A Watershed Moment
The American West is portrayed as a place of rugged landscapes and endless opportunity. But the land is fragile, resources are finite, and space is at a premium. The essays of A Watershed Moment explore the tensions between a culture rooted in endless growth and personal freedom and the ecological, economic, and social constraints set by community values and the land itself. As Westerners come up against these limits, these essays highlight issues of sustainability central to the region’s future and to the nation’s as a whole.
The contributors are policymakers, government employees, land and water managers, urban planners, biologists, tribal members, writers, and academics from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives. The result is a compelling vision of place-based, policy-oriented sustainability across the West.
Press
> Mar. 21, 2025: Mason Osgood at KOTO: Telluride Community Radio interviews Robert Frodeman and Evelyn Brister, “Authors explore a modern American West.” Audio and transcript available here (starts at 3:44).
> Feb. 21, 2025: Jenna McMurtry at KHOL: Jackson Hole Community Radio interviews Robert Frodeman on “Making the case for limits in the Mountain West,” Audio available here.
> Dec. 16, 2024: In Yellowstonian: A Voice for Wilderness, read an excerpt on wildfire from Paul Roger’s chapter in A Watershed Moment. The excerpt is titled “When a Community Stands in Defiance—not Defense—of Nature.”
> Dec. 12, 2024: Utah Public Radio’s Matthew LaPlante interviews author Paul Rogers on the Undisciplined podcast. Paul talks with him about how “We Probably Can’t Prevent Forest Fires. So What Can We Do Instead?“
> Nov. 21, 2024: Video of the University of Utah Press Book Launch sponsored by the Wallace Stegner Center at the S. J. Quinney School of Law. Speakers included Bob Keiter, Evelyn Brister, Seth Arens, Bonnie Baxter, and Robert Frodeman. View it here.
> Nov. 12, 2024: In Yellowstonian: A Voice for Wildness, Todd Wilkinson asks “Where Does the West Go From Here?” and discusses limits to growth with book editor Robert Frodeman. Read it here.
> Nov. 5, 2024: Utah Public Radio’s Tom Williams interviews book editor Robert Frodeman about housing and other issues affecting Western communities, including the need for interdisciplinary and cross-sector solutions. Listen here.
Events
“Philosophy Symposium: On Policy, Philosophy, & the Environment”–exploring environmental justice, equitable communities, and conservation policies and incentives
Book-signing, author and editor presentations, Q & A
Speakers: Evelyn Brister (Philosophy Professor, RIT), Travis Brammer (Director of Conservation, PERC), Kristal Jones (JG Research & Evaluation)
Moderator: Marisa Diaz-Waian (Merlin CCC)
Panel discussion offering perspectives on land use from Idaho scholars and on-the-ground practitioners.
Sponsored by Boise State University School of Public Service and School of the Environment and by Idaho Environmental Forum.
Speakers: Jared Talley (Boise State Univ., Environmental Studies), Tammy Stringham (Lemhi County Economic Development Association), Jodi Brandt (Boise State Univ., Human Environment Systems), and Cory Mosby (Idaho Fish & Game)
Moderator: Emily Wakild (Boise State Univ., Environmental Studies)
Presentations and book signing at the Tattered Cover, independent bookseller located on Colfax in Denver, CO.
Panel discussion titled “The Frontier Has Closed: Western Communities Confront Limits” at the Western Places, Western Spaces annual conference hosted by the RMLUI at the University of Denver.
Speakers: Robert Frodeman, Evelyn Brister, Luther Propst
A Watershed Moment discussion panel at CSU sponsored by the Warner College of Natural Resources. Reception, appetizers, and book signing at 5pm. Panel discussion with Q&A, 5:30–7pm.
Moderator: Ed Gallo Cajiao (CSU Dept. of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources)
Speakers: Stewart Breck (CSU Ecology and USDA-National Wildlife Research Center), Evelyn Brister (RIT, Philosophy), Robert Frodeman (book editor)
“Facing Limits in the American West.”
Sponsored by the Western Aspen Alliance, Department of Environment & Society, Community and Natural Resources Institute (CANRI), Native American Cultural Center, and Quinney College of Natural Resources
Speakers: Paul Rogers, Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk, Jason Kekek Stark, Luther Propst, Robert Frodeman
“Beer & Banter: A Watershed Moment” with Hilary Flint, Robert Frodeman, Carlin Girard, and Luther Propst.
The discussion will be moderated by Jenny Fitzgerald, Executive Director of the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance.
The event is free and open to the public, and beverages will be available for a donation.
Speakers: Robert Frodeman, Luther Propst, Carlin Girard, Hilary Byerly Flint
Book Release of A Watershed Moment: The American West in the Age of Limits sponsored by the Great Salt Lake Institute
“Confluence”: Panel discussion with musical performance followed by a reception with art, canapés, and cocktails
Robert Frodeman, editor
Bonnie K. Baxter (Westminster University)
Crystal Carr (Diné College)
Evelyn Brister (RIT), editor
Art by Kellie Bornhoft and Dana Kuglin
Sponsored by the Wallace Stegner Center and the University of Utah Press
Speakers: Robert Frodeman, Evelyn Brister, Seth Arens, Bonnie Baxter
Editors
Robert Frodeman writes on environmental philosophy, science and technology policy, and the future of the university.
Contact Robert at [email protected]
Evelyn Brister is a professor of philosophy at Rochester Institute of Technology and works on environmental justice and conservation policy.
Contact Evelyn at [email protected]
Luther Propst is an elected county commissioner in Teton County, Wyoming. He founded the Sonoran Institute in 1991 and served as executive director until 2012.