The stewardship of America’s public lands is, at its core, a human endeavor. Policies, statutes, and technologies all play important roles, but none of them substitute for the judgment, experience, and commitment of the people charged with carrying out the mission.
We can modernize laws. We can improve processes. We can deploy new technologies.
Yet none of these actions will succeed without people to carry them out.
The United States is asking more of its public lands than at any point in recent memory. We need new transmission lines, utility-scale renewable energy projects, advanced geothermal development, wildlife and wild lands conservation, recreation opportunities, and protection of cultural and Tribal resources — often on the same landscapes and within the same timeframes.
Much of the debate focuses on policies that should be reformed, projects that should be approved or opposed, and lands that should be protected. Far less attention is paid to the people responsible for turning those ambitions into reality: the career public servants who steward our public lands every day.
When we talk about what it takes to steward our public lands, we often focus on policies, programs, and funding. Those things matter. But they are only tools.
At a time of growing demands and increasing complexity, agency expertise and capacity may be among our nation's most important — and most overlooked — public assets.
Nowhere is this more evident than at the U.S. Department of the Interior and, in particular, within the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), where staff are tasked with balancing some of the most complex land-use decisions in the country.
Across the West and beyond, there is no such thing as “empty land.” Every acre of public land holds meaning. Every acre is important to someone or for some reason. That acre may be home to a Tribal cultural site or be part of a sacred space. It may provide habitat for a wildlife species that depends on a specific migration corridor. It may be a landscape where generations of families have hunted, hiked, or simply found solace. Increasingly, it may also be a place where our nation looks to build the clean energy infrastructure that is not vulnerable to foreign whims and is essential to addressing climate change, spurring economic development, and ensuring grid reliability.
These overlapping values make public lands decisions inherently complex and deeply consequential. Policymakers and advocates often focus on places they want to protect or policies they want to enact, but there is not enough thought and attention paid to supporting the people who have the skills, expertise, and professionalism needed to properly care for and manage our public lands and waters, and to serve the public interest.
The unmatched expertise of public lands professionals
The professionals who work at Interior, and especially those at BLM, bring an unparalleled understanding of our country’s landscapes. The people working each and every day at your local, state, or regional BLM office are not distant decision-makers. They live in the communities they serve. They raise their families there. They recreate on the very lands they help manage. Over time, they develop a level of place-based knowledge and deep understanding of the land that cannot be replicated by outside actors or automated systems.
They understand the realities of the multiple-use mandate: that public lands must simultaneously support conservation, recreation, cultural preservation, grazing, mineral development, and increasingly, renewable energy. They know where conflicts are likely to arise, where opportunities exist, and how to navigate tradeoffs that are rarely straightforward.
When agencies are under-resourced, processes slow down, conflicts escalate, and outcomes suffer for developers, for communities, and for the land itself.
This kind of expertise cannot be replaced by artificial intelligence or abstract modeling. While technology can inform decisions, it cannot weigh cultural significance, community values, ecological nuance, and long-term stewardship in the way experienced public servants can. Nor can this expertise be built overnight. Place-based knowledge, relationships with Tribal governments and local communities, technical expertise, and institutional memory are developed over years and often decades. Once lost, they are difficult to replace.
I have had the privilege of seeing the depth and importance of that expertise firsthand.
Building a renewable energy program
In 2009, I had the honor of serving as an appointee in the Obama Administration, working at the U.S. Department of the Interior under Secretary Ken Salazar. It was a moment defined by urgency and possibility. The country was emerging from one of the most severe economic downturns in modern history, and there was a shared determination to put Americans back to work while laying the foundation for a cleaner energy future.
At Interior, we were tasked with helping to stand up a utility-scale renewable energy program on the nation’s public lands. The opportunity was enormous, and so was the challenge. Over the years, the Bureau of Land Management had received more than 400 applications for solar, wind, and geothermal projects. Yet there was no clear system to evaluate them, no coordinated process to move them forward, and no practical way to distinguish viable projects from speculative ones.
At the same time, Congress had enacted the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was a landmark effort to jumpstart the economy after the 2008 financial crisis and housing industry collapse. Its provisions included Section 1603, a powerful incentive for renewable energy: a grant covering 30 percent of a project’s capital costs, available only if construction began by December 31, 2010. It was an ambitious, time-bound opportunity designed to accelerate investment and create jobs quickly. But it also imposed a hard deadline. If federal agencies could not move renewable energy projects efficiently from application to a decision point, that opportunity and its economic benefits would be lost.
My role was to help organize Interior to meet that moment.
We needed to build a system, and do it quickly, that could rigorously evaluate renewable energy projects that were proposed for construction on public lands, prioritize those that were well-sited and environmentally responsible, and move them through permitting without unnecessary delay. That required unprecedented coordination across agencies that each brought essential expertise to the table: the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the Department’s Solicitor’s Office, and occasionally the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
These teams had to work not sequentially, but simultaneously on the same projects, against the same timelines.
