Wild Faith

Our planet is experiencing biodiversity loss on an unprecedented scale. Last year, the United Nations released the stunning results of its first comprehensive study of biodiversity -- and the news is dire. One U.N. source sums it up this way: Current global response insufficient; ‘Transformative changes’ needed to restore and protect nature; Opposition from vested interests can be overcome for public good; Most comprehensive assessment of its kind; 1,000,000 species threatene

Environmentalism and faith don’t always go hand in hand. But they should. In fact, people of faith should be at the forefront of environmental protection. They should be leading the charge to right environmental wrongs. Why? The answer is straightforward: Environmental issues affect all people, regardless of race, religion, or nationality, as well as the rest of the natural world. All living things should have access to clean air, water, and soil. We must stand up for those w

The protection of migratory birds has been a focus of environmental law for more than one hundred years. Now, those protections are in danger of being diluted. The federal agency in charge of protecting migratory birds has proposed a rule change that will codify a narrow definition of “take” under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The proposed change essentially guts those protections. The MBTA became necessary largely because of overhunting and … fashion. For instance, t

Sometimes reading environmental news induces a collective sigh. A communal SMH. It’s filled with the multiple ways in which humans are negatively impacting the environment. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought that point home in a powerful way: without us, the oceans are quieter, whales are returning to shipping lanes, jellyfish have found their way into Venetian canals, and big cats are pacing city streets. It’s not just the presence of people that cause disruptions in the envi

We live in an age of extreme political views on everything from immigration to the environment. It wasn’t always that way. Fifty years ago, the environment was a pressing concern for people of every political stripe. This may come as a surprise to many, but Republican President Richard Nixon oversaw the enactment of many of our Nation’s major environmental laws. And he worked with a Democrat-led congress to establish them. On January 1, 1970, in response to a series of enviro