July 2020 – Vol XXIII, No 2
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Vol XXIII No 2 July 2020 FEATURING Building a Diverse, Equitable, Inclusive, and Just Conservation Movement - 3 Planning Idaho’s Clean Energy Future - 7 Dr. John Freemuth’s Leadership and Legacy Live On - 11 FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR BOARD OF DIRECTORS Lori Gibson Banducci, Chair, Boise Rebecca Patton, Vice Chair, Hailey Judy Baker, Treasurer, Boise Bill Weppner, Secretary, Boise Tanya Anderson, Victor Patrick Bageant, Boise Matt Benjamin, Ketchum For Idahoans... Carolyn Coiner, Twin Falls All Jim DeWitt, Boise Wild places replenish my soul. Hiking, rafting, hunting Megan Dixon, Caldwell David Eichberg, Boise and fishing with family and friends refreshes me and I Scott Friedman, Sun Valley Justina Gooden-Helton, Idaho Falls feel welcome out in our public lands. Alan Harper, Athol Jim Norton, Boise The events of the last month, the national awakening John O’Connor, Bonners Ferry Julie Richardson, Hailey around racism, and the clarion call of the Black Kim Trotter, Driggs Lives Matter movement have helped me to better Margrit von Braun, Moscow understand that not everyone feels welcome or has STAFF Glenn Oakley Photo Glenn Oakley the privileges that I do. The systemic racism that Mitch Cutter Justin Hayes Black, Indigenous and other people of color face, the Fellow, Salmon & Steelhead Jenny Estes lack of respect, and the lack of opportunities keep many people of color from Development Director Randy Fox experiencing the world as I do. Conservation Associate Dainee Gibson If you know me, you know that I believe that social justice and conservation Conservation Analyst Justin Hayes are intertwined. What has really been driven home to me anew though is that Executive Director Shelby Herber ICL needs to play an active role in helping walk toward a better future for all Community Engagement Assistant Katie Jay Idahoans. It is the right thing to do and it also aligns with our conservation Data Development Assistant mission and values. Josh Johnson Conservation Associate Marie Callaway Kellner I don’t have all the answers to this, but I do know that ICL won’t sit idle. Conservation Program Director Sometimes our actions will be imperfect. We will learn and continue to do Scott Ki Communications Associate better. Through our words and our actions, we will be part of the solution. Emerald LaFortune Campaign Outreach Assistant Betsy Mizell We call our organization “Idaho’s leading voice for conservation.” As a small Central Idaho Director but important step forward, I believe that we need to put our voices in service Matt Nykiel Conservation Associate to the cause of racial and social justice. I suspect that this will make some Jonathan Oppenheimer people uncomfortable, and for that I do not apologize. If together we cannot Director of External Relations Ben Otto find our own voice on these issues, will any of us ever be able to put our words Energy Associate Mallory Parsons into actions? Accounting Assistant Haley Robinson Just as we have said that climate is a lens through which we view all of our Development & Marketing Associate John Robison program work, social justice is also such a lens. Addressing climate change and Public Lands Director Julia Rundberg the inequities in our society are intertwined. Public lands are not actually public Director of Finance & Administration Hannah Smay if people of color are not welcome there. Clean water and clean air must be a Community Engagement Assistant right for all, regardless of color. Salmon recovery must honor the treaty rights Brad Smith North Idaho Director of Native Americans and can we ever make amends for taking their lands and Austin Walkins calling them public lands? Climate Campaign Coordinator Lana Weber Community Engagement Coordinator Using our voice will help us walk together along the path that we have outlined Erin Zaleski Office Manager in our organization’s strategic plan, and move us forward with actions to build Boise a just, prosperous and sustainable future for 208.345.6933 all Idahoans — no matter our color, sexual Justin Hayes [email protected] www.idahoconservation.org orientation, ability, age or political party. Executive Director [email protected] Ketchum 208.726.7485 Sandpoint 208.265.9565 Printed on recycled paper 1 Cover: High Mountain Hideaway, by Andy Sewell. Oil on canvas, 24x9 in FROM THE CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS “What a long strange trip it’s been” ~ Grateful Dead Christina Smith Photo A Spirit of Preserverance It seems like years ago that I wrote that Justin Hayes, our new executive director, would “face some challenges as well as opportunities.” In fact, it was just a year ago in July 2019. Little did we know the extent and impact of the challenges to come his (our) way, so quickly. From the current administration’s dismantling of bedrock environmental regulations to COVID-19 and now the worldwide social and