The Last Observation of 2020 and the First for 2021
The news in 2020 was dominated by three big stories - movements for racial justice, politics, and the pandemic. The readers of the Living Landscape Observer reflected the challenges facing our nation and the world. Posts on how conservation and the environment were faring under the Trump administration (not well) and on the fate of our public lands (also not well) were of great interest. Articles on how large landscapes, such as agricultural lands, were being impacted by the pandemic and how landscape scale work can aid in revitalizing communities through tourism and other economic development efforts were also popular. Finally, as we look forward to the next four years, we need to understand that the world has changed. More than ever, landscape scale conservation must recognize diverse interests and partners - states, tribal governments, as well as urban and rural communities. It will be all hands on deck to re-assemble landscape programs and revive a research agenda – and hopefully, as the saying goes, we can build back better.
About Us
The Living Landscape Observer is a website, blog and monthly e-newsletter that offers commentary and information on the emerging field of large landscape conservation.
In August 2016, this Newsletter featured an article on Landscape Conservation: The Next Four Years. We wondered how the next election might impact large landscape conservation. And noted that this topic is not the stuff of campaign speeches or even photo ops. After examining the 2016 platforms of both parties, we concluded that the most significant differences would be in the treatment and management of our public lands. We concluded the post by stating, "the beauty of large landscape work is that it draws strength from a mix of public and private partnerships. This model of dispersed leadership makes it a more resilient approach that can probably survive heavy political headwinds .However, taking the two platforms at their word one direction could be smoother sailing than the other."
The conservation community is brimming with hopeful plans to turn back the clock on the bad decisions of the last administration - and many of these ideas should be adopted posthaste. However, there is also no denying that four long years have passed. We now face a global pandemic alongside ever-worsening political partisanship. So, what are the immediate trends that could impact landscape scale work today and what ideas should be consider moving forward in 2021 and beyond?
In 2020, it often seemed as if each day held a year's worth of headlines. As a result, stories that might have merited front page coverage in the past managed to avoid significant media and public scrutiny. Our most popular post of 2020, "While We Were Not Watching," tried to capture some of these narratives, especially as they related to the protection (or lack thereof) of large landscapes. More hopeful posts on the potential for large landscape conservation to aid in economic revitalization or to contribute to interpretation and storytelling, also garnered attention.
Two Interviews from 2020 That Are Worth Another Read
Interested in the intersection of climate change policy and cultural heritage? Take a moment to look at our
interview with Dr. Marcy Rockman from this summer. Dr. Rockman is an archaeologist with experience in national and international climate change policy. From 2011-2018 she served as the US National Park Service (NPS) Climate Change Adaptation Coordinator for Cultural Resources and is now working with the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) as Scientific Coordinator for a project to improve incorporation of heritage in reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Want to know more about the potential to link conservation, outdoor recreation, and economic development together in rural areas? Read our November 2020 interview with Ta Enos, the Founder and CEO of the PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, about a 15+ year effort to expand access to the outdoors, diversify rural economies, create jobs, improve quality of life and inspire stewardship in the region.
What We Are Watching:
The Future of Landscape Conservation- Cultivating Landowner Engagement
In December, the Network for Landscape Conservation convened a forum to discuss the substantial role of private lands in collaborative landscape conservation. This was the second in a series of virtual policy forums that the Network for Landscape Conservation is hosting, with support from the Center for Large Landscape Conservation and the US Fish & Wildlife Service Science Applications Program.
Congresswoman Deb Haaland, an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, currently serves as the U.S. Representative for the First District of New Mexico — one of the first two Indigenous women elected to Congress. Her appointment as Interior Secretary will make history as the first Indigenous Cabinet Secretary.