There are many state and local organizations that advocate for wildlife. What sets Washington Wildlife First apart is that it is the only Washington nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to monitoring and reforming the state agency that is supposed to protect our fish and wildlife, but which all too often fails to do so.
The board and staff of Washington Wildlife First come from across the state and from all walks of life. We include environmental advocates and lawyers, former employees of state and federal environmental agencies, and a former journalist, a retired businessman, and a retired financial advisor. We include both vegetarians and ethical hunters; people who love to spend most of their time in nature, and those who largely admire it from afar.
What has brought us together is a shared outrage at the agencies that are charged with protecting and preserving our fish, wildlife, waterways, and wild spaces, but which for far too long have sacrificed those interests for the sake of commercial profits, at the demand of special interests, and under pressure from powerful politicians.
We and many others have tried many avenues to achieve reform—cooperation, confrontation, persuasion, and litigation. Now we are turning to the Washington public for help in demanding reform.
In 1913, future Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis wrote that “Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman.”
We believe many of the policies and practices of Washington’s environmental agencies cannot survive in the sunlight. We believe most Washingtonian’s will be as shocked as we once were when they discover what is going on behind those closed doors. And we believe that the outrage of the Washington public has the power to bring about change.