Re: How can the everyday hunter help?
We need to get political without getting partisan. Political because the politicians hold the levers of power (or the keys to the cash register or however you want to frame it) and we need them to remove obstacles and provide tools for the work that needs to be done. Non-partisan because we need to survive changes in party during the election process.
We need politicians of all stripes to commit to wildlife conservation based on science and we need a funding model that also survives changes in government. A concrete thing you can do in that regard is talk to your MLA and your MP. It's not that tough. I'm no pro but I started doing it and it's easier than I thought it would be.
We also need to change public perceptions about wildlife management. Most people like animals, but they're low information. They think the threat to wildlife consists of trophy hunters showing grizzly bears. Some more informed people think non-consumptive use is better than consumptive use, but they are also confused - more wildlife is killed bringing you products to buy in the store than are ever killed by "consumptive" users like hunters. The concrete thing to do on that score is to continue to educate yourself and give ammunition to other people who think like you do in order to change the minds of people who think that hunters are bad and don't realize that we are the real conservationists.
You can't change someone's mind by yelling at them or telling them how much smarter than them you are, but you can change some minds by highlighting what the real facts are (loss of habitat kills more animals than hunters, for example, and everyone, not just hunters, responsible for habitat loss). Changing minds of non-hunters gets us social license. Social license helps us with getting politicians to do the right thing. It's a self-reinforcing loop.
If you want to know what to say to MLAs pm me and I'll get you in touch with the right people.
Rob Chipman
"The idea of wilderness needs no defense, it only needs defenders" - Ed Abbey
"Grown men do not need leaders" - also Ed Abbey