WILD

A Letter to My Friends in Wilderness

This article by the late George Duffy (retired U.S. Forest Service wilderness ranger) appears in the newest issue of the International Journal of Wilderness, August 2010. Editor’s Note: This “Farewell” essay was written by George Duffy to fellow wilderness stewards after he learned he had a rare and fatal cancer. This letter reflects how George lived his life: full of verve and passion for wilderness, and always striving to improve wilderness stewardship. George was the steward for several wildernesses in California, pioneering new education programs that reached the hearts and minds of thousands of young people, helping them understand and appreciate ... Read More

On Sanctuary

Sanctuary is important. In our yearning to connect with nature, understand and be kind to animals, save the natural world, and retain our sanity, one of the enduring divides is that between the animal welfare and conservation movements. It is a damaging dialectic, and one not necessary…but humans too often seem to be drawn to polarity, and to defining what is different and opposed, rather than what may be different but complimentary and/or mutually important and enhancing. Read More

April IJW is here!

Earlier this week, the newest issue of the International Journal of Wilderness was sent to subscribers!  This great issue includes articles about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Inter Sinkyone tribal wilderness lands.  Vance Martin and Dave Parson also reflect on WILD9, the 9th World Wilderness Congress (6-13 November 2009, Merida Mexico).  Several articles are available online, but to get the full IJW experience, subscribe today and we'll send you this issue right away! Read More

Learn how private conservation is protecting the Amazon

Did you know that more than 2 million hectares of the Amazon under private ownership is protected by some form of conservation effort?  It's a pretty amazing fact -- and the Amazon is a pretty amazing place.   One in ten known species in the world live in the Amazon Rainforest.  The Amazon is under great threat from deforestation, destruction and development, which not only destroy the forest and the animals and plants living there, but also releases stored carbon into the atmosphere.  Since the industrial revolution, at least 25% of all all emissions have come from destroying wild nature - ... Read More

Solastalgia – Homesick for the wilderness

Over the weekend, the NY Times Magazine published a very poignant article by Daniel B. Smith titled "Is there an Ecological Unconscious?"  The article was circulated to all of those associated with WILD, not just because of its timely message but because of its resonance with the vision of WILD and the work of our founder, Dr. Ian Player.  The article delves into the human psyche's need for wild-nature and our dependence on wild-ecosystems beyond the quantitative needs of clean air, fresh water and fertile soils.   In order to protect wilderness, we must first understand our multi-faceted connection to it.  ... Read More

Last of the Wild – Overview of wilderness in Europe by PAN Parks

This week PAN Parks released a new publication "Last of the Wild: Overview of the status and monitoring of some wilderness related species in the NATURA 2000 Network," which presents the current status of iconic species such as the lynx, brown bear, wolf, ibex and others to help further protection of habitat for these species and advocate for large-landscape scale conservation efforts in Europe.   The general conclusion of the publication is that wilderness is good, and interconnected wilderness is even better -- which aligns with WILD's new vision "At Least Half Wild."  Read More

International League of Conservation Writers

One of the many outcomes from WILD9, the 9th World Wilderness Congress (6-13 November 2009, Merida, Mexico), was the formation of the International League of Conservation Writers.  A development of the 3-day Writers Seminar Series, an esteemed group of environmental writers have joined together.  Thus far, the group is a loose collection of environmental writers, with the 'hub' of the group at Fulcrum Publishing in Golden, Colorado.  The group aspires to provide mentorship for up-and-coming writers, provide camaraderie among top wilderness writers and recognize the importance of writing within the conservation movement.  Within the next few months, they will post ... Read More

Reflections on Endangered Experiences, December 2009 IJW

Reflections on Endangered Experiences: Returning to Our Roots, by Joseph W. Roggenbuck is published in the December 2009 issue of the International Journal of Wilderness.  To read other select articles from this and other issues, and to subscribe to the IJW please visit www.ijw.org. Introduction My purpose here is to reflect on a happy career as a wilderness researcher, teacher, and enthusiast, and to offer concerns, insights, and recommendations about an idea, a system of special places, and a profession that are very dear to me. This essay is organized into four parts. First, I outline my own background, and the persons, ... Read More

IUCN Launches book in Spanish and Russian

News from Bas VeIUCN launches Spanish and Russian versions of its Sacred Natural Sites: Guidelines for Protected Area Managers – a landmark publication to support the protection of sacred places around the world. The the Spanish version will be presented the Tuesday the 10th at 16:00 (café session 1) at the Ninth World Wilderness Congress (WILD9, www.wild9.org) which started last week in Merida, Mexico. The Russian version was launched at the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) meeting on the protection of traditional knowledge (www.cbd.int/doc/?meeting=WG8J-06) which ended last week in Montreal, Canada.  Read the full press-release inENGLISH andSPANISH. Read More

Philanthropy, from Reality to TV

William A. Schambra's column in the current Chronicle of Philanthropy -- "The Philanthropist Rebuts Grant-Making Professionals" -- is an insightful review of a new television show, The Philanthropist, that provides perceptive comment on philanthropy today. It caused me to reflect. It has been a long time since "The Millionaire" was on TV, and I surely date myself by referring to it. As a kid I was of course fascinated with the weekly scenario where a polite character named Michael Anthony (personal assistant for industrialist John Beresford Tipton) turns up at someone's door and hands over a ... Read More