Politics And Activism Episodes

Cindy Bernard and Bernard Leibov respond to criticism of the High Desert Art Fair, distinguishing commercial fairs from biennials and arguing that art, education and economic survival can coexist with responsible participation in desert community life.

Ruth Nolan and Chris examine how promotional media, upscale art events and imported visions can accelerate gentrification in the Morongo Basin, arguing that newcomers should listen to the land and existing communities before remaking either.

Chris explains how collapsing local media has stripped desert communities of context and institutional memory, and introduces the Fellowship for Desert Reporting as a way to support emerging journalists and deeper, systems-aware work.

Laiken Jordahl describes the unusually broad Big Bend coalition opposing border-wall construction, where ranchers, conservationists and local officials are defending wildlife, the recovering Rio Grande and cross-border community life.

Responding to sexual-assault allegations against César Chávez, Chris examines the damage caused by hero worship and argues for accountable, distributed movements that value collective work above charismatic leaders.

Gilberto Manzanarez of Valle Imperial Resiste explains why Imperial County residents are demanding a moratorium on data centers until officials address their enormous energy, water, noise and community impacts.

Chris contrasts AI-generated misinformation and political certainty with the desert’s stubborn complexity, arguing that truth requires attention, humility and a willingness to slow down long enough to see what is actually there.

Mandy Culbertson explains how state wildlife agencies and commissions govern most American wildlife, why special interests often outrank biodiversity and how public participation can make wildlife policy more democratic.

During the 2025 federal shutdown, Chris urges visitors to avoid understaffed national parks because reduced protection increases risks to landscapes and people, while suggesting nearby public lands and local businesses as alternatives.

A 1,600-mile journey from the Mojave through Tucson to El Paso reveals shared threats, passionate local defenders and the possibility of a cross-desert movement built through relationships and regular communication.

Responding to the assassination of Charlie Kirk and its political aftermath, Chris rejects political violence, examines corporate media power and argues that independent outlets must defend truth and solidarity in desert communities.

Brendan Cummings explains California's Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan, the compromises behind the 2023 law and the difficult work of protecting climate refugia while development and fire continue.

Rubén Martinéz reads an essay connecting the deadly U.S.–Mexico border desert with the spiritual desert of monastic retreat, exploring migration, silence, trauma, faith and the possibilities of refuge.

Journalist David Morales explains how Tucson residents stopped Project Blue, a proposed Amazon data center whose enormous water and electricity demands exposed Arizona's tax incentives and longer history of extraction.

In the 99th episode, Chris explains how the elimination of federal public-broadcasting grants threatens rural and tribal stations that provide emergency information, local culture and community connection across the desert West.

Chris sounds the alarm over a Senate proposal to sell millions of acres of Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service land, explaining what privatization could cost Western communities and urging immediate action.

Diné leader Davina Smith explains Bears Ears as a living cultural landscape, the legacy of her grandmothers' resistance and the necessity of Indigenous leadership in protecting sacred lands.

Journalist David Helvarg revisits his 1994 investigation The War Against the Greens and explains how the Wise Use movement's tactics evolved into today's attacks on environmentalists, public lands and democracy.

Chris Clarke critiques Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson's Abundance, arguing that environmental review is being blamed for failures more accurately explained by economics, corporate power and poor project choices.

Humane Borders chair Laurie Cantillo describes placing and maintaining life-saving water stations in the Sonoran Desert while confronting migrant deaths, militarization and disinformation at the U.S.–Mexico border.

Chris examines why diversity, equity and inclusion are inseparable from desert protection, from Indigenous dispossession and border militarization to inequities within the environmental movement itself.

Journalist Caroline Tracey explains Plan Sonora's solar, lithium, gas pipeline and logistics projects—and how a purported green transition can transfer environmental costs to Indigenous and Mexican communities.

Field recordings from Amargosa Valley and Joshua Tree capture residents defending Ash Meadows from mining and protesting cuts that threaten National Park Service staff and visitor safety.

Kristen Brengel explains how mass federal layoffs and disrupted seasonal hiring damage National Park Service operations, visitor safety, conservation work, and gateway communities.