Obama’s environmental and conservation record reflects an inclination toward the center in the West: He designated over two dozen national monuments, more than any other president. He oversaw surges in oil and gas production, but embraced clean energy and tackled greenhouse gas emissions. In this episode of West Obsessed, the writers and editors of High Country News discuss Obama's legacy and what the incoming administration might try to undo.

In a special episode, we talk to reporter Tay Wiles, who is in North Dakota reporting on Dakota Access Pipeline protests.

High Country News writers and editors discuss what implications the Donald Trump Administration may have on public lands, energy policy and Western communities.

Photo credit: Jamelle Bouie/Flickr user

For something as important as food, many communities in the West struggle. That's because agricultural systems aren't really geared for the communities that harvest the food. In this episode of West Obsessed, the writers and editors of High Country News discuss some of the most interesting challenges--and solutions--to rural food supply.

Donald Trump’s unlikely run for the presidency has upset the political apple cart. Trump’s ridicule of Republican Party leaders, his calls for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and for a ban on Muslim immigration, and the vitriol and violence evident at his rallies raise major questions about our nation and our democracy. But how are they playing out in the West? In this episode of "West Obsessed," the writers and editors of High Country News discuss Trump's run for president and the impact its having in the region.

The National Parks have been called America's best idea. But 100 years into that idea, the edges are starting to fray. The National Parks face myriad challenges if they are going to make it to their next centennial, ranging from climate change, funding woes and even a lack of diversity in park visitation. In this episode of West Obsessed, the writers and editors of High Country News discuss those challenges and possible solutions.

Across the West, rural communities struggle with access to good health care. Hospital closures, distant emergency rooms and a lack of rural health providers mean long wait times and a deficit of high-quality treatment. In this episode of West Obsessed, the writers and editors of High Country News discuss how some towns are finding innovative solutions to fill in the gaps.

In the West, wildlife managers have wavered between killing Mexican wolves and trying to save them. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials have released wolves to the wild, then yanked them back out, a push-and-pull that is now forcing a reckoning with mismanagement and inbreeding among wolf populations. In this episode of “West Obsessed,” writers and editors of High Country News discuss a recent feature story on the wolves and ask: Is there hope for their recovery?

High Country News writers and editors discuss a Western legacy of sexual harassment and our recent feature story about the women in the male-dominated world of wildland firefighting that face harassment, abuse and sexism. The story is part of an ongoing investigation into the long history of sexual harassment and gender discrimination in public-land agencies.

In 2014, a branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture called Wildlife Services killed 796 bobcats, 322 wolves, 580 black bears, 305 cougars, 1,186 red foxes, and 61,702 coyotes. Such high numbers have helped fuel the agency’s bloody reputation among environmentalists; however, they actually are among the lowest in two decades. In this episode of “West Obsessed,” High Country News Managing Editor Brian Calvert, Contributing Editor Sarah Gilman and Correspondent Ben Goldfarb discuss a paradoxical agency that has spent millions of dollars on non-lethal methods it has been unable to fully use.