Welcome to the Bill Lane Center for the American West

Dedicated to advancing scholarly and public understanding of the past, present, and future of western North America, the Center supports research, teaching, and reporting about western land and life

canyons and trees

What is the Bill Lane Center?

Learn more about the founding of the Bill Lane Center, Stanford University's academic hub for regional study of western land and life.

A map of the United States west of the 100th meridian

What is the West?

Our definition of the American West is expansive and takes into account the many dimensions of the region, from those rooted in geography to those rooted in the cultural and literary imagination. 

Photo by @thematthoward on Unsplash

Tenth Annual Eccles Family Rural West Conference

Wednesday, March 27, in Tempe, Arizona, the Bill Lane Center will host its annual Rural West Conference with support from Arizona State University. Join us via livestream at 9 a.m. or follow the conversation on X using the hashtag #RuralWest. This year's theme is "The Changing Rural Southwest." 

waves crashing against the Santa Cruz shore

Apply for our Sophomore College course on coastal resilience

Rising sophomores should apply for "Coastal Resilience: Problems and Solutions to Extreme Weather Challenges on the West Coast," by April 16, 2024 on the SoCo website. Course dates are Sep. 2-20, 2024.

Kate Gibson discusses all things Bill Lane Center on KZSU

What is the Bill Lane Center and who do we serve? Jon Cousins interviews Bill Lane Center Associate Director Kate Gibson on "The Great British Breakfast" show.

Research assistant Georgia Scarr pours fuel onto foliage to ignite a controlled burn.

Lane Center wildfire researcher Georgia Scarr

Apply today for a research assistant role

The Bill Lane Center for the American West is now accepting applications for undergraduate research opportunities during spring and summer 2024. If you are interested in topics related to the American West and are looking to gain paid research experience, apply today on SOLO.

2023: The Year in Review

We look back on highlights from 2023 with immense gratitude for the students, faculty, staff, public audiences, donors, and friends of the Bill Lane Center who made the year so abundantly rewarding. From all of us to all of you, happy holidays and happy trails!

The Bill Lane Center and colleagues release joint survey findings on transgender legislation and policies

A new report examines the attitudes and opinions of Arizona, California and Texas residents regarding restrictive legislation and policies related to the transgender population. The report finds that residents of blue California, red Texas and purple Arizona generally do not support more rights for transgender people.


Recent News

As part of our online magazine's "Up Close" series, Felicity Barringer looks at the federal push to return American Bison herds to tribal control. The effort raises hopes that the once-abundant species can regenerate landscapes and restore native traditions.
A lawsuit blames farmers’ stream diversions for the desiccation of the Great Salt Lake; nearly all of Canada’s winter roads could be unusable by 2080; bills to ban lab-grown meat; another annual heat-associated death record in Arizona; and more environmental news from around the West.
Winter 2024 was a full quarter at the Bill Lane Center with ongoing preparations for our annual Rural West Conference and interviews for internship and research positions.

Upcoming Events

July
21
Date
Sun July 21st 2024 - Fri July 26th 2024, All day