We aligned schedules. We created new forums for collaboration. We identified issues early and worked to resolve them in real time. We asked people to approach their work differently, to be flexible, to innovate, to rethink how documents were developed and how decisions were made. At the same time, we held firm to the fundamentals. We did not cut any corners, and we did not skip any steps. Environmental review remained rigorous. Legal standards were upheld. Developers were expected to meet clear milestones, and state permitting processes had to move in parallel with federal reviews.
Agency expertise and capacity may be among our nation's most important — and most overlooked — public assets.
It was demanding, fast-paced work. Every day required focus, discipline, and a willingness to solve problems as they arose. There was no single breakthrough moment where suddenly the permitting or its process became easier — government to government consultations with Tribal nations remained essential, biological studies still needed to be carried out, NEPA documents still required review, National Historic Preservation Act agreements still need to be drafted and so on. Rather than shortcutting important process steps, we made steady progress through persistence and collaboration.
And the approach delivered results.
Over time, we moved from a backlog of uncertainty to a pipeline of decisions. Dozens of projects advanced through the process, reaching key decision points, and ultimately securing approval. On October 9, 2012, then Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar “announced that the Department has reached the President's goal of authorizing 10,000 megawatts of renewable power on public lands...” In total, between 2009 and Secretary Salazar’s 2012 announcement, the team authorized 33 renewable energy projects, including 18 utility-scale solar facilities, 7 wind farms and 8 geothermal plants, with associated transmission corridors and infrastructure that enabled the projects to connect to established power grids across the western United States. This achievement helped catalyze the growth of utility-scale renewable energy on public lands.
But the most important lesson from that experience is not about the process or the policy, although both were essential. It is about the people.
None of this would have been possible without the individuals who showed up each day ready to do the work. Career staff across Interior’s bureaus brought deep knowledge of the land — its resources, its constraints, and its possibilities. They understood the responsibility of stewardship and took it seriously. This team was made up of technical experts, attorneys, scientists, project managers, land surveyors, engineers, rangeland specialists, and so many others. The political appointees worked diligently alongside the career team and were willing to learn and be guided by their expertise.
The career staff were smart. They were dedicated. They were creative. And they were relentless problem solvers.
When we talk about what it takes to steward our public lands, to build a clean energy future, or to meet moments of national urgency, we often focus on policies, programs, and funding. Those things matter. But they are only tools.
It is capable, committed, mission-driven people who take those tools and turn them into results.
Agency capacity is essential infrastructure
In 2021, about 8 years after my first stint at Interior, I had the distinct honor of returning, this time to serve under Secretary Deb Haaland in the Biden-Harris Administration. My task was the same: to help once again advance renewable energy development on our nation’s public lands.
In the intervening years, Interior’s renewable energy program had slowed, with progress occurring but without the same level of momentum or coordinated focus. Returning to the Department, I had the opportunity to work alongside many of the same dedicated experts who had built the program during the Salazar years. Together, we revisited the foundational policy frameworks, dusted off guidance that had proven effective, and modernized it to reflect new technologies, updated environmental considerations, and evolving regulatory needs. Where gaps existed, we developed new tools and processes, and we reestablished a coordinated, disciplined approach to permitting and project advancement.
This time, the team was able to move more quickly and with greater precision. That acceleration was due in no small part to the deeply experienced, mission-driven public servants who had sustained this work over time and some remaining institutional memory. Once again, the expertise of the career staff, their commitment and continuity made it possible to restart and expand Interior’s clean energy program with urgency and confidence.
The results were substantial. By advancing large-scale clean energy projects, the Department ensured that public lands and waters are part of the solution to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time. “Onshore, Interior surpassed its goals, facilitating more than 29 gigawatts of clean energy development on public lands — enough to power over 12 million homes. Under Secretary Haaland’s leadership, the Department approved 41 renewable energy projects, including some of the largest solar and transmission developments in U.S. history.
Beyond their environmental benefits, these projects have created high-quality jobs and expanded economic opportunity in rural and underserved communities, ensuring that the benefits of the clean energy transition are broadly shared.” The Energy Act of 2020 called for: “The Secretary shall seek to issue permits that, in total, authorize production of not less than 25 gigawatts of electricity from wind, solar, and geothermal energy projects by not later than 2025, through management of public lands and administration of Federal laws.”
This chapter reinforced a lesson I learned years earlier: while policy frameworks and funding mechanisms are essential, it is ultimately people — experienced, committed, and collaborative — who make durable progress possible.
Modern pressures on a historic system
Many of the laws governing public lands were written decades, and sometimes, more than a century ago. Statutes like the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and the National Environmental Policy Act established critical frameworks for transparency, environmental protection, and public engagement. These laws remain foundational.
But they were not designed for a world where technological innovation — and the urgency of deployment — moves at today's pace. The scale and speed required for clean energy development, transmission expansion, and climate resilience are testing systems that were built for a different era. For perspective, when President Gerald Ford signed FLPMA in 1976:
- Utility-scale solar generation in the United States was essentially nonexistent.
