Driftwood Outdoors: Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation gathering fosters commitment
The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) hosted the 20th Annual National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses (NASC) Sportsman-Legislator Summit Dec. 5-8 in Dewey Beach, Delaware. The conference is CSF’s premier state legislative event. This year’s theme was "From Sea to Sea: A Nationwide Commitment to America’s Sporting-Conservation Future."
I attended this event to meet with and listen to speakers from the NASC Executive Council, state fish and wildlife agencies, conservation policy organizations, outdoor industry partners, and more as they discussed policy surrounding hunting, angling, recreational shooting, and trapping. This is the only national conference for state legislators dedicated to advancing America’s hunting, angling, recreational shooting, and trapping heritage.
“This Summit is the most important time of the year for sportsman-legislators, providing an opportunity to not only share policy challenges and successes from their states, but also to learn new strategies to help ensure there is a future for our time-honored traditions across the country,” said CSF President and CEO Jeff Crane.
“This year, CSF celebrated two decades of the NASC Summit. Together we dove into some of the most important issues facing the sportsmen’s community and we plan to keep working to provide this opportunity for countless decades to come.”
In every state capital across the country, legislators work on conservation-related policy. While each state might have slightly different agendas, our nation faces common challenges from coast to coast.
The NASC Sportsman-Legislator Summit is an unparalleled occasion for state legislators to network and engage with like-minded elected officials who are dedicated conservationists from all over. Having elected officials advocating for our rights to hunt and fish becomes increasingly important every year.
At the NASC, these legislators meet and discuss topics with state fish and wildlife agency directors and staff, conservation organization staff, corporate representatives and former legislators. Over 200 individuals, all committed to America's sporting-conservation future, gathered to share ideas and learn from thought leaders.
“When we set out to establish the NASC summit, we were focused on creating a unique opportunity for collaboration, synergy, and creativity,” said past Executive Council President Senator Robin Webb, founding member of NASC. “To see our vision come to fruition and to watch the significant growth of the NASC Summit is not only fulfilling, but also inspiring.”
Topics covered at this year’s event included, but were not limited to, developing future conservation leaders, trapping as an essential wildlife management tool, reimbursement for free licenses, right to hunt and fish constitutional amendments, and so much more.
In addition to educational sessions, regional breakouts, and executive council meetings, the Summit also featured group demonstrations, an auction and raffle, outdoor sporting activities, and an awards ceremony. Keynote speakers for this year’s event included Tom Opre, Shepherds of Wildlife Society; Mark Duda, Responsive Management; and Ronnie "Cuz" Strickland, Haas Outdoors/Mossy Oak.
“The future of the NASC Sportsman-Legislator Summit is certainly a bright one, and events like these have never been more important,” said current Executive Council President and New Hampshire State Representative Jeff Goley. “As the world seems to grow further out of touch with our time-honored traditions, it’s important that we continue to work together and build connections across party lines. The NASC Summit is exactly the place to do that.”
During the dinner and awards ceremony, the CSF States Program Team presented awards to individual legislators and groups who had contributed to the advancement of conservation policy and the furtherance of the goals of the NASC network.
Most people retreat to the woods and water to escape from the realities of our world. Fishing and hunting give us opportunities to escape and leave behind concerns for politics and other aspects of life that may cause us stress. We find our freedom out in the wild.
Yet, some must be on the frontlines defending our freedom and our rights, and the folks at the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation are doing that every day. If you are one to engage with your state representative and state senator, you should consider urging them to support the efforts of CSF, because no one is working harder on our behalf when it comes to conservation policy.
See you down the trail.
For more Driftwood Outdoors, check out the podcast on www.driftwoodoutdoors.com or anywhere podcasts are streamed.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Driftwood Outdoors: Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation gathering fosters commitment
