“…it’s time to recognise that at the heart of our work is the need for those around us to be able to imagine a better world, to tell stories about it, to long for its realisation. If we can imagine it, desire it, dream about it, it is so much more likely that we will put our energy and determination into making it reality.”
—Rob Hopkins
A Lack of Vision
Friends of the Clearwater works hard to stay current with proposed legislation affecting public lands and their biological communities. In recent years we have spent much time and energy reacting to proposals to weaken laws that constrain human development and resource extraction. And along with bad legislation there has been an almost constant stream of changes proposed for administrative rules and regulations, often to reduce opportunities for public engagement in agency decision making. And although these assaults have accelerated under the current federal administration, in truth this erosion has been going on for decades, regardless of the political party occupying the White House or controlling Congress.
This exposes a longstanding weakness of the environmental movement in this country, which is an inability to unify, tap into our collective majority and common values, and mobilize effective resistance to specific initiatives by the corporate capitalist agenda that threaten our planet’s life support systems.
This collective incapacity is not confined to environmental organizations and issues. In his 2019 book, From What Is to What If: Unleashing the Power of Imagination to Create the Future We Want author Rob Hopkins asks why societies collectively struggle to confront the breadth of pressing issues of our times: “Why are we so incapable of coming together to create, sustain and carry out a vision in which we capably address global crises and enjoy our lives more in the process?”
His answer: “Bringing about the world we live in, the world we want to leave to our children is, substantially, the work of the imagination, or what educational reformer John Dewey describes as ‘the ability to look at things as if they could be otherwise.’”
So, we share this challenge: Can we imagine an “otherwise” world where public lands are managed for ecological integrity, climate justice, and the long-term survival of native wildlife rather than industrial profit?
Can we imagine a world where citizens and environmental organizations rally together in support of forward-thinking, groundbreaking legislation to tackle the biodiversity and climate crises, in recognition that public lands present our best opportunities for preserving biodiversity and creating climate reserves?
New Visions
The good news is, proposed legislation exists to accomplish some of these goals. The Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA), for example, would protect all remaining roadless areas in the U.S. Northern Rockies as Wilderness. Just as importantly, it
implements ideas from grizzly bear researchers and conservation biologists to increase habitat protection in key connectivity zones to aid movement by grizzly bears between Wilderness core areas so their populations can naturally recover. And in protecting grizzly bears as an “umbrella” species across these wide landscapes, NREPA will also benefit other rare and imperiled species such as wolverines and wild salmon.
Can you imagine a world where all public lands conservation organizations boisterously support the passage of NREPA (H.R. 2420 and S. 1198)?
Another positive development is a proposal not yet introduced into Congress—the Forest Protection and Climate Justice Act, which includes provisions to end logging on all federal public lands and convert them into Climate Reserves, redirect the logging subsidies to facilitate rewilding of public lands and create a jobs program to facilitate just climate change adaptation and create fire-safe communities.
Yet another worthy bill is the Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act (H.R. 582 and S.3609). It would establish a grant program focused on community protection and wildfire resilience, so people are empowered with science-based options for protecting their homes. This would also help to reduce citizens’ vulnerability to the fire scare propaganda being constantly spouted by logging proponents as reasons to weaken laws and “manage” forests to death.
We at Friends of the Clearwater choose to imagine a world where these worthy proposals become law. We refuse to subscribe to the rhetoric of mainstream environmental naysayers addicted to the illusory power of their connection to “political reality” elites, which effectively paralyzes them from doing the hard work of banding together with us and other grassroots groups to actually change reality.
“If you accept the challenge to imagine, belief will follow.”
If you accept the challenge to imagine, belief will follow. If you believe, acting becomes second nature. Please help to create a groundswell of support for proactive, science-based, visionary legislation that charts a course towards a just and sustainable future. Ask your members of Congress to share a positive vision for the future by co-sponsoring the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act. Include a request that they also co-sponsor the Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act (H.R. 582 and S.3609) and introduce the Forest Protection and Climate Justice Act into Congress for the reasons we describe above.
In acting, you set a highly motivating example to others. So, take the next step: amplify your voice exponentially by sharing with your social networks and by social media.
Finally, don’t stop there. Continue to harness the power of your imagination to create solutions to social justice, climate and environmental problems in your community. Connect with like-minded, visionary citizens who work to create a positive future. This will nourish your soul and improve your quality of life.
For a version of this article with active links to take action on these legislative proposals, see our website… You can also reach me at for more information and ideas.