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
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.
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.
New research on transitioning California to zero-emissions
Learn more about our recent paper on the progress and challenges in municipal fleet electrification under California’s Advanced Clean Fleet rule.
Working out West
Across the region, Bill Lane Center students will be working for organizations supporting Western land and life, in fields ranging from ecology to resource management to museum curation to public policy. This popular program lets students dip their toes into work opportunities that eventually become fulfilling careers.
Looking back on spring quarter
With the latest edition of Dispatch West, we reflect on spring happenings at the Bill Lane Center. Learn more about our inspiring 20th anniversary celebration, a collaborative symposium on the Columbia River, recently published research on clean energy developments in California, and more.
Western Media Fellow Lynda Mapes investigates the Columbia River at a crossroads
With a Lane Center grant, journalist Lynda Mapes has published two powerful new stories in the Seattle Times exploring the past, present and future of the Columbia River.
Zephyr Frank appointed new faculty director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West
A professor of history and environmental social sciences at Stanford, Frank will transition into his role at the Lane Center on September 1, 2025.
The Bill Lane Center and Stanford University Libraries have acquired the California Historical Society Collection
The archive contains over 600,000 items dating back to the 18th century, including original artifacts from the Gold Rush and 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire.
It will happen here again: Reflecting on the LA fires and what it means for Bay Area fire prevention
On Jan. 23, we hosted a webinar about what the recent fires in LA mean for Bay Area fire prevention and response. Expert panelists with decades of experience reflected on what the Bay Area can do about the inevitability of wildfires in the coming years.
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