The Wild Idea

Latest Episodes:

The Wild Line: Drilling Process Opens for ANWR, States Debate Colorado Basin Water Rights, Washington Post Slashes Climate Coverage Feb 06, 2026

Show notes

On this week’s Wild Line, we cover major developments in federal public lands policy, intensifying negotiations over the Colorado River, the Trump administration’s renewed push for oil and gas leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and the rollback of climate journalism at the Washington Post. We also share timely opportunities for public comment and mark the passing of a giant in the conservation movement.

Learn more about today's stories and how you can take action at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Tongass Old-Growth Logging Advances, Alabama Reconsiders Water Quality, NPS Removes Signage Nationwide Jan 30, 2026

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This week on The Wild Line, we cover major developments affecting public lands, national forests, tribal sovereignty, water protections, national parks, and conservation policy—plus what to watch in Congress in the coming days.

Learn more about today's stories and how you can take action at our website, thewildidea.com.

Andrew Thoms: The Tongass - America's Largest National Forest and a Key Roadless Landscape Jan 27, 2026

Show notes

As The Wild Idea concludes Roadless Month, hosts Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds turn their attention north — to Southeast Alaska and the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest in the United States and the world’s largest intact temperate rainforest.

Covering nearly 17 million acres, the Tongass has become a focal point in national debates over old-growth logging, climate resilience, rural economies, and the future of the Roadless Rule. Joining the conversation is Andrew Thoms, Executive Director of Sitka Conservation Society, who brings decades of experience working at the intersection of community, conservation, and economic transition in Southeast Alaska.

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

The Wild Line: Could the Boundary Waters be Mined? Could Utah be Paved? Could Burgum end Bison Grazing? Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

This week’s Wild Line tracks a fast-moving series of decisions on Capitol Hill and inside federal agencies that could reshape protections for wilderness, public lands, and conservation efforts nationwide. Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds cover the House vote targeting the Boundary Waters, contentious testimony around the EXPLORE Act, Interior Department actions affecting grazing and bison restoration in Montana, and a long-stalled highway project approved inside a National Conservation Area.

For more information on the stories discussed today, visit our website at thewildidea.com.

Peter Metcalf and Terry Tatsey: Blackfeet Nation Stewardship and a Living Landscape in the Badger–Two Medicine Jan 20, 2026

Show notes

As The Wild Idea continues Roadless Month, hosts Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds turn their focus to one of the most culturally and ecologically significant landscapes in Montana: the Badger–Two Medicine. Situated along the Rocky Mountain Front, just south of Glacier National Park, the Badger–Two Medicine is a place where roadless protection, wildlife habitat, and deep Indigenous responsibility converge. Joining the conversation are Terry Tatsey, a member of the Blackfeet Nation with lifelong ties to the Badger–Two Medicine, and Peter Metcalf, Executive Director of the Glacier–Two Medicine Alliance. Together, they explore why this landscape matters, how decades of advocacy successfully ended oil and gas leasing in 2023, and what is now at stake as the U.S. Department of Agriculture considers rescinding the Roadless Rule.

For more information about the topics discussed today, visit our website at thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Boundary Waters Under Threat (Again), Cumberland Islands Considers Visitor Use, 25 Years of the Roadless Rule Jan 16, 2026

Show notes

This week’s Wild Line covers a sweeping set of developments across federal land policy, wildfire response, public access, environmental regulation, and conservation funding — from Capitol Hill maneuvering that threatens the Boundary Waters, to Interior Department shakeups, EPA rulemaking decisions, and the 25th anniversary of the Roadless Rule.

Find out more about today's episode and how you can take action in support of your public lands at thewildidea.com.

Bjorn Fredrickson & Raul Turrieta: The Roadless History of the World's First Designated Wilderness Jan 15, 2026

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As The Wild Idea continues Roadless Month, hosts Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds bring the conversation to the birthplace of the modern wilderness idea: the Gila Wilderness in southwest New Mexico. Designated administratively in 1924, the Gila was the first government-protected wilderness in the world, shaping conservation policy decades before the Wilderness Act and influencing how Americans understand wild, roadless land today.

Joining the conversation are Bjorn Fredrickson, Conservation Director of New Mexico Wild, and Raul Turrieta, Deputy Chief Assessor for Grant County and longtime Gila neighbor. Together, they explore why the Gila was chosen as the world’s first wilderness, how its roadless character continues to define both the landscape and the surrounding communities, and why it remains central to today’s debates over the Roadless Rule.

Learn more about today's conversation and join us all month long for Roadless Month at our website, thewildidea.com.

The Wild Line: Logging Threatens Montana's Wild Rivers, Colorado Finds a Solution to Sackett Jan 09, 2026

Show notes

This week, Congress returned to Washington and immediately released draft versions of several major FY26 funding bills affecting public lands, wildlife, wildfire management, and conservation programs across the federal government. We explore what's at stake. We also track renewed congressional efforts to advance the Fix Our Forests Act, unpack a tragic and rare fatal mountain lion attack in Colorado, and examine how states are stepping in to protect wetlands and waterways after the Supreme Court’s rollback of Clean Water Act protections.

Find out more about today's episode and how you can take action in support of your public lands at thewildidea.com.

Kristin Gendzier: The Roadless Rule's Southern Roots Jan 08, 2026

Show notes

January is Roadless Month on The Wild Idea. Throughout the month, we’re exploring the landscapes, communities, and ideas shaped by America’s roadless public lands — and what’s at stake as these protections face renewed threats.

Today, Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds are joined by Kristin Gendzier of the Southern Environmental Law Center to dive into discussion of what the Roadless Rule is, how it protects national forest roadless areas, and why it matters now. Kristin brings a distinctly Southern Appalachian perspective to the conversation, weaving together policy history, personal experience, and the lived reality of communities surrounded by roadless areas. From drinking water and wildlife habitat to recreation and rural economies, she explains how these landscapes quietly support millions of people — often without them realizing it.

The discussion also addresses the rule’s turbulent legal and political history, common misconceptions about wildfire and forest management, and the renewed threat posed by efforts to rescind the rule entirely. Rather than framing the moment solely as a crisis, the episode emphasizes public participation, collective responsibility, and the generational importance of protecting these lands.

Learn more about today's episode, Roadless Month, and learn how you can advocate for your public lands at our website, thewildidea.com.

Chris Wood: Why We Have The Roadless Rule (Redux) Jan 06, 2026

Show notes

In this special remastered conversation, The Wild Idea revisits a timely and essential discussion about one of America’s most important conservation tools: the Roadless Rule. As the rule approaches its 25th anniversary, hosts Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds reintroduce listeners to Chris Wood, President and CEO of Trout Unlimited and one of the primary architects of the original 2001 Roadless Rule. This conversation offers critical context for understanding what’s at stake today and serves as a reminder that America’s public lands belong to all of us. This conversation kicks off Roadless Month on The Wild Idea, setting the stage for stories from across the country about the landscapes, communities, and cultures shaped by roadless public lands.

Learn more about the Roadless Rule and the links and resources mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

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