TCF travels to Reno, Nevada to join the Free-Roaming Equids and Sustainability Summit
TCF represents wild horse and burro interests at “range management” conference
When we received the conference program, the differences between the speakers and attendees of the conference were evident. At first, we thought we were invited to a conference where Wild Horses and Burros were going to be falsely depicted as the single cause of habitat degradation, loss of water resources, loss of wildlife, and more. We were expecting the unfortunately, all-so-popular BLM language, like ‘overpopulation’, ‘non-native’, ‘invasive’, ‘gathers’, ‘sterilization’ and more words we clearly disagree with.
However, we were pleasantly surprised that the conference allowed room for discussion and conversations, and that, with the exception of a few flamethrowers, the attendees of the conference were willing to listen to each other. We are happy that we were able to explain our point of view to an audience that was willing to receive it, and it is our hope that we have built more trust amongst disparate groups. After all, most attendees acknowledge that the status-quo needs to change. We will have to collaborate, be willing to compromise, and create actionable solutions that are acceptable to all.
Additionally, we were inspired by the scientists speaking on the conference, whose presentations were thoughtful and promising. Innovative tools are in development, and we’ll be interested in seeing the results of these studies in the near future!
Even though some of these organizations have perceptions and viewpoints that TCF (The Cloud Foundation) cannot, and will not agree with, listening remains crucial to effective communication.
The Cloud Foundation does not deny that continued mismanagement of our public lands- including wild horse and burro populations, livestock operations and energy development- has led to a point of crisis and has caused serious damage to some of America’s most fragile ecosystems. However, given the many exciting tools that were presented during the conference, BLM has little excuse to fall back on inhumane, cruel, ineffective and unsustainable management techniques.
The paradigm needs to shift.
Not only do livestock operations and oil and gas development need to be considered, ecosystem health and animal welfare must be considered as well in order to secure a sustainable relationship between our beloved Wild Horses and Burros, healthy ecosystems, and other public land users.
We feel inspired and motivated to continue this battle to save our Wild Horses and Burros, moving forward in a diplomatic yet determined way.
Thank you for your loyal support and tireless efforts; together we can make a difference.
Elke Tukker
Intern
The Cloud Foundation