Last week, the Trump administration opened 1.5 million acres of Alaska’s pristine Arctic National Wildlife Preserve to oil and gas drilling. The area, an internationally-recognized bird sanctuary, is one of America’s most important ecological gems. The move also threatened local indigenous sovereignty, destroying both their sacred land and the area in which their caribou survive off of. Halfway across the country, the administration simultaneously approved five million acres of federal public grasslands to be opened for commercial cattle grazing, a decision that conservationists warn will strain already drought-stricken rivers across the Southwest. Further north, federal officials moved to block Colorado’s crucial reintroduction of grey wolves, a keystone species for the state’s ecosystem that was eradicated in the 1940s.
Each of these headlines should have warranted national outrage. After all, public lands are a key part of American history and culture. Instead, these events passed with little more than a few half-hearted social media posts before being buried by the next crisis. It’s not the fault of the people posting – getting word out, no matter how small, is important. Rather, the issue is that people have been asked to care too often and for too long. Americans are growing numb to loss. We’ve spent years watching wildfires rage, extinctions amass and environmental protections crumble – all under one of the most anti-climate administrations in American history. The real tragedy, however, isn’t what’s being taken from the land. Instead, it’s what’s being drained from us: our sense of urgency, of moral responsibility and collective ownership over places that once defined us. If change is to be made, Americans must continue to push themselves to fight for what is theirs.
This sense of moral exhaustion can be referred to as environmental fatigue – a psychological exhaustion and apathy that comes from repeated exposure to environmental crises. When each tragedy blurs into the last, destruction can feel routine and inevitable. Constant loss has dulled our reflex to fight back; action has been replaced by a sense of silence and exhaustion. This passivity means consent for an administration that prioritizes corporate interest over public access.
Accessibility to public lands is vital. More than just open spaces, our lands are a physical record of who we are as a nation. 40% of the United States belongs to the people – our forests, grasslands, deserts, canyons, rivers and oceans. Grouped under national parks, state parks, land trusts and town open spaces, our lands are meant to be protected for collective use. However, these protections are only as strong as the people’s willingness to defend them. If we let fatigue win, that 40% will soon fade to nothing.
In the words of former President Teddy Roosevelt, “We have fallen heirs to the most glorious heritage a people ever received and each one must do his part if we wish to show that the nation is worthy of its good fortune.” The question now is simple: how can we take action and rejoin the fight for our nation’s public lands and environmental duty? The answer starts smaller than most may think.
Re-engagement doesn’t have to mean throwing soup on the Mona Lisa or being chained to a tree. Environmental action can start with anything as small as a letter, a call or spending a weekend volunteering with a local land trust. Every act, no matter how small, pushes against the culture of resignation beginning to develop in America.
Write to your state and congressional representatives. In Connecticut, John Larson, Rosa DeLauro, Jim Himes, Jahana Hayes and Joe Courtney represent you – make sure they know to speak for you. If you live elsewhere, check house.gov to find your local officials. If you’re worried about writing alone, look for petitions or group efforts. Organizations like Patagonia Action Works, REI’s Cooperative Action Fund, the Sunrise Movement and the Sierra Club often organize open letters and campaigns you can sign under or join.
If you have the time, join local activist groups committed to protecting our environment. On campus, EcoHusky works to promote environmental action and awareness through community services. Off campus, regional environmental groups such as the New England Wildlife Society, Save the Sound and the Northeast Earth Coalition offer opportunities for new members of varying ranges of skill and availability to get involved in protecting our public lands. Each group has its own structures, focuses and tactics – research which groups best fit your interests and time.
Finally, if you have the means, donate to the cause. Environmental groups can struggle with financial backing – the Environmental Grant Association reported that the Northeast is down 14% in funding for various environmental causes. The smallest donation can go a long way towards protecting our public lands.
The greatest losses facing America’s landscapes today aren’t measured in acres, but apathy. Unless we choose to re-engage, the longer we go without environmental action – both collective and individual – the more losses we will face among our public lands and against the climate as a whole. The path forward cannot be despair, but action. We must learn to write, volunteer, speak and organize in the name of the world around us. The land doesn’t need pity; it needs people willing to speak up for it. In the name of both patriotic duty and moral necessity, it’s time we show up.