We loved hearing your questions during Road to 30 Events! We answered as many as possible during our events, but answers to many of those that we were unable to get to are available here.

What can people do locally?

Conservation efforts led by local communities will be absolutely essential in reaching the 30x30 goal. These efforts can range from petitions for new urban parks to local support for wildlife corridors and state parks. Individuals and communities can make a large impact by providing input on local land management plans or pushing county commissioners and state representatives to support the 30x30 effort.

How will the oceans be included in this goal?

The 30x30 goal is a bold vision to protect 30% of America’s land AND ocean by 2030. The ocean is essential to Americans everywhere—but it is threatened in many of the same ways as our terrestrial landscapes. However, marine protected areas (MPAs), or areas of the ocean set aside primarily for habitat and species conservation, are proven tools that take the pressures off of the ocean (such as overfishing or development) and help it rebound. Research has shown that well-protected MPAs are more effective than other actions at restoring and preserving biodiversity, increasing yields in adjacent fisheries, and enhancing ecosystem resilience. To learn more about how oceans play into the 30x30 goal, check out this fact sheet.

What level of protection will qualify toward the 30x30 goal? 

National parks are far from the only kind of effective land protection in the United States. State parks, wildlife refuges, wilderness areas, national conservation lands, and private conservation easements are all additional ways of protecting lands that are aligned with the 30x30 goal. Learn more about methods and options along the road to 30 in this series of interactive storymaps.

What can the average person do to help along the Road to 30?

You can help along the Road to 30 in lots of ways. First and foremost, you can tell your friends and family about the push to protect 30% of America by 2030. You can provide input on local land management plans and push for conserving habitat in local and state parks. Then, you can push your local county commissioners or even your state to support the 30x30 effort. As Rachelle Schrute of Artemis said at our event, “30x30 seems like a huge undertaking, but these little steps that we can take really are going to make a huge impact moving forward.” Finally, you can make your voice heard at the polls and at the voting booth. Outdoor voters are a growing voting bloc!

Will Alaska public lands like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge & the Tongass National Forest have a place in your 30 x 30 proposal?

Absolutely. Alaska is blessed with vast stretches of wilderness, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Tongass National Forest. However, the Trump administration is currently proposing to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and eliminate the roadless rule in the Tongass National Forest. In protecting 30% of America by 2030, we can’t just conserve new landscapes, we have to maintain the ones we have. 

Would Congress need to revise the mission of BLM to ensure its lands are managed for biodiversity conservation and not uses at odds with that goal?

The Bureau of Land Management has a diverse set of lands under its jurisdiction, some of which are managed for conservation and some of which are not. In order to fully change the management of BLM lands, Congress would need to revise the current statute or pass other legislation. As the BLM exists now, Congress acknowledged the value of long-term conservation, science, and recreation on bureau lands with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) in 1976. FLPMA ended the disposal of agency land and governs the management of BLM lands via a multiple use mandate to serve both present and future generations. In an effort to further enhance conservation on BLM lands, Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt established the National Landscape Conservation System in 2000. The system offers protection for BLM-managed land and was permanently signed into law in 2009. One option in working towards the 30x30 goal is to expand this system. Learn more about the National Landscape Conservation System (otherwise known as National Conservation Lands) with this interactive storymap.

Are there specific locations/BLM land areas that have already been identified for protection in Nevada with the 30X30 plan?

As was mentioned during the event, one specific location identified for protection in Nevada is the proposed Avi Kwa Ame National Monument. The area contains some of the most visually stunning, biologically diverse, and culturally significant lands in the entire Mojave Desert. The proposed monument is named for Spirit Mountain, which is sacred to eleven Native American tribes. Learn more at HonorSpiritMountain.org.

​What role will private landowners have in this campaign? What about organizations like the Nature Conservancy?

We simply cannot get to 30% of America without the contributions of private land conservation. The Nature Conservancy, as well as smaller land trusts across the country, will be essential in helping drive these efforts. Private landowners and organizations can work to steward their lands, enhance their natural value, and place those lands under easements to protect them for the future. We must additionally find diverse and innovative ways to protect landscapes, especially those ways that support local communities. Grassroots efforts and involvement in planning and management at all levels of government are ways that both private landowners and conservation organizations can engage with the 30x30 goal.

What are the plans for next steps and timeline after protecting 30% of America?

Getting to 30% will require a collective effort by all Americans! It is an ambitious, but attainable goal. After protecting 30% of the world, scientists have already called for protecting half the Earth in order to prevent the collapse of global natural systems. The U.S. has historically been a global conservation leader and must retake that mantle. Groups like the American Nature Campaign (national) and Campaign for Nature (global) are working to coordinate these efforts.

How can making our cities greener also help protect our wild places?

Making our cities greener is an essential part of working to protect natural areas across the country and the world. By moving away from a fossil fuel economy we can work to prevent climate change, which is exacerbating the current nature crisis and causing species extinctions. Additionally, urban conservation can provide habitat for numerous species and help animals move across urban areas and into adjacent wild spaces. And the benefits go both ways: accessible natural spaces in and near urban areas are shown to be positive for human mental and physical health.

What emerging plans exist to center the conservation leadership of Indigenous peoples?

Indigenous communities oversee lands that contain 80% of the Earth’s remaining plant and animal diversity, and studies have found that lands and waters overseen by indigenous peoples and local communities are more likely to remain less degraded by human activities. A new report from the Wyss Campaign for Nature highlights the conservation leadership of indigenous and local communities around the world, showcasing place-based indigenous conservation success stories and perspectives.

How will 30 by 30 be implemented in areas of the country that are especially impacted by human development, which also have ecological importance?

High levels of human development and private land ownership, such as in the eastern United States, increase the importance of conservation easements and grassroots efforts to protect natural areas. Protection in such regions will likely need to occur in small, locally-driven steps. One lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic is that protecting close-to-home outdoor spaces is so important, not just to safeguard wildlife, but for health and quality of life benefits too. We also must look at policies and opportunities to restore degraded lands. 

​Have we protected 12% of the continental United States, or all of the U.S. including Alaska?

We have protected 12% of the entire United States, including Alaska.