Safari Club International President Ralph Cunningham announced today that SCI is expanding hunter advocacy in Canada. SCI has engaged the services of the Capital Hill Group (CHG) in Ottawa to protect the freedom to hunt for Canadian sportsmen and for sportsmen visiting Canada. "This is a positive step in demonstrating SCI's commitment to protect the freedom to hunt worldwide," said Cunningham. President Cunningham explained that "it requires experts in Canadian law and policy, located in Canada, to protect hunting rights in Canada. That's what SCI has provided for."
The primary representative on governmental issues for SCI in Canada is Joe Jordan, a principal in The Capital Hill Group. CHG and SCI signed an agreement for legislative services that includes monitoring and reporting on federal and provincial actions that could affect hunting, providing briefings on selected issues, and providing training materials and assistance to SCI members in Canada in grass roots lobbying both at the federal and provincial level. The CHG will be in attendance at the Reno convention and will be working with the executive to develop the ongoing government relations strategy. Going forward the CHG will provide a liaison to the Federal Outdoor Caucus in the Canadian Parliament to assure that sportsmen's concerns are brought to the attention of Canadian legislators.
SCI's attention to sportsmen's issues in the national and provincial capitols in Canada augments the work of Jason St. Michael, formerly with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Jason is assisting Canadian sportsmen to form SCI chapters in Canada. SCI also maintains close ties with several guide outfitter organizations across Canada. Dale Drown, the Executive Director of the Guide Outfitter Association of British Columbia, is a member of SCI's Governmental Affairs Committee.
Canada has long been recognized as an important home for the tradition of sport hunting. The Canadian provinces are respected worldwide for their expertise in wildlife management, and Canada has an abundance of many important game species.
In recent years, policies that directly effect Canadian hunting have been made without the proper representation of the sport hunting community. SCI's strategy will involve detailed and ongoing interaction with decision-makers to ensure that the interests of all stakeholders are heard. Issues of access, logistics, the regulatory framework, the management of habitat, the impact of invasive species and the effects of chronic wasting disease are just a few of the areas that SCI will begin to exert its influence in defense of Canadian sport hunters.
Joe Jordan is a second generation Member of Parliament (for Leeds-Grenville) who brings a wide breadth of practical experience, in both policy and process to CHG. His committee experience includes membership of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, the H.R.C.D. Sub-Committee on the Status of Persons with Disabilities, the Public Accounts Committee and the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates.
While in the legislature, Joe sponsored a bill to recognize the constitutional rights of hunters, and an environmental indicators motion to ensure that polices on habitat are able to be measured in an effective, objective manner.
In addition, Joe is a former Director of Parliamentary Affairs - Treasury Board Secretariat, Federal Member of Parliament for seven years, former Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, and Former Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board. Prior to entering public life, Joe taught in the Business Department at St. Lawrence College and completed international teaching assignments in both Ethiopia and Eastern Europe. He holds a Master's Degree in Business Administration from Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York. You can read more about the Capital Hill Group at their website, www.capitalhill.ca.
