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“You will live in the pod, and you will eat the bugs.”

This widespread meme is not a verbatim quote from Klaus Schwab, Bill Gates, or another globalist shill. Nonetheless, it encapsulates the fears of many conservatives: Environmentalism is a Trojan horse for communism. They fear that when left-wing policy wonks call for public transportation, their real goal is not walkability or efficiency, but an Orwellian dystopia ruled by the World Economic Forum.

Indeed, the very term “environmentalism” conjures images of pink-haired Just Stop Oil protesters tossing soup at Van Gogh paintings. But there is nothing inherently left-wing about protecting nature. In fact, conserving America’s wilderness and protecting God’s creation is a fundamentally conservative goal.

Traditionalist philosopher Russell Kirk wrote that “There is nothing more conservative than conservation.” Conservatism means protecting beautiful things, preserving what is good and sacred in this world. That means upholding tradition, but it also means conserving forests and saving endangered species.

Kirk wrote that “humankind is proud of ‘conquering nature,’ by tools that vary from the bulldozer to insecticides. But like other merciless conquests, this victory may end in the destruction of the victor.” At his home in Mecosta, Michigan, Kirk planted hundreds of trees. This was more than a hobby — it was conservatism in action.

America has always been a nation of rugged wilderness and vast frontiers. Generation after generation, we retreat into the untamed forests, hunting and fishing under the open skies. The grasslands of Yellowstone and the vast swamps of the Everglades make America what it is.

Conservatives want to protect the American way of life, but if the forests and prairies that make this country beautiful are gone — if the rivers are full of pollution and the landscapes are covered in concrete — is America really the same country?

For some so-called conservatives, even the slightest concern for animals or the environment is “anti-human.” In their minds, plowing down forests to build strip malls and crushing fragile habitats is not just a necessary evil, but a positive good, an assertion of human supremacy.

However, “Humanity First” does not mean “Humanity Only.” For one thing, protecting nature has substantial benefits for humans, too. A clean, flourishing environment makes us healthier, while National Parks provide a peaceful escape from the ennui of modern life. In economic terms, nature is a positive externality.

On a deeper level, though, we cannot reduce the value of nature to mere utility. If conservative philosophy teaches us anything, it is the poverty of utilitarian calculus as a measure of value.

In “The Abolition of Man,” C. S. Lewis argues that mankind has forgotten the innate value of nature: “We do not look at trees either as Dryads or as beautiful objects while we cut them into beams.” As Martin Heidegger wrote, mankind sees nature as mere “standing reserve,” raw materials to be extracted.

J.R.R. Tolkien, another great conservative, cared profoundly about nature. He grumbled that cars were destroying his peaceful Oxford countryside and insisted on biking everywhere. In “The Lord of the Rings,” Treebeard the ent was created to protect all growing things. Saruman’s orcs, who ravage Fangorn Forest and destroy the trees, represent the excesses of industry. In the end, Treebeard destroys Isengard, killing the orcs and saving the forests from destruction.

Most conservatives care about nature. In 2024, a crucial part of President Donald Trump’s eclectic coalition was the Make America Healthy Again movement. U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., backed by a legion of crunchy moms, made three key demands: healthy food, healthy medicine, and a healthy environment.

Despite his alliance with MAHA, Trump’s environmental record has been abysmal. Last year, he signed an executive order forcing federal agencies to use plastic straws. Of course, we all remember the early days when paper straws dissolved in your mouth, but in cities like Seattle, Vancouver, or Washington, D.C., that have banned plastic straws, paper straws have become ubiquitous and perfectly functional. There is no excuse for the federal government to actively fill our oceans with destructive single-use plastics.

In January, Trump ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to stop considering health benefits in terms of dollar value when regulating two types of pollutants, fine particulate matter and ozone. The deadly side effects of fossil fuels, such as lung cancer, now count less than before. In fact, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” gave special tax breaks to the oil and gas industry for “intangible drilling costs” — while simultaneously removing tax cuts for electric vehicles.

Trump ordered the military Feb. 11 to start buying electricity from coal-powered plants. Coal is the single most inefficient, environmentally disastrous form of power. I understand the libertarian belief that private companies should be allowed to burn coal, but here, the government is actively supporting it, paying these companies to destroy the environment. Trump even held an event at the White House called “Champion of Coal,” in which the CEO of a coal company gave him a trophy, “Supporter of Beautiful Clean Coal.” That is not the free market. That is corruption.

Pew Research found that 86% of Republicans supported planting “about a trillion trees to absorb carbon emissions,” 75% supported tax credits for energy-efficient homes, and 69% supported tax credits for carbon capture. If conservatives are already conservationists, why are they so averse to environmentalism as a movement? There seems to be a language barrier between the left and the right. Conservatives care about nature, but the term “environmentalist” rubs them the wrong way.

Young conservatives have a chance to start fresh, put aside semantic squabbles, and work with Americans across the political spectrum to save our planet.

On an individual level, we can bring our own bags to grocery stores, buy reusable water bottles, and avoid single-use plastics. On a collective level, we can push for MAHA policies such as banning harmful pesticides, stopping deforestation, and protecting endangered species. In the spirit of Kirk, Lewis, and Tolkien, we should make the planet a priority.

There is nothing more conservative than conservation.

Carver Means is a junior studying history.