The TRCP

Do you have what it takes to dare greatly like T.R.? “It is not the critic who counts…” You’ve likely heard this powerful quote—but do you know where it came from, or what Theodore Roosevelt was really saying about striving valiantly and daring greatly, even if you fail? Read the speech that inspired generations to step into the arena—then put your knowledge to the test with our ultimate Theodore Roosevelt trivia quiz. Ready to channel your inner Rough Rider? Read the speech and take the quiz now 👉 trcp.org/2011/01/18/it-is-no…

How can the conservation community help inform decisions about data center development? Please join the TRCP for the fourth and final session in our Data Centers & Conservation Science Forum titled "Data Centers: Policy, Governance, and Decision-Making" on November 17 at 1 pm ET. This expert panel will bring together three perspectives on the decisions shaping data center development: - Michael Helbing, J.D., Executive Director of the Penn State Center for Energy Law and Policy - Kendra Sveum, P.E., Executive Director of Operations and Maintenance at Loudon County - Blake Gardiner, Program Manager for Clean Energy at the National Association of Counties Register here: bit.ly/47ZFLuQ

"Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children's children." - Theodore Roosevelt America's outdoor legacy unites us. From casting into the surf to tracking a bull elk to the ridge, this our heritage. Ensuring its future depends on hunters and anglers willing to step into the arena. Will you join us? It's Work Worth Doing. Learn more 👉 trcp.org/donate #TRCP #StepIntoTheArena #Hunting #Fishing #PublicLands #Conservation #WorkWorthDoing

If you’ve hunted or fished a state walk-in access area on private land, you’ve likely experienced what the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program (VPA-HIP) can do. This year, states and Tribes have more resources to expand those opportunities. Last week, the @USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced $21 million for 10 new VPA-HIP projects, opening more private land to public hunting and fishing in Arizona, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. This second round follows $49 million for 19 projects announced in July, bringing NRCS’s total investment to $70 million across 29 state and Tribal access programs this year. “Over a decade and a half, VPA-HIP has grown from an idea into the backbone of walk-in access across the country. Now we’ve seen $70 million for habitat and access in one calendar year,” said Aaron Field, TRCP’s director of private lands conservation. “That means more acres behind walk-in signs, more river access on the map, and more landowners with a reason to say yes. We thank NRCS and their state and Tribal partners for getting these dollars on the ground.” Learn more: trcp.org/2026/11/03/usda-inv…

Doubling Down on the Duck Stamp, Bayou Style Many of America's waterfowl hunters are voluntarily purchasing two Federal Duck Stamps this year, rather than the one stamp required for duck and goose hunting. That includes TRCP's own Chris Macaluso, our Mississippi River Program director and an avid multi-generational Louisiana outdoorsman (who likes to make a good duck gumbo). Every purchase is a real investment in wetland conservation and hunting access, with nearly all funds going into acquiring and protecting waterfowl habitat and conservation easements. Show others why hunters and anglers have long been America's conservation champions and join Chris – and thousands of other hunters – by choosing to buy two stamps this season. Learn more here: trcp.org/2026/10/09/one-for-…

Today, Interior Secretary @SecretaryBurgum (@Interior) and @USFWS Director Brian Nesvik released the findings of Rooted in Purpose, a comprehensive review of the National Wildlife Refuge System. A new secretarial order will direct USFWS to act on the report’s recommendations across several areas, including mission and habitat, organization and public access, infrastructure, and partnerships. "TRCP appreciates today's Secretarial Order to reinvigorate the National Wildlife Refuge System for the benefit of fish, wildlife, and sportsmen and women," said Joel Webster, TRCP’s chief conservation officer. "Hunters and anglers stand ready to support this work, which could improve fish and wildlife habitat and hunting and fishing opportunities on our nation's refuges." Learn more: fws.gov/initiative/rooted-in…

Unfinished Business: The Lame Duck To-Do List for Hunters and Anglers trcp.org/2026/11/06/unfinish… When lawmakers return to Washington this month, they will have only a few weeks to finish the business of the 119th Congress and a long list of expiring programs and unfinished bills will compete for floor time. Several of those bills matter to hunters and anglers. TRCP encourages Congress to pass the Fix Our Forests Act, the America the Beautiful Act, and a Farm Bill reauthorization before the session ends. Together, they address three needs every sportsman and sportswoman will recognize: maintaining public access, restoring healthy forests, and supporting voluntary conservation on working lands. Each bill does far more, but here’s what each mean for hunters and anglers:trcp.org/2026/11/06/unfinish…

A heritage worth passing on. Every season in the field builds on work done long before it. Louisiana outdoor writer and photographer Keith Lusher puts it simply: "We set an example for the next generation. It’s not complicated. Protect the fish and game that you enjoy fishing and hunting and the next generation will have it to enjoy as well." Time in the field comes with a responsibility to the fish, wildlife and places that make it all happen. TRCP takes on that responsibility every day. Help carry it forward. Meet Us in the Arena 👉 trcp.org/donate

Sign Up for the Roosevelt Report trcp.org/action-alert/sign-r… The TRCP is your resource for all things conservation. In our weekly Roosevelt Report, you'll receive the latest news on emerging habitat threats, legislation and proposals on the move, public land access solutions we're spearheading, and opportunities for hunters and anglers to take action. Sign up now! trcp.org/action-alert/sign-r…

