What Issues and Campaigns Is SUWA Currently Working On?

SUWA's current work centers on defending Utah's national monuments from mining and legislative rollbacks, passing the America's Red Rock Wilderness Act, and mobilizing public comments on public-land management rules. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) describes itself as the only non-partisan, non-profit organization working full time to defend Utah's redrock wilderness, a mission it has pursued since 1983.

Defending Bears Ears and other national monuments

The most visible current campaign is legal and political defense of Utah's national monuments. SUWA's homepage highlights a lawsuit filed with partners to defend the national monuments, and its "What's New" feed shows this is an active, fast-moving effort:

• Mining claims in Bears Ears: A September 28, 2026 press release reports that in less than a month, mining claims filed in Bears Ears already tripled the total number filed during the previous Trump reduction.
• Fast-tracked rollback: A September 17, 2026 press release states that Senator Lee formally began the process to fast-track the destruction of Bears Ears National Monument.
• Legal challenge: A September 2, 2026 press release covers conservation groups challenging the decimation of two national monuments in Utah.

For readers tracking this issue, the pattern is that monument protections are being contested simultaneously through administrative action, legislation, and litigation — so news can change quickly.

America's Red Rock Wilderness Act

SUWA's featured issue is Climate & Biodiversity, built around passing America's Red Rock Wilderness Act. According to SUWA, passing the act would make a significant contribution to mitigating the effects of climate change while conserving key wildlife corridors essential to biodiversity in Utah and throughout western North America.

The organization supports this campaign with a report on the act's role in protecting biodiversity and mitigating the climate crisis, plus a video on the act and the climate crisis. It also runs a standing action asking supporters to urge their Members of Congress to cosponsor the bill.

Public-land management rules and action alerts

Beyond monuments and legislation, SUWA runs time-sensitive action alerts on federal land-management rules. Current examples from its site include:

• Travel Management Rule: An alert asking the Forest Service to keep the Travel Management Rule (September 15, 2026).
• Bears Ears defense: An alert to take action to defend Bears Ears National Monument (August 20, 2026).

These alerts are the fastest way to see what public comment periods or decisions are open at a given moment.

How to follow or take part

SUWA organizes its updates into a few channels, each useful for a different purpose:

If you want to act rather than just read, the site offers several entry points: take action on legislation, join a stewardship project in the field, become a member, or donate. SUWA notes that more than 90 percent of its funding comes from membership dues and donations, and it also sells merchandise such as hats, t-shirts, and gift memberships to support the work.

The practical takeaway: check the Action Alerts and What's New sections first for time-sensitive items, and the Issues pages for the longer-term campaign on America's Red Rock Wilderness Act.