Welcome to the latest installment of the Wednesday Wake-Up Call, a roundup of the most pressing conservation issues important to anglers. Working with our friends at Trout Unlimited, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, The Everglades Foundation, Captains for Clean Water, VoteWater.org, and Conservation Hawks (among others), we’ll make sure you’ve got the information you need to understand the issues and form solid opinions.
1. Orvis Joins Partners to Advocate for Everglades-Restoration Funding
Yesterday, Orvis Orvis hit the halls of Congress–along with the Everglades Foundation, Captains for Clean Water, Everglades Trust, and Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation –to explain to policymakers the importance of Everglades Restoration. Laura Schaffer, Orvis Vice President of Sustainability and Conservation, will be part of a group that seeks to secure the funding required to continue the work outlined in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), which relies on a combination of federal and state dollars. It’s an important time to make this case because legislators are currently drafting new bills–which will be introduced in both the House and Senate in the coming weeks–providing the baseline for funding bills that will be passed later this year.
As part of the effort, Orvis took out a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal on Monday, so the issues would be top-of-mind for the policymakers the group met with yesterday.
Click here for the full story
Click here to learn more about Orvis’s commitment to a goal of 50 million acres protected by 2030
2. Outdoor Industry Descends on Washington for Annual Capitol Summit
Yesterday and today, the Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) held its annual summit in Washington. The event brings OIA members, including Orvis, from around the country to discuss their policy agenda and educate attendees on how to lobby and be an advocate for our industry. Yesterday, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland gave the keynote speech, recognizing the importance of the industry to both the environment and the communities supported by outdoor adventures:
“That’s what the Outdoor Industry Association is all about. It’s about sustaining outdoor traditions that help our communities to thrive – hunting, fishing, climbing, hiking, and everything in between – while working together to protect incredible places for future generations. And your dedicated efforts don’t just help steward public lands and waters for the enjoyment of all, they also have a significant and undeniable impact on our nation’s economy! Jobs in outdoor recreation ensure families can put food on the table, create diverse revenue streams for communities, and bring new opportunities to lesser-known outdoor spaces.”
The focus of today is meeting with elected officials to talk about the importance of the outdoors and the $862 billion outdoor recreation economy. Three Orvis Vice Presidents–Laura Schaffer, Frazier Blair, and Mike Rigney–took part in the event, representing both Orvis’s role as an industry leader and the company’s commitment to conservation.
Click here to learn more at outdoorindustry.org
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