Dear friends,
Back in 1967, Tom Bell, Mardy Murie, and others came together to protect Wyoming, because they understood that a few scattered, unorganized voices would never get the job done. They created the Wyoming Outdoor Coordinating Council and worked together to help quash some very shortsighted plans, including an effort to dam the Upper Green River near Pinedale, a proposal to clearcut large sections of the Bridger-Teton and Shoshone national forests around Dubois, and—as crazy as it sounds today—a harebrained scheme to detonate nuclear bombs underground in the Upper Green River Valley to release and extract natural gas. Tom’s group didn’t stop with these successes: they and those who came after them went on to help create Wyoming’s “citizen’s lobby” and secure passage of our state’s foundational environmental laws—laws that continue to protect our wildlife and air and water quality today.
Fifty years later, thanks to the dedicated support of members like you, the Wyoming Outdoor Council is still doing the work these visionaries began. Every day, we bring citizens together from all corners of the state to create lasting solutions to tough problems, all in the name of protecting this wild, wide-open place we love.
I’d like to invite you to join me in Lander September 22-23 for our 50th anniversary celebration. Inspired by our founders, we’ll spend the weekend looking ahead, thinking together about how citizens can be the most engaged, effective advocates for the wild places they love. We’ll cap off the weekend of workshops and conversation with a keynote address by Gina McCarthy, former head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. At a time when so many safeguards are being rolled back, I’m eager to hear her perspective on what’s next for all of us.
Purchase your tickets, and find a full schedule, at our website. (Reserve your tickets by June 1 for a discounted early bird rate!) Amy Rathke (amy@wyomingoutdoorcouncil.org) will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Thanks for your commitment to Wyoming. I hope to see you in September!
Dave Hohl,
Chair, Wyoming Outdoor Council Board of Directors
Pinedale, Wyoming