- Modern wind generation had not yet emerged as a commercial-scale industry.
- Next generation geothermal systems had not been developed.
- Long-distance transmission projects designed to connect remote renewable resources to population centers were not part of the national energy conversation.
- Grid-scale battery storage did not exist as a commercial technology.
In 1976, U.S. electricity generation depended largely on coal, petroleum, natural gas, and hydropower, while wind and solar were essentially absent and geothermal remained minimal. By 2023, the mix had shifted substantially toward natural gas and renewable energy, with coal playing a much smaller role.
Agency staff are now applying durable laws to technologies and infrastructure challenges that Congress could not have fully anticipated in 1976.
Utility-scale renewable energy projects, long-distance transmission corridors, advanced geothermal systems, grid-scale battery storage, data centers, and other emerging technologies are placing new demands on public lands and the agencies that manage them. At the same time, projects that are central to national priorities like strengthening grid reliability or meeting growing electricity demand can sometimes take years to review and permit. The challenge is not simply evaluating projects faster. It is evaluating increasingly complex proposals while maintaining rigorous environmental review, meaningful Tribal consultation, and robust public engagement. Meeting that challenge may depend less on changing the underlying laws than on having experienced professionals capable of implementing them effectively.
While technology can inform decisions, it cannot weigh cultural significance, community values, ecological nuance, and long-term stewardship in the way experienced public servants can.
Many thoughtful leaders and practitioners have recognized this tension and are calling for modernization. There is real opportunity to improve processes, increase efficiency, and provide greater certainty for all stakeholders. As a start, I highly recommend to you the thought pieces, conversations, and essays included right here on the Ground Shift website.
And yet, even the most well-designed reforms will fall short without the people to implement them.
There is no substitute for agency expertise. At a time of increasing demand on public lands, agency capacity is not a “nice to have” — it is essential infrastructure.
We ask Interior staff to:
- Navigate competing land uses with fairness and rigor,
- Conduct detailed environmental reviews that can withstand legal challenges,
- Engage meaningfully with Tribal governments, local communities, and stakeholders,
- Identify and resolve conflicts early, and continuously as they arise throughout the review process,
- Facilitate responsible development while protecting irreplaceable resources.
This work requires time, expertise, flexibility, knowledge of the community, a love of the land, and institutional knowledge. When agencies are under-resourced, processes slow down, conflicts escalate, and outcomes suffer for developers, for communities, and for the land itself.
To take care of our American public lands, we must invest in the people who manage them
If we are serious about stewarding public lands in the 21st century, we must be equally serious about investing in the people who manage them. To build and sustain excellence at our land management agencies we must:
- Set clear goals and accountability: Clarity drives performance. Agencies should define measurable objectives, track progress, and hold themselves accountable — not just for process, but for outcomes. The BLM's multiple-use mandate requires public lands to support a wide range of sometimes competing uses and values, including recreation, grazing, mining, energy development, wildlife habitat, watershed protection, cultural resources, and conservation. The challenge is not choosing one use over another; it is balancing them in a way that serves both present and future generations of Americans.
- Recognize and reward impact: Good project management and meeting deliverables in a timely way should be reflected in performance evaluations across all agency career staff from realty specialists to wildlife biologists to solicitors. Staff who identify solutions, resolve conflicts early, and move projects forward responsibly should be acknowledged and rewarded.
- Create pathways for growth: Career ladders matter. Agencies should provide clear opportunities for advancement, mentorship, and skill-building so that talented staff can deepen their expertise and stay engaged over the long term.
- Invest in training and knowledge-building: Public lands management is increasingly interdisciplinary. Training programs should equip staff to navigate emerging issues for example, from advanced geothermal technologies to transmission planning, while maintaining strong foundations in environmental stewardship.
- Encouraging proactive problem-solving: Agencies should foster a culture that values initiative, collaboration, and practical solutions. Early issue-spotting and resolution can save years of delay. As noted above, this solutions-oriented problem solving should be recognized and rewarded.
- Support robust public engagement: Because there are no empty spaces, every decision requires thoughtful engagement with the public. Listening actively, prioritizing transparently, and incorporating diverse perspectives are essential to durable outcomes.
A moment of opportunity
The United States is at an inflection point. The demand for clean energy, the need to conserve and restore healthy natural systems, and the pressures on public lands are all increasing simultaneously. How we respond will shape not only our energy future, but also the landscapes and communities we leave to the next generation.
We can modernize laws. We can improve processes. We can deploy new technologies.
But none of it will succeed without the people.
Agency capacity is not a “nice to have” — it is essential infrastructure.
To truly steward our public lands, to honor their history, protect their ecological value, and responsibly harness their potential, we must support, resource, and value the public servants who know them best.
Because in the end, stewardship is not just about land.
It is about the people who care for it, and we will not meet our goals for our public lands if we haven’t supported, acknowledged, and rewarded those people.
