The Wild Idea

Southern Currents: Appalachia In Recovery Aug 21, 2025

In this Southern Currents episode, Bill traveled back to Southern Appalachia early in the spring, just months after Hurricane Helene, to trace the impacts of a storm that has reshaped the region’s communities and forests hundreds of miles inland. We sit down with longtime conservation allies, Josh Kelly of MountainTrue, Ben Prater of Defenders of Wildlife, Sam Evans of the Southern Environmental Law Center, and later Jill Gottesman of The Wilderness Society, to reflect on what recovery really looks like. The conversation moves from personal stories of evacuations, power outages, and neighbors sharing water, to bigger questions about resilience, both human and ecological.

Find the resources and links mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Kim Bednarek: Community-Led Wins in the Okefenokee Aug 19, 2025

In this episode Bill and Anders head deep into the Okefenokee with guest Kim Bednarek, the executive director of the Okefenokee Swamp Park. Kim shares the story of how a local community created the park in the 1940s as a way to connect people with the swamp, and how today that mission has expanded into conservation education and community-led advocacy. We also cover the World Heritage Site nomination for the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

Find the resources and links mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Reprieve for Hawaiian Marine Monument, Red Wolves Take Step Toward Recovery Aug 15, 2025

Today on the Wild Line we bring you some numbers of hope for Red Wolf recovery, a temporary restraining order on more development at the Everglades detention facility and win for the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument. There is also a new map out there that shows the public lands at risk of disposal. These stories and more on this week's Wild Line.

Find the resources and links mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Southern Currents: Saving the Buffalo River Again...and Again Aug 14, 2025

In this second Southern Currents bonus episode of The Wild Idea, Bill chats with Stewart Noland, Tommie Kelly, and Martha Morris from the Ozark Society, the group that came together in 1962 to keep the Buffalo River from being dammed and went on to make it America’s first National River in 1972.

They swap stories from that fight, like riding the Jubilee Bus to Washington, D.C. and floating the river with Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, and talk about how the work to protect the Buffalo has come up again and again with new threats like landfills, dams, and hog farms. They also share how the Society keeps pushing forward, protecting rivers and wilderness, building trails, and getting the next generation out on the water.

Learn more and access the resources and links mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Joe Whitson: Marketing the Wilderness Aug 12, 2025

Environmental justice scholar Joe Whitson joins Bill and Anders to talk about how our stories about nature shape the land itself.

Joe explains his concept of “wildernessing,” the process of making a place look and feel “untouched” through policy decisions, land management, and marketing, even though these landscapes have deep human histories. The conversation moves from history to the present, exploring how our cultural definition of “wilderness” has shifted over time, why climate change is challenging the myth of pristine nature, and what it will take to create a more just and inclusive future for public lands.

Find the resources mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Montana Rivers Protected, LWCF Threatened, Louisiana Wetlands Abandoned Aug 08, 2025

Today we report on the rollback of protections in Alaska’s North Slope, revival of a mining project near the Boundary Waters, and threats to the Land and Water Conservation Fund. We offer some good news with proposed Wild and Scenic River designations in Montana, and some bad news with Louisiana’s cancellation of a landmark coastal restoration project, plus public comments open on a controversial Forest Service reorganization plan.

Find out more about the news mentioned today and links and resources from today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Southern Currents: Land Loss and Citizen Science on The Gulf Coast Aug 07, 2025

In this first installment of our special Southern Currents series, Bill travels the Gulf Coast (sadly, without Anders) to explore the crisis of coastal land loss and the role of citizen science in protecting the region's future.

We begin in Louisiana with Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Bob Marshall, who has spent decades covering the collapse of his home state's coastal wetlands, before shifting east to the Florida panhandle, where marine biologist, author, and lifelong mischief-maker Jack Rudloe tells the story of founding the Gulf Specimen Marine Lab in Panacea, Florida.

Together, these conversations trace the interconnected threads of land, water, loss, and resilience in the Gulf South and ask what it means to fight for wild places when those places are rapidly disappearing.

Learn more and find the resources and links mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Blain and Monique Anderson: Sailing Alaska's Wilderness Waters Aug 05, 2025

Join us as we climb aboard the BOB, a 50-foot Catalina sailboat, with Blain and Monique Anderson—a husband-and-wife team navigating the remote waters of Southeast Alaska. As the owners of Sound Sailing, they’ve turned their love of sailing and wild places into a platform for sharing the raw beauty and singular experience found only in Alaska’s coastal wilderness. Today's episode is part travelogue, part meditation on modern wilderness, and part love letter to the wild waters of Alaska.

