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Idaho Fish and Game

Thirst for Knowledge - A Challenging Priority for Idaho Fish and Game

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There is a great thirst for knowledge about the natural wonders of Idaho, and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) is working hard to meet the public demands for educational opportunities. "Conservation education is one of the most important tools that wildlife managers have for opening the minds of citizens to the value and complexity of conservation, as well as the enjoyment that can be realized from fish and wildlife resources," said Kevin Frailey, IDFG conservation education supervisor. But providing an understanding of the value of conserving our natural resources faces many challenges. In 1950, approximately 71 percent of the world's population was rural. People grew their own food. They hunted, fished, trapped and watched much of the natural world transpire while doing so. Today, the majority of the world's population lives in an urban setting and watches the natural world transpire on television. "How do we contend with an ever-growing population that has never seen a hawk kill a rabbit, heard the call of a wild turkey, felt the tug of a fish on the end of a line, or even picked up a frog from a pond?" he said. Because like most states, IDFG is funded largely through the sale of hunting and fishing licenses, and federal excise taxes on sporting equipment, Frailey credits sportsmen and sportswomen with helping fund the majority of IDFG's conservation education efforts. "True hunters and anglers have always recognized that they have a responsibility to pass along their heritage of conservation to the next generation," he said. But in the wake of changing demographics and declining participation in hunting and fishing, most agencies including IDFG, are now focused on hunter/angler recruitment and retention programs. Because hunters and anglers pay most of the bills, this certainly makes sense. But the large auto makers for example, not only work hard to keep repeat business and satisfy their loyal customers, they also continuously explore new clients and different markets. IDFG must continue its recruitment and retention efforts, but also find ways to include that ever growing segment that are mostly urbanized, love wildlife, but don't know much about nature. "Let's not fool ourselves - the vast majority of the American public doesn't fish or hunt and they will be making our wildlife management decisions in the future. We cannot afford to ignore or alienate them," he said. "We must find a balance between our loyal and steady customer base and our every growing watchable wildlife clientele." Some may question why IDFG is in the business of education in the first place. To begin with, the argument "our biologists are the professionals, we know what we are doing, trust us," doesn't always work. If any resource agency wants the public to support their management decisions, they had better hope the public understands the reasoning behind them. Information and education are the key ingredients in this process. In addition, the top problems in our public schools in the 1940's were talking, chewing gum, making noise and running in the halls. Today, our schools and educators deal with drug and alcohol abuse, pregnancy, suicide, rape, robbery and assault. Our schools are also driven by testing components and budget constraints. Even though Idaho's educators are very passionate about their profession, very few school districts have the resources to make conservation education any kind of priority. Simply put, if IDFG doesn't take the time to inform and educate our citizenry about our fish and wildlife, who will? To learn more about conservation education efforts in Idaho, refer to the IDFG web site at http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/ and click on the link to "Education."