Conservation Archives – Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy

Federal Land Management Reaches Full Sellout Under Trump

December 18, 2025/1 Comment/in Autocracy, Conservation, Corruption, Economic Policy, Endangered Species, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Governance, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

by Kirsten Stade

While U.S. federal land management agencies have seldom been bastions of conservationist vision, their level of regulatory capture has reached a new high in the Trump era. From opening up protected areas to oil and gas development to efforts to sell public lands outright, the current administration and Congress are looking to turn over public lands to extractive industry for its private profit.

We are in a new era of public lands mismanagement,

Revisiting the Fight for the Final Forest

December 11, 2025/1 Comment/in Conservation, Corruption, Dave Rollo, Economic Policy, Governance, KEEP Our Counties Great, Limits to Growth, Politics, Pollution, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

By Dave Rollo

The fight to save Sledge Forest in New Hanover County, covered in the Steady State Herald this past spring, continues in earnest. As reported then, Hilton Bluffs—a massive, 4,000-unit development—pits county residents against Copper Builders, an outside developer. The proposal threatens what locals refer to as “The Last Forest.” The community’s resistance, spearheaded by the group Save Sledge Forest, has continued and grown,

Liberty County, Florida: Globally Important Local Conservation

October 9, 2025/1 Comment/in Biodiversity, Conservation, Dave Rollo, Economic Growth, Endangered Species, Governance, KEEP Our Counties Great, Limits to Growth, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

by Dave Rollo

In the “Anthropocene,” human economic activities dominate the Earth, at the immense expense of other species. Scientists are calling this the “sixth mass extinction,” as entire genera disappear 35 times faster than they have over the last million years. This biodiversity loss is happening worldwide, but it plays out at the local level. Likewise, combating the crisis requires local action.

In the United States,

Tucker County: “Yellowstone of the East” or Appalachia’s “Cancer Valley”?

August 21, 2025/11 Comments/in Amelia Jaycen, Biodiversity, Conservation, Corruption, Energy, Fossil Fuels, Governance, KEEP Our Counties Great, Pollution, Steady State Herald, Technology /by Alix Underwood

by Amelia Jaycen

In Tucker County, West Virginia, two towns with populations of about 600 each are nestled next to the largest high-elevation wetland valley east of the Mississippi. After a long history of coal mining and logging, these tiny mountain towns found a way to reinvent themselves by creating a thriving arts district and promoting the stunning local natural landscape.

Now, the area is at risk of backtracking into heavy pollution,

In the Poconos, They’re Keeping Carbon County Great

June 19, 2025/2 Comments/in Conservation, Dave Rollo, Economic Policy, Environment, Governance, KEEP Our Counties Great, Money and Investments, Politics, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

By Dave Rollo

In Carbon County, Pennsylvania, the conservation ethic runs deep. It manifests in the county’s comprehensive plan, its “return on environment” analysis, and most recently, a fund to preserve open space, which voters overwhelmingly supported.

Carbon County derives its name from the abundant deposits of anthracite—the highest quality coal—that were once mined there. The county is located in the southern Pocono Mountains,

Corporate Conservation Funding: A Contradictory Conundrum

June 5, 2025/2 Comments/in Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation, Corporate Reform, Economic Growth, Environment, Kali Young, Materials use, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Alix Underwood

by Kali Young

Apple, Cargill, Walmart, United Airlines, Chevron, BlackRock, Starbucks, Ford Motor Company, Amazon, McDonald’s, Sotheby’s…What do they all have in common? They are among many megacorporations that fund Conservation International, one of the most prominent conservation foundations in the world. World Wildlife Fund and the Conservation Fund, also conservation powerhouses, have similar though less expansive funder profiles.

Walmart and BlackRock are two of the world’s top deforestation perpetrators.

Saving Sledge Forest

March 27, 2025/7 Comments/in Conservation, Dave Rollo, Economic Growth, Governance, KEEP Our Counties Great, Limits to Growth, Population, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Alix Underwood

by Dave Rollo

Like many coastal communities, the county of New Hanover, North Carolina, is rich in habitat diversity. Its coastal plain is dominated by estuaries, marshes, and swamp forests and is considered a global biodiversity hotspot. The county is home to a number of threatened and endangered species, with mounting human pressures of a growing population and economy.

The county’s growth has accelerated over the past twenty years.

Energy and Wildlife Conservation: A Two-Pronged Approach

February 20, 2025/11 Comments/in Alix Underwood, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation, Consumption, Endangered Species, Energy, Environment, Fossil Fuels, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

by Alix Underwood

At the 2024 conference of The Wildlife Society (TWS) in Baltimore, I was struck by the prevalence of one topic: low-carbon energy development. There were eight sessions with “renewable energy,” “solar,” or “wind” in their titles, and issues related to these energy sources permeated many other sessions. At a policy priorities meeting, low-carbon energy dominated the discussion, with professionals and academics from across the country sharing their unique concerns.

A Big Conservation Win for Benzie County

January 16, 2025/2 Comments/in Conservation, Dave Rollo, Economic Growth, Environment, Jobs and Employment, KEEP Our Counties Great, Money and Investments, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

by Dave Rollo

Benzie County lies at the base of the pinky on the “Mitt,” as Michiganders say, referring to their left hand as a convenient “map” of their state. The county is blessed with one of the largest deepwater harbors on Lake Michigan, Betsie Bay. It has long provided mariners with safe refuge from the fierce gales of Lake Michigan. Jetties protect the bay’s inlet, where a historic lighthouse has guided ships for over a century.

Beyond the Ideological Echo Chamber: A Call for Intellectual Adaptability in Times of Transformation

January 2, 2025/12 Comments/in Conservation, Degrowth, Ideology, Politics, Postgrowth, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Alix Underwood

by James Magnus-Johnston

From left-wing utopianism to right-wing denialism, ideological echo chambers across the world are eroding the capacity for original, reasoned, and systemic thinking. The United States’ drawn-out electoral process has once again brought out the worst in political tribalism. However, it has also provided an unexpected opportunity: a laboratory for intellectual rebellion and the formation of new, potentially enduring coalitions. Rather than fuel the fevered shouting matches across alternate-reality filter bubbles,