Our Public Lands—A Tale of Two Washingtons  

From our Fall 2025 newsletter, Dave Upthegrove reflects on his journey from an outdoorsy kid to his election as Washington’s Commissioner of Public Lands in 2024. Contrasting the barrage of attacks on public lands with decisive state-level action to conserve forests, strengthen climate resilience, and protect communities, Upthegrove calls for shared responsibility and partnership to safeguard Washington’s wild places for future generations.

When I was eleven years old, I stood outside the gymnasium of Gregory Heights Elementary School in my hometown of Burien and swore the Scout’s Oath. 

For me–an outdoorsy kid with a burgeoning love for the environment–becoming a Scout was an exciting achievement in my (very young) life. Little did I know that would be the beginning of a life spent devoted to public service and the public lands of Washington. 

I spent years as a Scout exploring the forests and parks of western Washington. In high school and college, I spent my summers teaching environmental science to young people on Dabob Bay and leading hikes through the North Cascades. In college, I studied environmental conservation and went on to earn a graduate certificate in energy policy. 

Since then, I’ve devoted my career to serving the people and places of Washington State; first as a State Representative, then a King County Councilmember, where I worked to preserve public lands in our state’s most populous county. 

Now–as Commissioner of Public Lands and leader of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)–I have the privilege to lead an agency working at the forefront of our state’s most urgent environmental challenges. As climate change accelerates and new challenges emerge, I can’t imagine a more impactful time to hold this position. 

As Commissioner of Public Lands and leader of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) I have the privilege to lead an agency working at the forefront of our state’s most urgent environmental challenges. As climate change accelerates and new challenges emerge, I can’t imagine a more impactful time to hold this position. 

Especially as our Washington faces threats from the other Washington… 

From mass firings to land selloffs, environmental rollbacks to reckless executive orders, our public lands are under unprecedented attack from the current administration.

Staff cuts at the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Park Service have left more than 12 million acres of Washington understaffed, underfunded, and at greater risk. In the Enchantments, one ranger is now responsible for 900 miles of trails. These shortages strain our state lands, overwhelm our own limited staff, and endanger public health, safety, recreation, and wildfire response. 

Meanwhile, proposals to sell public lands and weaken long-standing protections put millions of acres at risk. A bipartisan effort blocked one sell-off, but the attack on the “Roadless Rule” still threatens nearly two million acres of Washington forests. 

On top of this, executive orders to ramp up logging on national forests and federal lands disrupt carefully balanced harvest schedules and undercut key environmental safeguards.  

While the administration in the other Washington undermines our state’s lands, DNR staff and I are working hard to protect them. 

Photo: Sherry Kirkvold

In August, I signed a Commissioner’s Order conserving 77,000 acres of structurally complex forests here in Washington. It’s the biggest step in forest conservation for our state in a generation and sets us on a bold new path to innovate on our lands and ensure their long-term sustainability. 

This action will allow us to find new pathways to manage these forests for all the benefits they provide–both ecologically and economically– through innovative, diverse methods like carbon markets, other ecosystem services, and expanding our trust holdings by acquiring replacement lands at risk of conversion and keeping them as working forests. 

Protecting Washington’s lands is not the work of one agency or one person—it’s a shared responsibility. With partners like Washington Wild and communities across our state, I know we can meet the moment. 

Finally, DNR will continue to improve the health of our forests, protect invaluable watersheds and riparian ecosystems and–of course– protect our lands, forests, and communities from the threat of wildfires. 

With our natural resources under attack at the federal level, it is more important than ever to pursue a positive agenda for our public lands at the State level–to represent the values of the Evergreen State and provide people with a different vision. I am honored to serve in this role– and to work alongside incredible organizations like Washington Wild. 

Washington Wild was established back in 1979–not long before I raised my hand in the air and swore the Scout’s Oath. For over 40 years now, we have been driven by the same thing: a love for the wild places of Washington and an unwavering sense of responsibility to protect and manage them for all the people for generations to come. 

Protecting Washington’s lands is not the work of one agency or one person—it’s a shared responsibility. With partners like Washington Wild and communities across our state, I know we can meet the moment.