Guides are passionate about natural resources!

I have recently gone to work as the Executive Director of the Maine Professional Guides Association. Don’t worry its part time, I am still guiding all summer and fall. I worked for the MPGA in the 1990’s as their first lobbyist and served as president and secretary of the organization before that. In the interim I have worked for a variety of conservation organizations while guiding at Maine Outdoors and four years at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

When I represented the Guides Association in the past I was always proud of how they put the resources first, even when it was not in their economic self interest. Our opening statement was always the resource comes first and the rest will follow. That is still true; what I had forgotten was the passion about natural resource issues that guides have. The fish and wildlife professionals at state agencies have nowhere near the passion for the resource coming first. Their connection between resource health and income is at a distance and not enforced by economic reality. All of the conservation groups were volunteer and their members while concerned earned their livings elsewhere.

Guides are different, the connection is there and really does matter at a very personal level. Do they all agree? Almost never. But each one is truly passionate about the health of Maine’s resources and has that at the top of their list of concerns about today and in the future.I have to admit that it is a pleasure to be back where truly the natural resources come first and everyone is passionate them. Even if they do not all agree!!