Find the resources and links mentioned in today's discussion at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Senators Slam USDA Reorg, New Parks Deep in the Heart of Texas Aug 01, 2025

Today we zoom in on layoffs, restructuring, and reorganizations across multiple departments, and cover wins and losses for wildlife and parks. We also inventory what happened on the hill this week.

Find out more about the news mentioned today and links and resources from today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Your Hosts Bill & Anders: You Ask - We Answer Jul 29, 2025

In this special 20th episode of The Wild Idea, Bill and Anders are recording face-to-face for the first time, from the deck of a sailboat in Southeast Alaska. To mark the milestone, they’re answering twenty questions submitted by listeners.

The result is a wide-ranging, often hilarious, occasionally serious, and always thoughtful conversation that covers everything from their dream podcast guests and close calls in the backcountry to artificial intelligence, bipartisan conservation, screen addiction, and the secret behind those corny intro questions.

Find the links and resources mentioned today along with the list of questions answered on our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: USFS Reorg, Massive Cuts to Interior in House Budget Bill, Legal Win for Wildlife Jul 25, 2025

Today on The Wild Line: A sweeping USDA plan to restructure the Forest Service, a major executive order from President Trump aimed at fast-tracking AI data center development on federal land, the House’s latest Interior budget bill, and a legal win for conservationists.

Find the resources mentioned today and more at our website, thewildidea.com.

Josh Jackson: The Forgotten Lands Project Jul 22, 2025

Josh Jackson didn’t set out to become a champion for the Bureau of Land Management. But after stumbling into BLM lands in the deserts of California, he found himself transformed, first by the landscape, and then by the history behind it.

In this episode, Josh joins Bill and Anders to talk about The Enduring Wild, his new book exploring California’s public lands, and the path that took him from “drive-by desert” skeptic to devoted pilgrim. why the desert strips us bare, how the King Range helped launch a conservation revolution inside the BLM, and the power of returning to overlooked landscapes again and again.

Learn more about Josh and the resources mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Cristina Eisenberg: Humility as a Tool for Protection and Stewardship Jul 15, 2025

In this wide-ranging conversation, Dr. Cristina Eisenberg shares her perspective on the growing crisis facing our forests and why meeting this moment will take more than science alone. As the opening speaker for the Ninth American Forest Congress, Cristina reflects on how this historic gathering signals a shift in how we think about forest stewardship—and why that shift depends on blending Western science with Indigenous knowledge and local wisdom. Together with Bill and Anders, she unpacks why both extractive management and strict hands-off protection have fallen short, and how it’s time to rethink what “wilderness” really means.

Learn more, connect with Dr. Eisenberg, and find the links and resources mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Oil Train Rolls in Utah, Merkley Asks for Wildfire Funds, Trump Targets Park History Jul 11, 2025

This week on The Wild Line: We’re back with a full roundup of what’s happening across all three branches of government, plus a reminder that history is written not just in laws, but in landscapes. We dive into the latest BLM approvals, two new Trump-era executive orders, a small act you can take to help save our National Park signs, and a whole lot more.

Find the links and resources mentioned today on our website, thewildidea.com.

Tony Bynum: Conservation Through a Photographer's Lens Jul 08, 2025

Conservation photographer Tony Bynum joins Bill and Anders for a wide-ranging conversation about photography, sovereignty, wild places, and what it means to tell the truth with an image. Tony's work isn’t just about capturing beauty; it’s about telling the full story of a place, pushing for protection, and reminding us what’s at stake.

Today's conversation explores what makes an image meaningful, why Tony walked away from shooting for certain publications, and how photography can either glorify or challenge our assumptions about land, nature, and use. Tony also shares insights from his time at the EPA, his work with tribal nations across the Columbia River Basin, and his deep belief that storytelling, when done honestly, can move people to care and act.

Learn more and connect with Tony by visiting our show notes page at thewildidea.com, where we've included links and resources from today's episode.

The Wild Line: Congress Wraps Up Reconciliation, Trump Eyes the Everglades, USDA Considers Nuking NEPA Jul 04, 2025

Bill and Anders cover the end of the budget reconciliation process which saw the public land sell-off removed, but many more major setbacks for public lands survived. The Forest Service took steps to loosen rules around following the National Environmental Policy Act, and in Montana they ceded management of 200,000 acres to the state through a new Good Neighbor Authority agreement. We track a lawsuit around the lands being used for the so-called Alligator Alcatraz.

Learn more and find the resources from today's episode at our website, thewilddea.com.

