Highlights
Why it Matters: The 30 by 30 Initiative is a global effort aimed at supporting the planet’s biodiversity needs by proposing to protect 30% of Earth’s land and water by the year 2030. As the original conservationists, American sportsmen and women have been advocating for land, water, and habitat conservation that furthers this goal for generations. In an effort to share the knowledge and expertise gained through these efforts, CSF launched the Hunt Fish 30×30 coalition – now including more than 60 state, regional, and local sportsmen’s conservation groups – to ensure those that hunt and fish have a strong voice in the halls of government as policies crafted in pursuit of 30 by 30 goals are considered. Although largely focused on U.S. policy, CSF has a longstanding relationship with the multi-party Parliamentary Outdoor Caucus, offering opportunities to share information and expertise relevant to international and transborder conservation policy.
On June 15, CSF President and CEO Jeff Crane joined Canadian Members of Parliament for a briefing on the 30 by 30 Initiative, a global effort to urge governments to commit to placing 30% of the Earth’s land and water resources under protected status by the year 2030. With the potential to have wide ranging impacts on hunters, anglers, and others that depend on ecosystem services, 30 by 30 has attracted a great deal of attention in the U.S. and abroad.
Founded in 1989 to support the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus (CSC), the largest bipartisan caucus in the United States Congress, CSF also maintains an informal relationship with the CSC’s Canadian counterpart, the multi-party Canadian Parliamentary Outdoor Caucus, to further the exchange of information and expertise for the benefit of Canada’s and the United States’ shared outdoor heritage. As part of this interaction, CSF’s Crane was invited to speak to pro-sportsmen members of the Canadian Parliament to provide perspective on hunters’ and anglers’ efforts to help craft sustainable, achievable, and pragmatic biodiversity strategies in the U.S. through CSF-led efforts such as Hunt Fish 30×30.
Although the U.S. government’s approach to the 30 by 30 Initiative is still being formulated, CSF and the Hunt Fish 30×30 coalition have been successful in ensuring that the conservation benefits associated with hunting and fishing are acknowledged in the Biden Administration’s recently released America the Beautiful Report (report) that serves as an outline for proposed approaches to advance biodiversity conservation. In addition, the report emphasized the importance of voluntary, incentive-based private land conservation, a longstanding sportsmen’s community priority that has been echoed by the Hunt Fish 30×30 coalition since day one.
For more information about the 30 by 30 Initiative, please visit: https://www.huntfish3030.com/.
Studies conducted at both the state and federal level have found that the number of hunters and trappers have been on a generally declining trend over the past several decades. To increase recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) of hunters and trappers, which initiative do you think would have the greatest impact?
