Online Articles

Workers at the Field Museum in Chicago inspecting birds that were killed when they flew into the windows of the McCormick Place Lakeside Center. Credit: Lauren Nassef/Chicago Field Museum, via AP

Bird-Safe Building Policies Slowly Take Off Across the United States

November 30, 2023 by Giancarlo Vargas Endangered Species State and Local Wildlife

Each year in the United States, hundreds of millions of birds die after colliding with glass structures they cannot see. In the absence of federal action, cities and states are taking the lead to adopt bird-friendly architecture and policies.

Conservation easement boundary sign with hills and a lake in the background

No Time to Ease Up on Easements

March 30, 2023 by Chris Gaarder Public Lands State and Local Wildlife

The Internal Revenue Code allows taxpayers to claim an income tax deduction for donating perpetual conservation easements to qualified organizations.[1] The federal government has foregone billions of dollars of tax revenue in exchange for such easements…

Man fishing at dawn

Congress Puts Unregulated Fishing on the Hook

February 1, 2023 by Alyssa Greenstein Oceans Regulations Sustainability Wildlife

U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Jim Inhofe (R-OK), respectively the Chairman and Ranking Members of the Senate Armed Service Committee, and U.S. Representatives Adam Smith (D-WA) and Mike Rogers (R-AL), their counterparts on the House Armed Services…

A panel of people at a long table clap while standing in front of the COP15 Logo. Source: https://www.cbd.int/article/cop15-cbd-press-release-final-19dec2022

A Win for Wildlife: The COP-15 Global Biodiversity Framework

January 23, 2023 by Amandine Fromont Endangered Species International Oceans Sustainability Wildlife

From December 7 to 19, 2022, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) held its fifteenth Conference of the Parties (COP15), culminating in the Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework.[1] The Convention on Biological Diversity is an international…

Crabs, the Climate, Congress, and the Court

November 2, 2022 by Danny Shokry Climate change Oceans Wildlife

Background Seafood lovers are familiar with the coveted Alaskan snow crabs. This culinary delicacy made headlines in October 2022, when experts reported that an estimated one billion snow crabs in the Bering Sea had disappeared over the prior two years…

An elephant at the Bronx Zoo. Image by Tammy Lo.

The Elephant in the Room: New York’s Highest Court Takes Up Animal Rights

February 23, 2022 by Gianfranco Cesareo Endangered Species Litigation State and Local Wildlife

When the New York Court of Appeals agreed in May 2021 to hear the habeas corpus case of an Asian elephant named Happy, it marked the first time that the highest court of any English-speaking jurisdiction agreed to hear a habeas corpus case brought on…

Forest Fires: A Concern that Warrants More Attention

October 26, 2019 by ustin Holtshouser Air Climate change Endangered Species Forests International Natural Resources Wildlife

With the consequences of forest fires being felt on both local and global levels, more needs to be done to mitigate these events – domestic government action is essential.

Clarifying the Endangered Species Act’s “Distinct Population Segment” Policy Through the Lens of Grizzly Bears

April 5, 2019 by Max Chaffetz Endangered Species Environmental Law Review Syndicate Federal Rollbacks Litigation Regulations Wildlife

How does the Endangered Species Act’s “Distinct Population Segment” policy apply to the iconic grizzly bear? Read more in this analysis posted via the Environmental Law Review Syndicate.

By Max Chaffetz, Managing Editor, Virginia​ Environmental Law Journal