racial justice movement spurred by the tipping point murder of George Floyd. Fortunately, the staff of ICL is meeting challenges head-on with a spirit of optimism, perseverance Lori Gibson Banducci in the face of adversity, vulnerability and creativity — led by a compassionate and adaptive leadership team. Instead of looking at the limitations created by these crises, ICL leadership and staff have looked for and seized upon the opportunities. • When ICL’s annual conference Wild Idaho! could not be held in person, the ICL team put together a web series of presentations and moderated discussions — providing an opportunity to connect and interact with a much larger audience. • The ICL staff has effectively maintained the momentum of our breadth of work even while working from home. • Virtual board-staff meetings created an opportunity for the staff and the board to engage more frequently and informally via Zoom. We are more connected and in sync than ever. • Our strategic plan (created in 2019) prioritized justice, equity, diversity and inclusion as imperative to creating a lasting and impactful conservation community. Recent events have shown how critical this is to our work, our state, our country, and our world. We can all take great comfort in knowing that the ICL community — staff, leadership, board, supporters and members — will address challenges with grace, creativity, and resolve for our mission to create a conservation community and pragmatic, enduring solutions that protect and restore the air you breathe, the water you drink, and the land and wildlife you love. Lori Gibson Banducci Our work continues and is strengthened due, in large part, to your Chair continued support, particularly in these challenging times. We are ever Idaho Conservation League Board of Directors so grateful. 2 DIVERSE, EQUITABLE, INCLUSIVE, AND JUST FUTURE ICL’s commitment to a more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and just future for this community, for the conservation movement, and for Idaho Vital conversations about race, police brutality, and against systemic racism and police brutality. Black lives equality (or lack thereof) in America reached new matter. heights, taking the national stage in late May. ICL’s staff and board heard the message that it was time to Email inboxes and social media posts have been listen, learn, and take action to support the anti-racist inundated with amazing reading lists, organizations to movement. financially support, and suggestions from people of color to follow and learn from. We must listen and learn — This powerful and necessary moment in America was and, we must also take action. propelled forward by the murder of George Floyd by a police officer. The Black Lives Matter movement has The need to address the systemic racism in America has forced this necessary discussion onto the national stage. been a long time coming. The roots of racism run deep Like many organizations around the country, ICL stands — Black slavery and the genocide wrought on Native 3 Charles Knowels Photo DIVERSE, EQUITABLE, INCLUSIVE, AND JUST FUTURE Americans seem long past, but in truth it was just a • Land acknowledgements. We are crafting moment ago. The intergenerational trauma experienced land acknowledgements to pay respect to the Tribes by people of color and the racism embedded in who have lived on the lands in Idaho for millennia. America’s white-dominated society are real — and These will be shared at events and in our printed current. materials to honor the history on these lands. The environmental movement in the United States has a • Elevating others. We are actively looking for problematic and exclusionary past. We acknowledge the opportunities to partner with and elevate the work injustices and underrepresentation that have occurred of organizations run by and supporting people of and will actively work to support a future that does not color. repeat the same mistakes. This list will continue to grow. We know that this is not a Last year, as we created ICL’s 2020-2023 Strategic complete or final list of actions and we want to continue Plan, we included a section entitled Building a this work with a focus on being accountable for taking Diverse, Equitable, Inclusive, and Just action. We will continue to provide updates about our Conservation Movement. This was the first time DEIJ work moving forward in our newsletters, annual that ICL embedded a true link to the fact that ICL as a reports, and on our website. Expect to see a list of what conservation organization has a social justice mission. we have accomplished and what our next steps are in our And from this flowed the creation of a joint staff fall newsletter. and board committee to help further ICL’s work on diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ). But it has We invite you, our members and supporters, to share become clear that we aren’t doing enough or moving ideas about other actions ICL can take to strengthen quickly enough.