Robert James "RJ" Smith

Robert James “R.J.” Smith, whose passion for environmental conservation and free-market
economics helped spawn a movement known as “free-market environmentalism,” passed away
April 8, 2024, at George Washington University Hospital due to complications from a stroke. An
author, lecturer, and former student of renowned Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises, R.J.
touched the lives of thousands around the globe as a stalwart promoter of private approaches to
environmental protection and conservation.

Born April 14,1937, in Multnomah, Ore., he grew up in San Francisco with his parents Robert
Chalfin Smith (1910-1957) and Hester Penny Smith (1910-1986), and his sister Carol Susan
Smith (1942-2006). As a youth, R.J. spent his summers with his grandparents in Portland, Ore.,
where he developed his passion for wildlife—particularly birds—thanks to his grandmother, who
he once described as a “noted naturalist.” Her old Victorian home resembled a wildlife museum,
with rooms devoted to her various wildlife collections. One room had a fossil collection, another
a bird nest collection, and so on, which fascinated R.J. as a young boy. Among his grandmother’s
friends were some well-known ornithologists who would take him birding, ever increasing R.J.’s
knowledge and appreciation of birds and wildlife.

In grade school, R.J. became a member of the National Audubon Society to learn more about
birds and support the group’s privately held nature preserves, fostering his lifetime pursuit of the
topic. His many friends will attest to the encyclopedic knowledge he developed, which produced
many engaging conversations and enjoyable birding trips with friends both locally where he
lived and around the world.

R.J.’s adult education included both science and economics. He earned a Bachelor of Science in
petroleum geology from Stanford University in 1961, and then studied economics under von
Mises at New York University’s Graduate School of Business (1961-1963) as a William Volker
Fellow in the Humane Studies. While studying economics in New York City, he also served as
the senior staff member at the Foundation for Economic Education located in Irvington on the
Hudson, N.Y., working on the editorial staff of The Freeman journal.

During the academic year of 1963-1964, R.J. relocated to Palmer Lake, Colo., to serve as
assistant dean at the Freedom School (later renamed Rampart College). The school organized
intensive study programs under distinguished free-market economists such as von Mises, F.A.
Hayek, Milton Friedman, and more.

The following year he returned to the Northeast to attend the 1964 meeting of the prestigious
Mont Pelerin Society. In addition to becoming a member of the society—on the recommendation
of von Mises and Hayek—R.J. met businessman J.D. Tuller. Tuller was starting an organization
to bring free-market voices to Ivy League schools, because economic education at universities
generally leaned to the left, and students had little exposure to other points of view. Tuller hired
R.J. to serve as the Director of Research at the Tuller Foundation for the Advancement of
Economic Understanding, so R.J. moved to Red Bank, N.J., to be closer to work. There he
arranged various events and educational programs to bring world-famous free-market economists
to lecture, debate, and engage with students at several Ivy League colleges, particularly Cornell
University.

It was during his time in Red Bank (1964-1974) that R.J. had time to focus more on his passion
for wildlife and birds. He joined—and eventually became president of—the Monmouth County
Audubon Society (1965-1970). Around the same time (1965-1976), he also served as a field trip
leader for the New Jersey Audubon Society. In these roles, R.J. led educational birding trips
along the New Jersey coast and its marshes down to Delaware’s Delmar Peninsula and even took
birders on trips as far south as Virginia. During this timeframe, R.J. was also able to share his
knowledge of birds as a special editorial assistant for The Audubon Society Field Guide to North
American Birds—Western Region, which was published in 1977.

At the time, R.J. found himself among birding friends who, like many environmental activists,
looked to government regulation to solve environmental problems. Yet R.J.’s extensive
knowledge of economics and appreciation for private property made him conclude that solutions
to environmental challenges should come from the private sector. He began to formulate a
concept and eventually help build a movement that he dubbed “free-market environmentalism.”
In subsequent decades, R.J. dedicated his efforts to this movement and to public policies
promoting liberty and freedom. His consulting work even included serving as a congressional
speech writer and researcher, and in 1976 he served as a special campaign assistant, writing TV
and radio ads for Idaho Rep. Steven Symms.

