We like to believe that certain groups of people, when given the right knowledge, experience, education, guidelines, etc., can make decisions for all of us without bias or agenda. One such body is the Supreme Court, the “highest” adjudicating body in the United States and the final authority on the law.

Let me tell you, we have a lot to worry about right now.… Read More

We filed a petition en banc late last month asking the entire Ninth Circuit Court to review a March decision by a three-judge Ninth Circuit panel that allows an Interior Secretary to overrule Congress by approving a land swap that allows a commercial gravel road in Izembek National Wildlife Refuge. So what is an en banc review and why did we petition for one? … Read More

Rachel Briggs made her first two oral arguments as an attorney during the COVID pandemic; Bridget Psarianos argued in court for the first time, then again online, after ten years an attorney. Here, they tell their stories about arguing in court for the first time.… Read More

Birds give us song, beauty, food, a vision of flight. Some birds use tools. Some fly thousands and thousands of miles nonstop one way on annual migrations. Some swim as seamlessly as they fly. Some birds rely on specific foods like eelgrass while others eat almost anything. Some birds live all year in Alaska and others fly over oceans and continents to get here.

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The raspberries in my yard started to pop this week, sweet and plump, and fiery purple fireweed blooms started to reach their peak. It gets dark now, too, and animals fervently prepare for winter—as do we. 

August tells me to gather and process food, button up summer projects, finish chores, prepare for winter, and soak up the last warmth of sunny (though cooler) days every chance I get. Predictably, and also suddenly, summer’s end foretells itself via wilted flowers and late season blossoms, growth surges and decay.… Read More

Yesterday we argued in court again to stop a bogus land swap deal that would trade away Wilderness in Izembek National Wildlife Refuge to make way for a road. The land trade runs counter to the intent of the Refuge and would degrade and harm wetlands, animal habitat and wildlife. We already successfully argued in U.S. District Court two times to protect Izembek.… Read More

It’s hard to believe it has been a year since we first hunkered down due to the pandemic.

The concept of time has been unreal—it dragged, it sped up, it stood still. And in the midst of it all, we faced an existential crisis to our democracy, an ongoing racial reckoning, and so much loss—the loss of so many lives to COVID and racist violence and injustice. The loss of connection to family, friends, coworkers, social gatherings, and even purpose and meaning. A year can change everything and nothing at all. The months from last March to this March certainly proves it.… Read More

Things look far rosier now than a year ago when it comes to public lands management, clean air and water, protecting wildlife and tackling the climate crisis. The Biden administration came out of the gate with clear actions that make climate and environmental health a key component of every decision-making process across all departments. But prior federal actions and lawsuits mean the work has in many ways just begun.… Read More

I came to Trustees as a staff attorney in 2007 and recall how excited we all were when Valerie decided to return to Trustees in 2011. For the last nine years, I have had the incredible fortune to work with her and learn how to become a more effective advocate. And on her last day, true to her course, she left us all with the powerful words of Brock Evans, “Endless Pressure, endlessly applied.”… Read More