Citizen involvement amplified the call to protect national assets and save something for the future. A campaign to win hearts and minds for preserving the inspiring vistas was beginning to sensitize America to the natural treasures of which it had taken possession.
Category: Environment
Aspen Journalism’s “Connie Harvey Environment Desk” is named in honor of the longtime Aspen environmentalist.
Posted inEnvironment
Becoming the White River National Forest
The story of the WRNF is therefore a weave of time and place, and of a people for whom the forest is both an economic lifeblood and a battleground for conservation and preservation.
Posted inEnvironment
A crisis of the commons
The idea of selling off lands held in public trust throughout the United States is grounds for national reflection on the significance of these very lands. Historically, the privatization of land across the continental United States has been, in large part, a protracted scandal of greed, corruption, exploitation and opportunism.
Posted inEnvironment
Aspen’s cultural scene tests the ‘theory of abundance’
Sources see this abundance as a benefit to the consumer, to the community and to humanity at large. Yet, they also recognize that Aspen’s cultural scene could be viewed as an embarrassment of riches.
Posted inEnvironment
Aspen’s World Cup ski racing future depends on clarity around Lift One corridor development
An FIS spokesperson relayed concerns from race officials that “some of the proposed developments in that zone could potentially restrict the space and infrastructure needed to deliver a top-tier event” and, in turn, negatively impact Aspen’s World Cup prospects.
Posted inEnvironment
Now ‘Chalet Alpina’ and an Aman hotel, two lodging projects in the Lift One corridor work through city permit review
Earlier projections from developers indicated construction would already be underway by now, but to date, no one has started major digging on their projects. Many of their plans are intertwined, requiring collaboration between stakeholders to ensure the order of operations flows smoothly.
Posted inEnvironment
‘Voice of wildlife’ takes early retirement from the Forest Service
Nyland was involved in a wide array of projects across the White River National Forest. But his legacy is clearest in his work to improve wildlife habitat through prescribed fire, and his departure raised alarm in at least one partner agency.
Posted inWealth and Property
The Aspen 80
There have never been more billionaires in the world—3,028, by Forbes’ count, crossing the 3,000 threshold for the first time in 2025. It stands to reason that there also have never been more billionaires in Aspen, their collective influence shaping the community’s social fabric.
Posted inEnvironment
St. Benedict’s Monastery sale falls through
It’s one of the largest contiguous properties in the region, sparsely developed and surrounded on several sides by conserved land.
Posted inEnvironment
Local groups unite over concern for forests’ future
Forest Service functions across the Aspen-Sopris Ranger District and the wider White River National Forest have been deeply affected by the reductions, which were driven by the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce the federal workforce.
