The Wilderness Society

?? Access to nature is a human right, but for many in underserved and underrepresented communities, it’s far from guaranteed. Outdoor equity funds are helping close the nature gap. Nature awaits everyone—let’s make it accessible to all. ??

Nearly 23 million people across six states (Arizona, California, Georgia, Montana, New Mexico and Washington) can’t walk to a neighborhood park within 10 minutes from their homes, according to a new report. We sat down with the authors of the report to talk about their findings and how local parks can help close the nature gap. Check our interview out!

From making polluters pay their fair share to expanding national monuments, 2024 brought us solid conservation wins worth celebrating. We’ll continue fighting for public lands and climate. ?? ??

Exciting news for New Mexico! The state’s Outdoor Recreation Division just awarded over $850,000 in outdoor equity funding to 43 organizations, bringing outdoor adventures to youth across 15 counties and seven Tribal communities. This means more kids will get to explore New Mexico’s amazing outdoors, some for the very first time! Just this year, 96 applications with more than $3 million in grant requests were submitted, demonstrating the need for deeper investment in the program for even greater impact.

Exciting news! Interior Secretary Deb Haaland has appointed Kimberly Smith, The Wilderness Society's Southern Appalachian Community Conservation Specialist, to the federal Advisory Committee on Reconciliation in Place Names. This advisory board is dedicated to addressing offensive and harmful place names nationwide. Kim, a citizen of the Eastern Band of Cherokee, leads our community-based conservation efforts across the Southern Appalachians, working closely with partners to support community-driven initiatives. A passionate advocate for restoring Indigenous names and histories on public lands, she is also a member of the Coalition for Outdoor Renaming and Education (CORE), which works to promote justice through the inclusive renaming of offensive places. Congrats, Kim!!?

Have you ever wondered where the wildest places in the country are? How about the wildest places near you? We built a map to help answer those questions! ??? Wild places are everywhere. Think of “wild-ness” as a relative quality—the wildest places are those where nature is the most intact and undisturbed. Combining data on land use, roads, light pollution, population density and a variety of other factors, we’ve created an index that shows the wildest 30% of lands in each county, state and the country as a whole.

?? Job Opening Alert! ??

The Biden administration has reversed course and endorsed a Trump-era land exchange that would allow a road through Alaska’s Izembek National Wildlife Refuge. This deal, if finalized under Trump’s decision, threatens critical wildlife habitat and sets a dangerous precedent for all designated wilderness areas. Dozens of Indigenous communities have passed resolutions opposing the exchange, and their voices must be respected.

Across the United States, several states and communities heavily depend on fossil fuels for revenue. Yet, we see an all too familiar pattern regarding who bears the brunt of the industry's challenges and pollution. Like many of the big corporate-led sectors in the U.S.—from housing to agriculture—a fossil fuel-dependent economy disproportionately burdens Black, Latinx, Indigenous and immigrant and industry worker communities. We must transition to renewable energy. But as we make that change, we need to ensure oil and gas workers, who have played such a crucial role in the economy, are not left behind.

Public lands across the nation honor our veterans, preserving the stories and sacrifices that shaped our country for future generations to remember and reflect on. ????