Anne Robinson: 'Good News' from the Appalachian Trail Jul 03, 2025

In this bonus of The Wild Idea, we’re literally taking you to the Appalachian Trail.

Anne Robinson joins us from Harpers Ferry, the symbolic halfway point of her 2,200-mile thru-hike, for a conversation about what happens when you step away from your desk and into the woods for months at a time. Anne recently left her job at Southern Environmental Law Center to take on the AT, and in this episode, she shares what she’s learning about land, history, community—and herself—along the way.

Learn more about Anne and find the links and resources from today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Conservation Alliance: Outdoor Brands Make a Stand Jul 01, 2025

This week on The Wild Idea, we’re exploring the growing power of outdoor brands to influence public land policy. What happens when the companies that outfit our adventures decide to stand up for the places that make those adventures possible?

We’re joined by Paul Hendricks, Executive Director of The Conservation Alliance, and Vince Mazzuca, Director of Marketing at Osprey, to talk about the role of the business community in conservation. Together, they offer a powerful look at how brands are using their voice and their dollars to push back on efforts to privatize or exploit public lands and waters.

Learn more and find the links and resources mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Okefenokee Swamp Saved, Trump Targets the Roadless Rule, Lee's Land Sale Hits a Snag Jun 27, 2025

Bill and Anders break down a big week for public lands. The Okefenokee Swamp is safe from mining, Arkansas banned large hog farms in the Buffalo River Watershed, and Senator Mike Lee’s latest land sell-off push has hit a snag. Major threats remain; the Trump administration moves to repeal the Roadless Rule, putting 58 million acres at risk. Plus, Senate updates, Forest Service rulemaking, and a tribute to Montana wilderness champion Pat Williams.

Learn more and find the resources from today's episode at our website, thewilddea.com.

Chris Wood: Roadless Rule Rescinded Jun 25, 2025

Chris Wood - the godfather of the Roadless Rule and President and CEO of Trout Unlimited - joins the show to talk about how the Roadless Rule came to be, what it actually does, and why the Trump Administration’s move to undo it threatens some of the most ecologically and recreationally important backcountry we have. From fire mitigation myths to the politics of rulemaking, Wood offers a clear-eyed and hopeful reminder of what’s worth protecting, and how.

Learn more and find the resources mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Martin Nie and Monte Mills: Not Just a Box to Check - Tribal Sovereignty and Co-Management Jun 24, 2025

What does it really mean to share stewardship of public lands with tribal nations?

In this episode, legal scholar Monte Mills, a leading expert on Federal Indian Law, tribal sovereignty, and Indigenous cultural protection, and public lands policy expert Martin Nie, whose work focuses on the governance of federal lands and collaborative management across tribal, state, and federal lines, unpack the complex, often misunderstood world of tribal co-management.

This episode challenges assumptions, connects legal nuance with lived experience, and makes the case that co-management isn’t a buzzword—it’s a necessary shift toward justice, sustainability, and honoring deep, place-based relationships that predate the United States itself.

Learn more about our guests, find the links and resources mentioned in today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Wildfire, Broken Promises and Reconciliation Jun 20, 2025

This week on The Wild Line, we’re tracking three major stories shaping the future of public lands and the communities that depend on them, including a new executive order aimed at “commonsense” wildfire prevention and response.

Learn more and find the links and resources from today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Tracy Stone-Manning: Promises Worth Defending Jun 17, 2025

Tracy Stone-Manning has spent her career at the heart of public lands policy—from field offices and statehouses to the director’s chair at the Bureau of Land Management. Now, as president of The Wilderness Society, she’s carrying that fight forward with a deep belief in collaboration, connection, and the promise our public lands represent.

In this episode, she joins Bill and Anders for a wide-ranging conversation about what’s really happening inside our land management agencies, what the public lands rule was meant to protect, and why the stakes feel higher than ever.

Learn more and access the resources and links mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Senate Draft Targets Millions of Acres, DOJ Clears Monument Rollbacks Jun 13, 2025

This week on The Wild Line, we dive into the latest updates from the Department of Justice, look at Senate drafts impacting public lands and forests, and talk about youth efforts on behalf of Bigfoot, as well as a handful of other important topics. It's been a big week for wilderness spaces—here's what you may have missed.

Find out more about today's episode and links we mentioned on the show at our website, thewildidea.com.

Randy Newberg: The Host of Fresh Tracks Offers Fresh Ideas on Advocacy and Access Jun 10, 2025

Randy Newberg is one of the most trusted and strategic voices in the sportsman conservation world, and he’s got stories to prove it. In this episode, Randy joins Bill and Anders for a wide-ranging, funny, and deeply personal conversation that moves from his childhood hunting on public lands in northern Minnesota to testifying before Congress and building a media platform to fight for the places that fed and shaped him.

