In this Wild Wednesday Webcast, we welcome Nicholas Famoso, Paleontology Program Manager for the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, to take us on a journey through the geologic and natural history of the John Day River basin.

Earth Day is more than a day; it's a celebration of an everyday commitment. Looking back at this last year, daily actions, big and small, amounted to huge steps forward for some of the biggest conservation efforts in Oregon Wild’s history. From pushing for a historic expansion of river protections to defending our Climate Forests to advocating for imperiled wildlife, these are some of the campaigns that have grown with an everyday commitment from Oregon Wild members and supporters.

Nearly four years ago to the day, as America faced unprecedented challenges, the Forest Service began a rushed and rigged process to undermine the only protections for Eastern Oregon’s largest and oldest trees. Just hours before President Biden’s inauguration, a Trump political appointee signed a decision gutting protections known as “the Screens.”

Oregon Wild, conservation allies, tribes, and scientists all joined the fight and challenged the removal of these protections in court. 

Late last Friday, those protections were fully reinstated!

Last year, in anticipation of our 50th anniversary, the Oregon Wild team began  working with a local design agency to create a new logo and brand identity, the first update since we adopted the Oregon Wild name in 2006.

Over the last several years, the logging industry has launched numerous legal attacks on the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, a natural treasure managed by the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in southern Oregon. 

We welcome Brian Bangs with The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to learn how beavers, nature's best engineers, have incredible adaptations that make them masters of working in and modifying aquatic environments to suit their needs.

Last week marked a significant milestone as the Oregon Board of Forestry took a crucial step by voting to advance the Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) for the Western Oregon State forests. This decision comes after years of development and extensive input from thousands of supporters, including numerous activists like yourself, who advocated for heightened protections for public lands such as the Tillamook and Clatsop State Forests.

Learn how fire policy, like forests and communities, can adapt to be more resilient in a new era of fire on the landscape.

Beloved Metolius River

An Untold Story, the Promise of Wilderness, and the River Democracy Act

By Marina Richie

“We’ve learned that safeguarding a river requires that people become engaged in the future.”

---Tim Palmer, Wild and Scenic Rivers, An American Legacy 

When democracy works and the values of all people are reflected in decisions, water, wildlife, and landscapes are safeguarded. When a narrower group of wealthy interests are the only ones with a seat at the table, these values are degraded. Oregon Wild believes in a functioning and healthy representative democracy for all; one in which people power matters more than the power of money. Oregonians deserve fair elections and leaders who listen to them before listening to big donors.