One of the biggest things I struggle with when it comes to Wildlife for All’s mission is that we’re sending folks on a challenging endeavor that can feel at times frustrating and futile. Advocating for wildlife at state commissions meetings can feel like Mission: Impossible without all the epic jumping from planes and cliffs.

Recent research confirms that sense of spinning our wheels: public support alone is often not a strong predictor of what becomes law—especially when it conflicts with capitalism’s almighty profit motive. It’s not for our lack of trying. It is a reflection of our decision-making systems.

We don’t live in a democracy any more.

That reality can feel discouraging, but it also clarifies where change is both necessary and possible. If the system isn’t built to respond, then the work is to change the system itself.

As historian Heather Cox Richardson pointed out, some of the most transformative policy changes in U.S. history began not with federal action or public pressure alone, but with structural change at the state level. After the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, public outrage gave way to something more durable: investigations, new governance structures, and sustained legislative action for workers rights. Those state-level efforts reshaped what was politically possible and ultimately helped enable national reforms.

This is not just history—it is happening now. Comprehensive reform and increased conservation funding are gaining ground, from New Mexico to Oregon. Grassroots organizing saved some of Florida’s black bears and a strategic citizen petition is protecting Colorado’s wildlife from being targeted by trappers.

Taken together, these changes do something uncommon in wildlife policy: they shift who makes decisions and how those decisions are made. They demonstrate that while individual participation can feel limited within existing systems, coordinated efforts to change those systems can materially alter outcomes.

This is the focus of Wildlife for All’s work. Just last month we graduated the first cohort of our Building Power for Wildlife Justice program to support grassroots leaders working to improve transparency, accountability, and democratic process in wildlife governance. That cohort is already leading campaigns in their states—raising their voices more confidently and defiantly, and applying these lessons to reshape the systems that shape wildlife policy.

The path forward is clear-eyed. Individual actions, on their own, often have limited impact in systems shaped by concentrated power. But when people organize to change the rules of governance—especially at the state level—the trajectory can shift. This work is slower and less visible than individual policy fights, but it is how durable change has happened before, and how it is happening now.

For all life,

Michelle

First Cohort in Organizing Training Program Graduates

Wildlife for All is proud to celebrate the graduation of our inaugural cohort of our grassroots organizing training program, Building Power for Wildlife Justice. Nineteen advocates from 13 states across the country joined the program, building the skills, strategy, and confidence needed to advance science-informed, equitable wildlife governance in their states. Over the course of the training, participants moved from uncertainty about how to engage to developing clear campaign plans and leadership pathways—many already stepping into active roles in ongoing policy efforts. This cohort represents a growing network of leaders ready to turn concern for wildlife into coordinated, effective action.

Idaho Commissioner Charged with Poaching, Other Violations

We’re also speaking out following charges against an Idaho Fish and Game commissioner accused of multiple poaching-related violations, emphasizing the broader implications for ethics and accountability in wildlife governance. Commissioners are entrusted with stewarding public resources and setting the ethical standard for wildlife management, and that alleged actions of this kind—particularly by those in positions of authority—erode public trust and undermine the legitimacy of governing institutions. 

Wildlife for All is using this moment to highlight the need for stronger transparency, accountability, and reform in how commissioners are selected and overseen, reinforcing that effective wildlife governance depends on leadership that reflects the highest standards of conservation ethics.

Carnivore Persecution Shows Systemic Failures

Across the West, carnivores continue to face relentless persecution—from lobos targeted by federal kill orders, to coyotes killed en masse, to wolves eliminated under state management plans that prioritize conflict over coexistence.

These aren’t isolated incidents. They reflect a system that continues to treat native predators as expendable rather than essential to ecosystem health. Through media, advocacy, and organizing, we are challenging that narrative and pushing for coexistence policies that reflect science, ethics, and the reality that these species belong on the landscape. We have to change the system state by state to fully protect vital wildlife. 

Claire Loebs Davis Wins Don Molde Award

Wildlife for All has named  Claire Loebs Davis as the inaugural recipient of the Don Molde Award for Courageous Leadership in Wildlife Advocacy, recognizing her role in advancing wildlife protection and governance reform in Washington State. As co-founder and leader of Washington Wildlife First, Loebs Davis has led sustained efforts to reform state wildlife decision-making despite significant opposition, political pressure, and personal attacks, demonstrating strategic leadership, resilience, and a strong commitment to the public trust. The award honors the legacy of Don Molde by celebrating advocates who take bold, effective action in the face of entrenched interests, and highlights Loebs Davis’s work as emblematic of the courage and persistence required to achieve meaningful change for wildlife.

WFA Supports Lawsuit Defending Democracy in Wildlife Governance

Wildlife for All is standing with our coalition partner Washington Wildlife First in a federal civil rights lawsuit challenging leadership at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. 

Following a virtual press conference last week, Wildlife for All and partners are drawing attention to the lawsuit and escalating concerns about leadership and accountability at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, where Director Kelly Susewind is accused of targeting critics and attempting to silence dissent amid ongoing efforts to reform wildlife governance. 

Speakers—including WFA’s Michelle Lute and advisor Dr. Adrian Treves, former agency leadership, and legal experts—outlined how the case reflects a broader struggle over the future of wildlife policy in Washington, where efforts to modernize governance and align it with contemporary science and public values are facing organized resistance. 

The situation raises concerns not only for conservation outcomes, but for democratic accountability itself: if advocates, scientists, and commissioners can face retaliation for raising legitimate concerns, it risks chilling civic engagement and setting a dangerous precedent for wildlife governance nationwide.

April Wildlife Commission Meetings

This month, 34 states are holding wildlife commission meetings, with policies advancing that will shape hunting rules, species protections, funding priorities, and agency accountability for months—if not years—to come. 

These meetings may not generate headlines, but they are where wildlife policy is made in real time: where science is either upheld or sidelined, where precaution is either applied or ignored, and where public trust is either strengthened or eroded.

See if your state is meeting, and consider submitting a public comment, logging in to listen, showing up to speak, and advocating for species and ecosystems that cannot advocate for themselves to ensure decisions reflect public values, not narrow interests.

Vox: These animals can cause big trouble. Why are states unleashing them by the millions?

Wildlife for All Supports Washington Wildlife First Lawsuit

Mount Pigsah Coyote Killing Highlights Need for Coexistence Policies

Idaho Fish and Game Commissioner Charged with Poaching Violations

Claire Loebs Davis Honored with Inaugural Don Molde Award for Courageous Wildlife Advocacy

What Urban Coyotes Teach Us About Justice-Centered Conservation

Lobo Week 2026 – Thinking Like a Mountain

Idaho’s Killing Of Three Panhandle Wolves Is A Symptom Of A Systemic Problem

April Wildlife Commission Meetings