28th Annual Symposium: Common Ground

Genuine environmental progress in the U.S. has long been hampered by political conflict. As we prepare for our 28th annual Environment Across Boundaries (ENVX) Symposium in fall, we face a presidential administration with a very different environmental approach—one that may create economic opportunity but has led to even more political turmoil. What can be done, in these times of continued division and debate?

Via this year’s theme, “Common Ground: How We Can Engage Across Difference With a Shared Love of Land,” we are exploring an opportunity for people to work across these political divides, via what they broadly share in common. For environmental activists and those in the agricultural field—farmers, ranchers, foresters— the thing they share is love of land. But environmentalists have not always collaborated with people and organizations representing our natural resource economy; and those who work the land are often suspicious that environmentalists don’t have their interests in mind.

To move forward together, we first need to rebuild trust; then we can collaborate on land-based policy issues. We launched Symposium in spring 2025 via field trips, meals, and conversations gathering interested Lewis & Clark faculty and students together with those who work the land. Our students played a central role in identifying working groups for followup policy deliberation, facilitating (and acting as full participants in) their meetings, and preparing to showcase their collaborative efforts in our fall Symposium.

We formed three groups in spring with 6-8 participants each, drawn from Lewis & Clark and the agricultural community. Building on our strengths in engagement in the Environmental Studies Program and collegewide at LC, and with key guidance provided by LC’s Community Dialogues, we trained student facilitators to guide the process.

Here were the broad policy topics working groups initially explored:

• Cropland farms: Regulation. Regulation—a broad array of binding policy—has been a key tool for ensuring sound farming and safe food. But farmers often feel left out of discussions leading up to policy decisions they must follow.
• Livestock operations: Animal welfare. There have been popular concerns, and related policy initiatives, over animal welfare. But ranch and dairy operations are often proud of their humane livestock practices.  
• Forests: Wildfire. Fire is on everyone’s minds in the U.S. West today. How to make public forests more resilient has both sparked debate, and provided opportunities for collaboration, among traditional forest policy foes.

A summary of our work in spring 2025 can be found on our ENVX Symposium Blog.

Working groups will continue collaborating in summer and early fall, then report their progress during fall Symposium panels. All fall events will be freely and publicly available to on- and off-campus Symposium attendees.

Pursuing the ambitious goals outlined above has offered valuable opportunities for our students to learn, share insights, and celebrate our process and outcomes. We invite you to join us in search of Common Ground.