Annapurna: Nepal’s Commercialization Initiative For An Endangered Landscape
August 18, 2008
By Jason A. Hendricks
There have been many debates over the years surrounding the commercialization of the world’s highest peaks. Mt. Everest is the biggest example of mountain commercialization, where hundreds of climbers a year flock to the world’s highest mountain, paying thousands of dollars for a guided chance to reach the coveted summit. The recent tragedy on K2 has sparked conversations of concern for it’s own commercialism, after it was being reported that high-altitude porters had been brought in for some of this years climbs.
Annapurna, while not as well-known to the outside world as Mt. Everest or K2, is still a very important peak to high-altitude alpine climbing. The peak rises 26, 538 ft., making it the 10th highest mountain in the world. Along with the climbing, Annapurna also happens to be the focal point for a 7,629 sq. km. conservation and protection initiative known as the Annapurna Conservation Area Project.
The Annapurna Conservation Area Project helps to protect an area that offers some of the finest 
trekking trails in the Himalayan region and the world. These trails have become a world destination for many venturers into the Himalayan region and offers a nice glimpse at the natural wildlife and ecology of Nepal. This area is the largest protected area in all of Nepal and has been looked upon as an area of prestige and value to a country where income is hard to come by.
That could be changing in the very near future. Nepal has enacted plans to commercialize the area known as the Annapurna circuit. The thought is to capitalize on the area’s growing popularity with trekkers and make it more tourist friendly.
U.S. Outdoors Today Introduces The U.S. Outdoor Forums
August 7, 2008
U.S. Outdoors Today, in conjunction with Skinny Moose Media, is ready to unleash it’s latest project on the world–the U.S. Outdoor Forums. Throughout the past couple of weeks, myself, along with the Skinny Moose Media team have been creating what we are hoping will become a big asset to U.S. Outdoors Today.
The U.S. Outdoor Forums have been created to give all of us a place to share our thoughts, hangout, and meet new friends. We are hoping to reach as many people and interests as possible, all with one thing in common, the love and enjoyment of the great outdoors.
Some of the topics you can read about and discuss include:
- Camping
- Climbing
- Biking/Cycling
- Hiking/Backpacking
- Motorized Recreation
- Winter Sports
- Search & Rescue
- Survival
- Hunting
- Fishing
- Outdoor Gear
- Our National Parks
- Conservation/Environment
- Vacation/Travel
- Nature
- as well as Classifieds, Press Releases, and Outdoor Calendar
- PLUS: Areas for Specific States, General News, Sports, Politics, Hobbies, Weather, and a whole lot more.
This is definitely one of the largest outdoor forums currently available. There is something there for everyone. I am hoping that all of you will stop by and checkout the new U.S. Outdoor Forums and join me for some fun. Swing over and register, then post away.
You may find a link to the U.S. Outdoor Forums at the top of this site. If you have problems finding it, just click through the links that I have provided in this article.
An Open Letter To The Future President
July 14, 2008
By Josh Donlan
THIRTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, 20 million people experienced the grand vision of Senator Gaylord Nelson: the first Earth Day. More than a celebration, it was a revolution, a single day that raised America’s awareness of the plight of our earth and its ecosystems that support us. During the years immediately before and after April 22, 1970, the world witnessed the onset of American environmentalism. Agencies were formed and legislation was enacted to protect America’s biodiversity: the Environmental Protection Agency, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Today, the ESA remains one of the most powerful pieces of environmental legislation ever enacted by any country. Despite these actions, we have much left to do to protect biodiversity–our country’s natural heritage. Many plants and animals, like the dusky seaside sparrow, continue to go extinct despite such legislation. With the human population at 6 billion and realistic predictions of 10 billion by 2050 and our rates of resource consumption at all time highs and rising, safeguarding our nation’s biodiversity, along with our neighbor’s, will be an unprecedented challenge.
Climate, Trees, and People In The Peruvian Amazon: Toward a Sustained Rainforest Movement
June 19, 2008
By Nick Engelfried
While many adults in the US are still in a state of denial over global warming, young schoolchildren in villages deep in the Peruvian Amazon are learning about the effects climate destabilization is likely to have on their way of life.
That’s just one thing I learned during a recent three-week trip to the Loreto region (northeast corner) of Peru, with a Peace and Conflict Studies class from Pacific University in Oregon.
