The Era of More Durable Coalitions Begins

In 2026, public lands will emerge more prominently as a proxy battle for larger national debates like climate change, energy independence, rural economics, and cultural identity. Is conservation a form of stewardship or an economic restraint? Is extraction a practical necessity or a short-term gamble?

These questions won’t be resolved through consensus, they’ll be fought through political wins and legal precedents.

Public lands are our shared resource. This year will see the continuation of the impact of our nation’s division—most notably and burdensomely in Congress—on these shared resources. How can we responsibly share governance of these special places in the long run when short-term division threatens to fundamentally shift the way we interact with America’s public lands?

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness serves as a microcosm of this dynamic: in 2026, the federal government will overreach. The state of Minnesota will feel pressure. The process won’t look like it once did—tweaked or overhauled or built from scratch. The public, overwhelmingly in support of protecting the Boundary Waters, will push back. It will go to court not just on environmental grounds, but constitutional grounds.

The chasm between the objectives of public-land managers, extractive industry leaders, and the administration will grow. Decisions and actions will make less sense for more parties. Alongside necessary defensive strategies, there is also room in 2026 for coalition-building and forward planning—beginning the work of making stewardship of special places like the Boundary Waters more durable, resilient, and capable of weathering political change.