Middle River Dispatches

A gumbo of fly-fishing, conservation, politics and days afield, for what it is worth....

Mojo | The Week That Is: A ‘Dark Ages’ Of Wildlife Management Descends On The West

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Each week, I have the pleasure of joining Mountain Journal founder Todd Wilkinson in our “The Week That Is,” column where we discuss topical events relating to the nation’s capital city and the public land West.

As Todd wrote in the intro, “some topics are treated either as taboo or approached with the certainty that any discussion about them will erupt on social media into an uncivil exchange of name-calling. Hunting is one of those. We find dualism most unfortunate because it leaves little room to have a reasonable conversation about hunting as a tradition, its role in advancing wildlife conservation and examining such topics as predator control. By fostering a dialog about trophy hunting and hunting ethics, Mountain Journal is not staking out a position as being “anti-hunting,” nor when giving hunters a voice, is it failing to the recognize the valid positions of animal rights and holding reverence for non-human animals as sentient beings.”

 The second of the two-part conversation. Read part one by clicking here.

Read it here > A ‘Dark Ages’ Of Wildlife Management Descends On The West

Mojo | The Week That Is: Are Hunters Still Leading Wildlife Conservation in America?

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Each week, I have the pleasure of joining Mountain Journal founder Todd Wilkinson in our “The Week That Is,” column where we discuss topical events relating to the nation’s capital city and the public land West.

As Todd writes in the intro this week “some topics are treated either as taboo or approached with the certainty that any discussion about them will erupt on social media into an uncivil exchange of name-calling. Hunting is one of those. We find dualism most unfortunate because it leaves little room to have a reasonable conversation about hunting as a tradition, its role in advancing wildlife conservation and examining such topics as predator control. By fostering a dialog about trophy hunting and hunting ethics, Mountain Journal is not staking out a position as being “anti-hunting,” nor when giving hunters a voice, is it failing to the recognize the valid positions of animal rights and holding reverence for non-human animals as sentient beings.”

This is the first of a two-part conversation.

Read it here > Are Hunters Still Leading Wildlife Conservation in America?

MoJo | The Week That Is: What Does River Conservation Really Mean?

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Each week, I have the pleasure of joining Mountain Journal founder Todd Wilkinson in our “The Week That Is,” column where we discuss topical events relating to the nation’s capital city and the public land West. On Monday’s you can read the previous week’s column here.

In this edition, the conversation turns to the battle over protecting the character of the Upper Madison River in Montana from overuse by anglers and how, more broadly, it raises questions about the real meaning of river conservation.

Read it here > What Does River Conservation Really Mean?

US Forest Service Public Affairs Conference

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A very nice thank you note!

Last month, my friend Steve Bekkrus asked me to come to Atlanta and give a presentation to the U.S. Forest Service’s Southern Region Public Affairs conference. He asked me to give a presentation on the impact of the recent election and also on how to more effectively educate and engage Congress. I was delighted to have the opportunity and really enjoyed the conference.

It was a great opportunity to talk with public affairs professionals who work hard to make our public lands a national treasure. These are sharp professionals and it was a lively discussion.

As a follow up I sent them this list of ‘Take Aways.” [Read more…]

Our Public Lands (Part 2): Elections Matter

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The reelection of President Obama combined with Democrats gaining seats in the both houses of Congress and a clear repudiation of the extreme views of the GOP provide those of us who treasure our public lands an important opportunity.

The community of sportsmen, outdoor enthusiasts and public land advocates have a chance to press for those things that will secure a legacy for public lands and to defeat the agenda of the remaining right wing zealots who may see the election as a reason to double down on their assault on public lands.

The opportunity lies in showing Congress that public lands are essential to our quality of life, a critical economic contributor and that the American people value them.

Carpe’ing the old Diem

To Carpe this particular Diem public land advocates must present a united front around a common agenda. With that agenda in hand they need to present a clear and compelling message that without our public lands a important part of the U.S. economy is placed in jeopardy and the American public will lose critical recreation, health and environmental infrastructure.

The good news is a lot of groundwork has been done. Coalitions, trade associations and non-governmental organizations have been tirelessly at work gathering and sharing economic and public opinion information, creating messages that give meaning to that data and identifying congressional champions to help transform that information into legislative action.

In addition, the Obama administration has shown its support for public lands. The America’s Great Outdoors initiative is a strategic conservation and recreation agenda and provides important information about public land success and the views of the American people.

Can these groups, with somewhat different agendas, find time to sit down and craft a common and more importantly an achievable agenda? Can they agree that the opportunity to achieve durable public policy is fleeting and that if we don’t speak with one voice then our chances of success is diminished? That remains to be seen.

Now is the time for the leaders of the coalitions, trade associations and NGOs to reach out to each other and commit to a common agenda, sharing resources and working together. If that happens then durable public lands policy can be achieved.

Stay tuned! In coming posts I will write about what the agenda might include and who the champions might be.