Learn more about Randy and find links to the resources mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Lee and Daines talk land sales, Interior guts Science and opens Alaska to drilling Jun 06, 2025

This week on The Wild Line, Senators Lee and Daines revive dangerous land sell-off efforts, the DOI axes key science protections, and Alaska faces a new wave of oil and gas drilling, because apparently, recess doesn’t mean rest for public lands.

Learn more and find the links and resources from today's episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Andis Arietta: The Uncertainty Inherent in Wilderness Jun 03, 2025

What do frozen frogs, machine learning, roadkill, and wilderness ethics have in common? According to evolutionary ecologist Dr. Andis Arietta…everything.

In this wide-ranging and mind-expanding conversation, Andis joins us to explore the deep connections between ecology, evolution, climate change, and how (and whether) we manage wild places.

Find the links and resources mentioned in today's conversation and learn more about Andis by visiting our website, thewildidea.com

The Wild Line: SCOTUS approves mine on sacred ground; Burgum rewrites history May 30, 2025

This week on The Wild Line, despite Congress being on recess, the hits keep coming for public lands, tribal sovereignty, and environmental protections.

Find the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website, thewildidea.com

Jon Jarvis: Are Our National Parks Being Set Up To Fail? May 29, 2025

In this bonus episode of The Wild Idea, we sit down with Jon Jarvis, the 18th Director of the National Park Service, for a wide-ranging and urgent conversation about the future of America’s public lands. Drawing on his 40-year career in the Park Service—from backcountry Alaska to the corridors of D.C.—Jarvis offers a sobering look at current threats, including budget slashing, forced retirements, and what he calls a calculated push to privatize the parks.

Learn more and find the links and resources mentioned in this episode at our website, thewildidea.com.

Ingrid Lyons: Save the Boundary Waters, Join the National Wilderness Coalition May 27, 2025

What does it take to protect one of the most visited, and most threatened, wilderness areas in America? Executive Director of Save the Boundary Waters, Ingrid Lyons, joins us to talk about the fight to defend Minnesota’s beloved Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from dangerous copper mining proposals and the broader movement to reinvigorate wilderness advocacy nationwide.

Learn more about the topics discussed in today's episode and connect with Ingrid on our website, thewildidea.com

The Wild Line: Burgum Defends Park Closures, Public Lands Survive Reconciliation (for now) May 23, 2025

This week on The Wild Line, Anders and Bill break down a big development in the ongoing budget reconciliation battle, and what it means for public lands. We dive into the House Reconciliation Bill, the Trump administration’s $5 billion cut to the Department of the Interior’s budget, and more.

Find the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website, thewildidea.com

Senator Tim Kaine: Walk, Ride, Paddle, Protect! May 22, 2025

It’s not every day a sitting U.S. Senator joins us to talk about the places that shaped him. In this special bonus episode, Senator Tim Kaine reflects on his journey across Virginia—on foot, by bike, and by kayak—and how that experience shapes his approach to conservation, policy, and legacy.

See the notes from today's episode and learn more by visiting our website, thewildidea.com

Kaitie Schneider: Wolverines Reissued May 20, 2025

What happens when you try to bring back a mythic, misunderstood, cold-loving carnivore that most people don't even know is real? You get one of the most fascinating conservation stories in the American West. In this episode, Kaitie Schneider of Defenders of Wildlife joins us to talk about the long-awaited reintroduction of Gulo gulo, the wolverine, to Colorado.

Learn more and connect withKaitie by visiting our website, thewildidea.com

The Wild Line: Bipartisan Pushback on Threats to Public Lands and the Endangered Species Act May 16, 2025

Welcome to the very first edition of The Wild Line, a new weekly series from The Wild Idea podcast. This show is for all of you who’ve asked to stay informed about what’s happening with our public lands, from Washington, D.C. to your own backyard. Each Friday, we’ll bring you the big stories shaping the future of our wild places, with sharp commentary, context, and some fire.

This week, we’re starting with some catch-up after a whirlwind month on the public lands front. We cover promising legislation in Virginia and Arkansas, the wildfire of bad news coming out of House reconciliation efforts, attacks on the Endangered Species Act, bipartisan resistance to land sell-offs, and the gutting of our public lands workforce.

