| Dear Friends, This is usually the time when we publish our glossy newsletter. But in light of the unprecedented events of the past few weeks, I thought it was preferable to send a few short comments instead of the newsletter. First, and most importantly, ConservAmerica considers our supporters to be a community, and we know many of you are facing extremely tough times. We hope that you and your families are adapting to the situation as well as can be expected, and that you are staying healthy and safe. Second, while we have not faced a pandemic in modern times, they have been a constant part of human history. And in every case when nature demonstrates such awesome power, humanity’s profound faith and resilience have risen to the challenge—often followed by a renewed commitment to environmental stewardship. It’s likely that the relief packages just passed by Congress will not be the last legislative activity related to the pandemic. And while it is still too early to tell what may be included in those future packages, we have every reason to believe that policies relevant to our priorities will be on the table. That’s why, even as our own team is practicing social distancing, our advocacy work goes on. We were pleased to see that a couple weeks after I co-authored an op-ed urging Congress to take up conservation measures, President Trump tweeted his support for a bill that permanently funds the Land and Water Conservation Fund and addresses the decades-long maintenance backlog at our national parks. That bill, the Great American Outdoors Act, is said to be a priority when Congress returns, and our recent blog post explains why it’s so important. We also continued to support the Administration’s effort to modernize the National Environmental Policy Act, as NEPA’s current implementation has resulted in both economic and environmental harm. We submitted extensive written comments to the White House; I wrote an op-ed echoing our case; and our General Counsel Brent Fewell moderated a forum on the issue. Please take care during this difficult period. We know our country will get through this together. And you should know that ConservAmerica will fight harder than ever before to protect the shared legacy of our environment. |