Starting in 1977, R.J. worked in Washington D.C. as an environmental consultant, lecturer, and
writer with an emphasis on free-market solutions to environmental problems. In 1979, R.J.
authored the book Earth’s Resources: Private Ownership vs. Public Waste, published by the
Libertarian Party. Between 1981 and 1987, R.J. served as an environmental consultant to Edison
Electric Institute, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the President’s Council on
Environmental Quality (CEQ) under President Ronald Reagan.

R.J.’s work for Reagan’s CEQ is among his most prized contributions to the movement. R.J.
prepared sections and chapters for the 14th, 15th, and 16th CEQ Annual Report. Topics included
public environmental organizations, business and the environment, the public benefits of private
conservation, and terrestrial biotic resources. R.J. also developed a national inventory of private-
sector natural resource conservation activities under an interagency agreement between CEQ and
the Department of the Interior.

R.J. then spent several decades working as an advocate of private conservation, free-market
public policy, and private property rights. He served as the Director of Environmental Studies at
the Cato Institute from 1990 to 1991, where he drafted journal and other articles on endangered
species, private conservation, and environmental protection issues. After his work at Cato, he
joined the Competitive Enterprise Institute, where he worked both as the Director of Outreach
for CEI’s Center for Private Conservation and then as a distinguished fellow to his death. While
serving at CEI, R.J. also became a distinguished fellow at the National Center for Public Policy
Research in 2005 where he served until his death.
In these positions, R.J. produced reports, op-ed articles, testified before Congress, appeared on
numerous radio and television programs, and made presentations at conferences around the
world. His work focused on a wide range of wildlife topics, including the Endangered Species

Act, fires in national forests and federal lands policy in general, the American Heritage Act, the
Antiquities Act, the Clean Water Act and wetlands regulation, property rights, invasive species,
and more. R.J. also appeared in videos for CEI, including a short documentary detailing the
history of the environmental movement (viewable on YouTube). Despite these varied topic areas,
R.J. was well known for having a deep and impressive breadth of knowledge on them all.
His contributions went beyond his knowledge and ability to communicate; R.J. was a true
advocate for individuals. It was a common occurrence for him to organize coalitions, press
conferences, and meetings with members of Congress or regulators to defend landowners whose
livelihoods were threatened by misguided and onerous regulations that provided no public
benefits.

In addition, R.J. promoted individuals who engaged in private conservation on private property.
These activities included production of written case studies for CEI’s Center for Private
Conservation, which detailed private conservation achievements. His work at the center also
included a program to grant awards to individuals engaged in impressive conservation activities
on private property. Among the award recipients was Angelo Puglisi, whose ownership of land
once held by Thomas Jefferson, ensured the preservation of the great Natural Bridge landmark in
Central Virginia.

Among R.J.’s associates and colleagues are many who feel indebted to his support for their
property rights and private conservation efforts, and many others who appreciated his principled
approach to policy. In 2008, CEI and the National Center for Public Policy Research awarded
R.J. the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award “for his work in defending property rights and
advancing private conservation.” In 2002, the Property Rights Foundation of America, Inc.,
awarded its Sixth Annual Property Rights Advocate Award to R.J. “in recognition of his
dedication to the preservation of human rights guaranteed in the United States Constitution.”
And in 2011, CEI awarded him its Julian L. Simon Memorial Award.

R.J.’s personal life centered on an extensive network of cherished friends covering all regions of
the globe and from all political points of view. He had an uncanny ability to connect with
someone at a first meeting, keep in touch, and build meaningful relationships. R.J. particularly
enjoyed birdwatching with friends, sharing great meals and wine, joining friends at minor league
baseball games, and partaking in amazing conversations. Dixieland was his music of choice to
enjoy at dinner parties, but he also loved listening to the Pacific sounds of The Beach Boys,
particularly in concert with friends. He was greatly loved and will be sorely missed.

A funeral mass for R.J. will take place at the Basilica of Saint Mary, 310 S. Royal St.,
Alexandria, VA 22314, on June 6, 2024, at 10:30 a.m. His remains will be interred this summer
at a date to be determined at River View Cemetery, 300 S. Taylors Ferry Rd, Portland, OR
97219.