NEWS & INFORMATION

Sustainable Development Must Account for Pandemic Risk
Opinion, Science Respect Big Bend Staff Opinion, Science Respect Big Bend Staff

Sustainable Development Must Account for Pandemic Risk

The United Nations (UN) launched the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to address an ongoing crisis: human pressure leading to unprecedented environmental degradation, climatic change, social inequality and other negative planet-wide consequences. This crisis stems from a dramatic increase in human appropriation of natural resources to keep pace with rapid population growth, dietary shifts toward higher consumption of animal products and higher demand for energy. There is an increased recognition that Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are linked to one another, and priorities such as food production, biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation cannot be considered in isolation.

Read More
A Sneak Preview of “The Long Game”
News Respect Big Bend Staff News Respect Big Bend Staff

A Sneak Preview of “The Long Game”

The producers of The Rational Middle of Energy, in collaboration with the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, will introduce “The Long Game,” a short-documentary series that addresses energy development's impact in the greater Big Bend region of far West Texas, and what is being done to minimize impact to landowners and communities and conserve this unique area's natural resources.

Read More
Conserving the Last Frontier: The Case for the Trans-Pecos
Opinion Louis Harveson Opinion Louis Harveson

Conserving the Last Frontier: The Case for the Trans-Pecos

If Texas were a sovereign country, it would rank as the tenth largest economy in the world, with a GDP of $1.7 trillion. Texas also ranks highest among states in the United States for business. In fact, Texas has added 350,000 jobs in the past year (one in seven new jobs in the U.S. were in Texas). Texas’ strong economy is married to the current energy boom in Texas. Major oil and gas formations in Texas include the Barnett, Eagle Ford, Haynesville, and Permian Basin. The Permian Basin alone is projected to exceed Saudi Arabia in production by 2023.

Read More
Actionable Solutions for a New West Texas
Opinion Marilu Hastings Opinion Marilu Hastings

Actionable Solutions for a New West Texas

The Nature Conservancy states that the largest loss of open space is now caused by energy sprawl—the amount of land resources developed for the production of energy from both fossil and renewable resources and all of the associated infrastructure. Nowhere is this phenomenon more apparent than the Big Bend or Trans-Pecos region of West Texas.

Read More