Find the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website, thewildidea.com

Jose Gonzalez: Show Up and Be Curious May 13, 2025

In this episode of The Wild Idea, we speak with José González, founder of Latino Outdoors and co-founder of The Outdoorist Oath, about identity, community, and redefining what it means to belong in wild spaces.

José shares his personal journey from rural Mexico to national conservation leadership, and why the question isn’t just how to get more people outside, but why it matters who gets to belong there.

Learn more and connect with José by visiting our website, thewildidea.com

David Gessner: Roosevelt, Resistance and Reclaiming the Wild May 06, 2025

Today we are in conversation with David Gessner, the bestselling author of multiple books including his most recent release, The Book of Flaco. We talk about his exploration of the American West both on the page and through his own travels, along with the lasting legacy of Theodore Roosevelt and the paradox of land management in the United States.

Connect with David and learn more about this conversation at our website, thewildidea.com

Tim Manley: Grizzlies, Conflict, and Coexistence Apr 29, 2025

Today we're so excited to welcome Grizzly Bear Management Specialist (retired) Tim Manley to The Wild Idea podcast!

In our conversation today, we talk about Tim's pioneering work capturing Grizzly behavior in the wild, the evolution of the Grizzly - Human relationship and interactions, and how human behavior is impacting Grizzly habitat and vice versa.

Learn more about Tim and find the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

Drew Lanham: The Wild We Inherit, The Wild We Imagine Apr 22, 2025

Today we are excited to be in conversation with J. Drew Lanham, an ecologist, poet, and professor.

We dive into questions of wilderness, who determines the authenticity of an outdoor experience, how Black and Brown people are showing up outside, what the evolving government actions could mean for our common access to wild spaces, and so much more.

Connect with Drew and see the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

Greg Aplet: Forests, Fire, and What is Wild Apr 15, 2025

Today we're welcoming forest ecologist Greg Aplet as we dive into one of the most common points of interest when it comes to the wilderness today: forest fires and how they impact spaces both wild and human.

We talk with Greg about legislation and governmental actions, the costs and benefits of allowing fires to burn, the after-effects of the Smoky the Bear campaign, and how we can further the conversation between everyone impacted by logging, forest fires, and the ecology of the wilderness.

Connect with Greg and see the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

Susan Jane Brown: The (Troubled) Future of the United States Forest Service Apr 10, 2025

In the midst of the current administration's efforts to target public lands for privatization, we invited Susan Jane Brown—who we'll call SJ throughout today's show—to talk about what's happening right now and what it means for all of us, in this bonus episode where we're diving deep into the current threats facing the U.S. Forest Service.

After setting the stage with a framing of the government institutions that protect and caretake our public lands, we get into conversation with SJ about the entire picture of the timber industry and its intersection with public lands, from rural communities to fire management and so much more.

Connect with SJ and see the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

Corina Newsome: The Wild All Around Us Apr 08, 2025

Today we’re joined by wildlife scientist Corina Newsome, as we explore the roots of her passion for birds before diving into how her career has brought her into spaces of seeking environmental justice and equity and helping climate-threatened species survive in a changing world.

Connect with Corina and see the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

Nate Schweber: Public Lands History That Rhymes Apr 01, 2025

We're excited to welcome journalist Nate Schweber to the show! Today our conversation delves into how journalism has told the story of our public lands across the years, and Nate shares more about his recent book This America of Ours and other crucial writings about our public spaces.

Connect with Nate and see the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

Hal Herring: Tailgate Conservation Mar 25, 2025

In today’s episode, we’re talking with the award-winner author, conservationist, and forester Hal Herring. You’l hear about how he balances his work as a planter, a sawyer, and writer; his journey and experiences from his youth in the American South to his career in the forests of the American West, his experiences with conservation and public lands across his career, and why he considers public lands to be the soul of the American Dream.

Connect with Hal and see the links and resources mentioned in today's episode on our website.

The Icebreaker Mar 18, 2025

Welcome to Episode One of The Wild Idea Podcast!

As you'll hear in today's conversation with co-hosts Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds, this podcast is a project years in a making. The idea for this show emerged during conversations on a prairie in Montana, and we are excited to finally be delivering a series of incredible, important, and hopefully interesting conversations to your listening ears.

Today, Bill and Anders set the framework and talk about why we’re creating this podcast, answer some questions to help you get to know each of them a bit better, and share what you can expect from our upcoming episodes.

At The Wild Idea, we're excited to be exploring questions we’ve been asking ourselves for a long time and bringing these conversations to a wider audience and alongside experts, policymakers, and others.

We're excited to welcome you along.

Trailer - An Introduction to The Wild Idea Mar 11, 2025

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