Right of Way

Case 9: Conservation

The conservation movement is a political, environmental, and social movement that works to protect and preserve natural resources for ongoing sustainable use by humans. It originated centuries ago in Europe where land areas were typically set aside for the conservation of particular animal and plant species by elites, who then restricted access to resources within those areas, displaced residents, and criminalized access by those of lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Conservation principles and approaches were applied around the world during the colonial era, and in the United States in the late 19th century, when the federal government established national parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite after the eviction of indigenous peoples who had previously inhabited these "wilderness" landscapes.

In recent decades, efforts to make conservation more "fair" to all parties have sought to uphold rights to access and use natural resources via distribution systems including revenue-sharing agreements, compensation schemes, and payment for provision of services, either from resource exploitation or tourism. While an environmental justice framework has the potential to alter the mainstream conservation movement, it also raises serious questions, especially whether there might be an inherent conflict between demands for biodiversity conservation that would benefit many, and social justice for the comparative few who live near designated conservation areas.

On display in this case is documentation of activists and community organizations working to support conservation principles while advancing the interests of their constituents, articles of incorporation for a grassroots conservation group, a resolution in support of natural resource conservation from the California Democratic Party, and selections from the papers of individual activists in the late 20th century.

Case 10, Open Space, is located at the far left of the case that lines the east wall of the gallery, near the Gohstand Reading Room.

• 1

  "Statement to the Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment…," 1975League of Women Voters of Los Angeles Collection

• 2

  Pamphlet, "Don't Sign the Initiatives," circa 1955Los Angeles County Federation of Labor Collection

• 3

  Notice from the City of Los Angeles, Department of City Planning, 1973Northridge Civic Association Papers

• 4

  "Resolution Relating to the Conservation of Natural Resources," 1963California Democratic State Central Committee Collection

• 5

  Mothers of East Los Angeles, "Programa Comunitario Para Ahorrar Agua," 1992Juana Beatriz Gutiérrez Mothers of East Los Angeles (MELA) Collection

• 6

  Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, "Conservation: Practical Ideas for the Homemaker"Dorothy Boberg Collection

• 7

  Articles of Incorporation, Santa Susana Mountain Park Association, circa 1971Santa Susana Mountain Park Association Collection

• 8

  Report, "The Mulholland Scenic Parkway and the Intrusion of the Tradewood Subdivision.."Susan B. Nelson Collection