Need a spokesperson for the hunting community ?
Christy Clark may still be unemployed .....
Black cowboy hat and dimples.
What could be better ....
Need a spokesperson for the hunting community ?
Christy Clark may still be unemployed .....
Black cowboy hat and dimples.
What could be better ....
I think so. I don't know how feasible achieving such a thing is, but I do know that the GOABC lobby seemed to have influence in Victoria. I also recall that the resident hunting community coalesced to push back on the allocation issue with a petition and rallies, and these seem like appropriate near-term responses in this situation.
Absolutely to this and the above posts too.
So I was poking around on the BCWF facebook page and I saw the videos one of which is Jesse Zeman explaining the BC situation. I had heard that before on the Rookie Hunter Podcast when he did an interview. Its crazy.
BC spends less than 10% as much as Idaho (per capita) on habitat and wildlife conservation. While provincial spending has increased everywhere else, habitat and conservation spending has remained at 1980's levels in BC. Today, the $34 million budget only allows the conservation service and biologists to watch wildlife vanish from the landscape, rather than do anything about it. By contrast, we the tax payers spent $820 million on the Port Mann Bridge replacement and $514 million on the roof replacement for BC place. I think most people would agree that habitat and wildlife in BC deserve more. I think for the most part no one knows these facts. Please watch this video if you are interested in learning more. It is the 33 minute video on their videos page.
The other great point that Jesse Zeman brings up is that MLAs and MPs are people just like us. They listen and want to get re-elected. If we all made the effort to explain to them with letters or in person how important this subject is then they will be more likely to listen. Furthermore, we need leaders like the BCWF and Wild Sheep Society to lead the charge and organize us.
I'm from Vancouver, live in New Westminster now, but I never grew up hunting and I didn't know any hunters growing up. As we know, most of the NDPs seats are in greater Vancouver and the island. From talking with friends and family and colleagues at work, I am the only hunter that most of them know. Most of them honestly had no idea that we don't just go into the woods blasting animals for shits and giggles with no regulations. Its pure lack of knowledge. For my friends and family, they couldn't imagine hunting or why I would want to, that is, until I explained it. It stands to reason that most of the NDP MLAs also don't know (or perhaps they don't realize they know) people who hunt. They are probably as uneducated about the topic as the vast majority of my friends and family. If they understood that we are stewards of the landscape, conservationists, and people who care about ethical and evidence based management of habitat and wildlife then they would see why we care about hunting too.
I think another thing which we as hunters don't do a very good job of is finding allies in other outdoors groups. As we all know, we are the ones paying the fees to manage habitat and wildlife, but hikers, mountain bikers, skiers, and campers benefit. We all share the same desired outcomes to have large healthy populations of wildlife and pristine habitat. I think if we educated them as well as MLAs on what we stand for then we wouldn't be losing the battle with these extremist anti hunting groups. We need to do a better job of empathizing with many people's lack of the understanding that we are not the enemy of wildlife and habitat. We are its strongest champions.
My intention is to regularly meet with my MLA to discuss this as part of a larger group. I want to also go and meet with other outdoors groups and make friends not enemies.
I hope we can all take a more educational and relationship building approach to our advocacy and and also have people like Jesse Zeman who are well informed and good speakers setting the tone and agenda. We are already unapproachable enough, we have to be so careful not to appear standoffish or fringe.
Also, we should do what Steven Rinella says which is "Venison Diplomacy". I have done it many times. Make some game for friends, potlucks, etc. and share what you love about hunting with non-hunters. It makes the whole argument a lot more palatable (pun intended).
http://www.themeateater.com/2013/the...tment-part-ii/
People can understand hunting a lot more easily, or at the very least it is a gateway to understanding, if you can feed them a tasty dish. Perhaps we should hold game banquets for the people we want on our side.
You been living under a rock?
The BCWF Response to Provincial Government Announcement to End Grizzly Trophy Hunt
The provincial government has announced they will end grizzly bear trophy hunting throughout the province and stop all hunting of grizzlies in the Great Bear Rainforest after November 2017.
Hunting grizzlies for meat outside the Great Bear Rainforest is not included in the ban, but the government has said they will forbid a meat hunter from possessing the paws, head, and hide of a grizzly. This announcement is inconsistent with the North American Wildlife Conservation Model, which stipulates harvested wildlife should be used for legitimate purposes, including retrieving the fur and meat where usable. Requiring hunters or anglers to throw useable portions of their harvest away is wasteful and inconsistent with sustainable use.
Harvey Andrusak, President of the BCWF said, “The province must maintain a science-based hunt to determine if there is a sustainable harvest which includes the opportunity for hunters to utilize all portions of any animal or fish harvested. We cannot be managing fish and wildlife on a one-off basis. All wildlife management must be consistent with science-based recommendations.”
Biological data obtained from the hide and skull provides critical data to scientists. BCWF staff and executive met with government representatives yesterday to stress the importance of making sure experts maintain the opportunity to obtain valuable data from any animal harvested. The government has said they will meet with First Nations and all affected groups in the fall and the federation will be continuing to stand up strongly for science-based management of all wildlife species.
The BCWF supports a regional roundtable approach, with specific conservation measures and social considerations discussed with residents, First Nations, commercial and recreational sector representatives before wildlife management policy is changed or adopted.
We need your help! To be effective, members need to speak with their MLAs to educate them about this issue and stress the importance of maintaining hunting practices that do not waste any part of any animal taken. Find your MLA here.
BCWF Resident Priority Program manager Jesse Zeman participated in a panel discussion on CBC Almanac at noon on August 15, 2017, stressing these points and advocating for adequate funding for wildlife management in BC.
President of the BCWF- affiliated Spruce City Wildlife Association Steve Hamilton was featured in this story in the Vancouver Sun.
The BC Wildlife Federation will continue to support recovery efforts for grizzly bears in areas where populations are under threat and to advocate for increased funding and science for wildlife management in BC.