Water and Land

One of the most important things people can do is stay active and engaged about resource issues at the local level. People often focus on environmental issues at national scales that dominate our news, but local decisions are often equally important for resource management and many small local decisions add up to big impact. Land use planning is most often a decision made at the county level or below, and decisions like whether or not to remove a beaver dam that is enhancing a wetland are usually made by a local government. Pay attention to what is going on in your community and get involved.

Expert: Afton Clarke-Sather, Associate Professor, Department of Environment, Sustainability and Geography, College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Minnesota Duluth

Land use change is dynamic. In recent times the biggest driver is the growing global middle class and rising global population, which is placing demand on more land for agricultural production. In many locations globally, agricultural production and growth are at the expense of our remaining natural landscapes, raising the question: can we sustainably grow humanity’s prosperity and food security while having a livable planet?

Expert: Deepak Ray, Research Professor in Global Landscapes at the Institute on the Environment

Managing natural resources sustainably requires a shift from short-term fixes to long-term collaboration. While global trends set the stage, the real work happens on the ground. By empowering local leaders to build diverse, cross-sector coalitions, we can leverage a wider range of expertise and traditional knowledge. When you pair these supported networks with incentives that reward ecological and societal benefits, you lay the groundwork for more resilient ecosystems.

Expert: Bonnie Keeler, Director of the Water Resources Center, College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Science, University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Societal groups disproportionally harmed by environmental degradation are often those with close connections with their lands and waters and thus hold invaluable knowledge on how to steward natural resources for generations to come. When these groups are given a place and equal voice at the table in environmental decision-making, they provide perspectives and worldviews that can help manage shared resources more sustainably for all.

Expert: Gene-Hua Crystal Ng, Associate Professor, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, College of Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota Twin Cities