“Wildlife and habitat cannot speak, so we must, and we will.” – Theodore Roosevelt One of the most precious freedoms we Americans have is the right to vote for the people we feel should lead us, and today is one simple opportunity to step into the arena for conservation, fish, wildlife, habitat, and access. Theodore Roosevelt believed that access to the outdoors was fundamentally American, and for more than a century, hunters and anglers have been the driving force in conservation in America. Together we can carry on that work worth doing: strengthening broad-based conservation efforts, protecting fish and wildlife habitat, and ensuring public access to natural resources for generations to come. 🇺🇸 #Vote

Mark Rehbein joins the TRCP as Vice President of Development trcp.org/2026/11/02/mark-reh… The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) is pleased to announce the hiring of Mark Rehbein as Vice President of Development, bringing more than a decade of conservation fundraising and nonprofit leadership experience to the organization. As the nation’s most impactful conservation coalition, TRCP will draw on his expertise to expand philanthropic support and build lasting relationships with the donors and partners who make its work on behalf of hunters and anglers possible. Learn more: trcp.org/2026/11/02/mark-reh…

On Oct. 26, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced 42 new Regional Conservation Partnership Program projects, totaling $325 million. Each project will benefit hunters and anglers by creating or improving habitat, reducing erosion and sedimentation, protecting open spaces, or promoting groundwater recharge. We are especially pleased to see that several selected projects will be led by TRCP partners. So what will these projects actually accomplish? Below are a few examples hunters and anglers should be particularly excited about. Learn more: trcp.org/2026/10/28/usda-nrc…

Clocks fell back this morning. More light at dawn, less after work. Make the most of every hour in the woods and on the water. 📸: James Wicks

Some things return to the river every fall. Happy Halloween.

In the Arena: Peter Brookes trcp.org/2026/10/28/in-the-a… Peter Brookes spent decades in national security, with stints in the Navy, at the State Department and the CIA, on Capitol Hill and as a senior Pentagon official. He traveled to 65 countries on five continents, including North Korea. But he didn’t cast a fly or carry a rifle afield until his future wife brought him home to Idaho to meet her family. Today, Brookes is an award-winning outdoor and travel writer and photographer who covers destination fly fishing and hunting as @BrookesOutdoors. He’s hunted or fished in 37 states plus the District of Columbia, and he credits public lands and waters, and the conservation work that sustains them, with making it possible. Few hunters and anglers have seen as much of the world as Brookes, and that vantage point has given him a deep appreciation for what we have here at home. He talked with us about his late start, a memorable hunt, and why conservation should matter to the next generation. Here is his story: trcp.org/2026/10/28/in-the-a…

Doubling Down on the Duck Stamp TRCP staff are spread around the country, including folks like Grayson Haynes on our Government Affairs team in Washington, D.C. Along with nearly everyone at TRCP, Grayson is a passionate hunter and angler, and in solidarity with other staff he's turning that personal interest into action by purchasing an additional Federal Duck Stamp this year to help protect waterfowl habitat and duck hunting opportunities. Almost every cent for every dollar spent on each stamp goes directly to acquiring and protecting habitat and conservation easements. We're buying our two stamps. Now it’s your turn. Learn more: trcp.org/2026/10/09/one-for-… @NWFoutdoors / @DeltaWaterfowl / @HunterandAngler / @IWLA_org / @ManometCenter / @pheasants4ever / @quail4ever

TRCP’s Melanie Thornton Brings Western Water to The MeatEater Podcast Every cutthroat trout in a headwater creek, every mallard working a backwater marsh and every elk herd watering in a desert canyon depends on the same thing: water in the river. Few people understand that connection better than Dr. Melanie Thornton. Thornton, TRCP’s senior director of western water, joined @stevenrinella on episode 951 of The @MeatEaterTV Podcast. By Rinella’s count, she’s the first hydrologist ever to sit on the show’s couch. She walked listeners through how the Colorado River and Rio Grande are managed, why there is less water to go around and which solutions are already working. Learn more and watch the full episode: trcp.org/2026/10/27/trcps-me…

Happy 168th birthday, TR. Meet us in the arena: trcp.org/donate “Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” Theodore Roosevelt lived those words, conserving roughly 230 million acres of public lands and laying the groundwork for the fish and wildlife hunters and anglers still rely on today. TRCP carries that work forward every day, in Congress, in statehouses and on the ground, so that all Americans have quality places to hunt and fish. From conserving critical habitat to safeguarding access to our public lands and waters, it’s work worth doing. There’s no better way to honor TR on his birthday than by joining the work he started. Meet us in the arena. trcp.org/donate/

BLM Seeks Projects to Open Landlocked Public Land trcp.org/2026/10/22/blm-seek… The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking projects that would open access to Dingell Act nominated lands and other inaccessible public parcels. The request follows September’s executive order directing federal land agencies to prioritize practical access to hard-to-reach federal lands and waters. For hunters and anglers, the effort targets a long-standing challenge that keeps millions of acres of public land out of reach. In 2018, a TRCP and onX analysis found 9.52 million acres of landlocked federal land across 13 western states, most of it managed by the BLM. Read the full blog: trcp.org/2026/10/22/blm-seek…

“How beautiful the leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days.” - John Burroughs 📸: Josh Metten Photo