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Prosperity in the 21st Century West – Public Lands Conservation and Economic Well-Being from the Sonoran Institute

The Sonoran Institute initiated this study with the intent of researching – in an empirically thorough and defensible
fashion – whether protected public lands in the West play a positive or negative role in the
development of the economy of nearby communities.

(Thanks to Melinda Anderson of the Real World Institute for passing this along- Russ)

We discovered that Wilderness, National Parks, National Monuments and other protected public
lands, set aside for their wild land characteristics, can and do play an important role in stimulating
economic growth – and the more protected the better. We also found that there are many other
important pieces of the economic development puzzle, and that not all communities benefit
equally from protected lands. Access to metropolitan areas, via road and air travel, is also
extremely important, yet some rural communities are remote and isolated.

The education of the
workforce, in-migration of newcomers and an number of other factors allow some areas to
flourish and to take advantage of protected lands as part of an economic development strategy.

Communities without these economic assets, in spite of being surrounded by spectacular scenery,
tend to struggle to keep people and businesses from leaving.
We explored in detail how the economy of the West has changed, and looked into the idea that
the West’s competitive advantage in a global marketplace is its unique landscape and quality of
life.

Historic dependence on resource extraction industries, like mining, oil and gas development
and the wood products industry, are shown to be associated with the slowest long-term growth
rates. Diverse economies, especially those with – dependence on the high-end service industries,
like finance, real estate and business services, grow the fastest. We then show how some areas of
the West – those with easy access to larger markets and with nearby protected public lands – are
ideally positioned to attract these types of industries and therefore stay competitive in the global
economy.

Those communities that are not diverse, isolated, without protected lands nearby and
highly specialized in resource extraction are the most vulnerable to global competition.
This study is therefore an attempt to lay out the factors that are needed for economic success in
the West, and to describe the role of public lands in that context.

For the full report:

http://www.sonoran.org/programs/prosperity.html

About the Sonoran Institute

A nonprofit organization established in 1990, the Sonoran Institute brings diverse people together to
accomplish their conservation goals.
The Sonoran Institute works with communities to conserve and restore important natural landscapes in
western North America, including the wildlife and cultural values of these lands. The lasting benefits of the
Sonoran Institute’s work are healthy landscapes and vibrant communities that embrace conservation as an
integral element of their quality of life and economic vitality.

Through community stewardship, the Sonoran Institute contributes to a day when:

• Healthy landscapes, including native plants and wildlife, diverse habitat, open spaces, clean air, and
water extend from northern Mexico to Western Canada.

• People embrace stewardship as a fundamental value by caring for their communities, economies, and
natural landscapes.

• Resilient economies support strong communities, diverse opportunities for residents, productive
working landscapes, and stewardship of the natural world.

7650 E. Broadway Blvd., Suite 203
Tucson, Arizona 85710
(520) 290-0828

Phoenix Office
4835 E. Cactus Road Suite 270
Scottsdale, Arizona 85254
(602) 393-4310

Northwest Office
201 S. Wallace Avenue
Bozeman, Montana 59715
(406) 587-7331

http://www.sonoran.org

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