BOZEMAN - Four authors with wide-ranging perspectives on ecological, social and economic issues related to land use and planning in the growing American West will participate in a panel discussion next month hosted by a pair of Montana State University centers.

The discussion will be held at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 3, at the Bozeman Public Library, 626 E. Main St. The event is free and open to the public.

The panelists are all contributors to "A Watershed Moment: The American West in the Age of Limits," a recently published collection of essays on the tensions between the culture of economic growth and personal freedom and the ecological, economic and social constraints set by community values and the land itself. The audience will have the chance to ask questions and discuss sustainability and policy related to land use and planning.

"Given the rapid growth we have experienced in Bozeman, it is important to identify concrete strategies for ensuring the sustainability of communities and natural resources," said Kristen Intemann, director of MSU's Center for Science, Technology, Ethics and Society, which is co-sponsoring the event with MSU's Ivan Doig Center for the Study of the Lands and Peoples of the North American West and American studies program.

Panelists include Evelyn Brister, who specializes in ethics and policy on environmental conservation, land use and sustainability; Robert Froderman, who writes on environmental philosophy and public policy; rural sociologist Kristal Jones, a research scientist for the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center; and journalist Todd Wilkinson, who specializes in conservation issues in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

"This conversation is essential for anyone who loves the West and cares about our shared future," said Daniel Grant, Doig Center director.