Buffalo Commons Collection

Collection — Box: 1

Identifier: OGLMC-1533

Scope and Contents

The Buffalo Commons Collection consists of articles published by Frank and Deborah Popper expounding the Buffalo Commons theory. The collection also includes various newspaper and magazine articles debating the theory. The articles display a range of reactions from strong support for the idea to negative sentiments from people living within the “commons” area.

Dates

created: 1986-2005
Other: Date acquired: 07/07/2007

Creator

Popper, Frank and Deborah (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.

Biographical or Historical Information

The Buffalo Commons is a conceptual proposal to create a vast nature preserve by returning 139,000 square miles of the drier portion of the Great Plains to native prairie, and by reintroducing the buffalo that once grazed that prairie. The area covered by the commons includes portions of Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming. The Buffalo Commons theory was first proposed by Dr. Frank and Deborah Popper in 1987. At that time, Frank Popper was a Professor of Urban Studies at Rutgers University, while Deborah Popper was a graduate student of geography at Rutgers. Since its inception, the theory has met with controversy and resistance from people within the “commons” area.

Note written by