we were moving forward–if haltingly–on building a clean energy future, making healthcare more accessible, securing greater representation for marginalized groups in the media, and other…
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For several years now, Washington’s state forestlands–specifically, the regenerated ecosystems known as legacy forests–have been a subject of heated controversy. Legacy forests are lands that were lightly logged sometime in the early 20th century, then allowed to regrow naturally rather than being transformed into an industrial monocrop of even-aged trees. Today, these forests are not…
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Federal climate action in the US is in a nosedive, with most policies and programs related to reducing carbon emissions being rolled back by the Trump administration. Indeed, there are times when it seems like administration is bent on emitting as many planet-warming gases into the atmosphere as possible–but at the state level, the story…
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It’s a hardly a secret that plastic recycling in the US is broken. From a breakdown in basic recycling infrastructure, to low-quality materials that are increasingly difficult to make into new products, the recycling industry faces a plethora of challenges. It’s gotten to the point where, every time I throw a plastic container into curbside,…
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Look out at the seemingly endless mountain peaks from Rocky Seas Pass in High Uintas Wilderness, and it’s easy to sense that you’re in one of the most extensive, relatively pristine wild landscapes left in the contiguous United States. That’s what I found myself thinking during a recent visit to this special spot, at any…
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When the sun begins to set over Utah’s Great Salt Lake, the sagebrush steppe on Antelope Island seems to come alive with wildlife. Jackrabbits and desert cottontails emerge from hiding to feed in the cool of evening, while pronghorns and deer graze on shrubs. Crickets chirp and moths and lacewings take to the air. Then…
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I’ve never really been a wildlife policy person. While a desire to protect as much of Earth’s endangered biodiversity as possible is a major driving force behind much of what I do, my focus first as an activist, then an educator, then a writer has been largely within the spheres of climate, energy, and forest…
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Whenever I visit an alpine environment I’m struck by the degree to which these ecosystems seem like a whole different world from the one that exists below. Once you climb high enough on a mountain that you emerge above the tree line, you enter a landscape with a set of plants and animals not found…
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While working on my latest piece for Columbia Insight, I had the privilege of speaking with an activist involved in an ongoing tree-sit whose goal is to stop the Parched legacy forest timber sale on state lands on the Olympic Peninsula. While a vibrant movement to protect legacy forests has been growing in Washington for…
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We’re all familiar with the idea that very wealthy people buy themselves access to power with presidents and members of Congress. There’s a good reason for that; the blatant corruption of the U.S. political system has become more visible than ever in recent years, and the ways in which money can equal access and influence…
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Nick Engelfried 