October 6, 2006
Christine Jourdain
American Council of Snowmobile Clubs
www.snowmobileacsa.org
Working Together…..
In our line of work, the snowmobile community must work together if we are to accomplish anything. In reality, there really aren’t that many of us – so it’s next to impossible to go-it-alone on anything. We must partner with as many groups and individuals as possible, from volunteers, to agencies, to other recreation groups, to non-recreation groups.
Volunteers are often the folks that get the job done. Snowmobiling would not be what it is today without the volunteer efforts we have today or what we have had in the past. Working with volunteers is not always easy, they have families and real jobs and schedules that must be worked around. But they get the work done.
In working together, we also work with many paid staff – like those folks in the agencies, from the Forest Service to the Park Service to the State Trails people to many others. They also get the job done, but often through the bureaucracy they must follow.
In addition to volunteers and agencies, there are many recreation and non-recreation groups out there that are always looking for new partners…..some are the groups we have worked with many times in the past, but there are a host of others that can only be reached by thinking outside the box.
What does working together really mean? What does partnership really mean?
Recently the Forest Service has taken a lot of flak for their efforts on the Recreation Site Facility Master Planning process. That’s not the only issue they have taken the heat on….how many Forest Service plans are currently being challenged? How many Forests are currently in the process of developing the necessities for the Travel Management Rule (ATVs)?
How does the Forest Service do it? How do they sit at the same table time and time again, knowing full well that after all of their hard work and all of the financial resources that have been devoted to these projects, their work and decisions will be challenged in court.
How do the Forest Service folks sit there with the very people that challenge them at every turn? How do they continue to work with them in good confidence? It’s difficult at best.
If you think about the financial situation of the Forest Service and the lack of funding that actually gets to the ground, it must be frustrating. Day after day they know their “partners” will find fault with the end product, which will result in a legal challenge. Because of the costly legal challenges and preventative measure that are being taken, many dollars that used to go the ground, are no longer available.
If you look at the funding side, we shouldn’t be mad at the Forest Service because they do not have bigger budgets – it’s not their fault. If you want to assign blame, how about the administration or the Congress? The Forest Service is doing all they can with the budgets they have been given.
Think about the Forest Service employees, think about the energy and enthusiasm being siphoned out of them. These are the people that know from day one, they will get speared as soon as the public spotlight finds the new policy or the new forest plan revision. These are the people that know after the controversy erupts, years of hard work will go down the drain.
The end result is a lot of bruised egos, black eyes, and disenfranchising among the ranks of our friends, our partners. More importantly, the end result is further delay in doing what they were trained to do, make a difference in improving the management of our public lands and our recreation.
Are we surprised that employees lose that fire in their bellies with a steady diet of barbs over policy they not only did not create, but undoubtedly do not support in many cases.
It’s not only Forest Service employees that often feel they are under attack. It’s our volunteers and it’s our partners. Although it is not by design, their energy and enthusiasm can be easily zapped.
We need to continue to widen our circle of partners. We need to find ways to recognize our partners. We need to find ways to smooth ruffled feathers.
That doesn’t mean we always have to agree, we can always agree to disagree. But we need to find ways to do this without bruising egos and without pointing fingers. We need to find ways to be more inclusive.
As I said at the beginning, we are a very small group. Small but powerful. Small but energetic. Small with big ideas and big plans.
We need to continue to partner with anyone and everyone willing to partner with us. We need to stand up for our partners when they are under attack. Maybe the next time we are under attack they will stand up for us.
Together, united, we can and will accomplish more.
When you pay more for gas than you want, does yelling at the gas station clerk really solve anything? Venting your anger at the local forest service employee does not accomplish anything either. He’s doing what his boss told him to, which more than likely came from higher levels.
In attracting new partners, in thinking outside the box, we need to consider the type of partner we are. Are we the type of partner others want to work with? Will we treat them with professionalism and respect or will we throw them under the bus when the first controversy arises?
I would like to think we are good partners, in good times and in bad times. I would like to think when we approach out-of-the box partners, they would be more than mildly interested. But it is up to us to create our resume, we must build our credibility and integrity for others to see. We must prove we are worthy partners.
Snowmobilers are among the most energetic and passionate people I have ever seen. Snowmobilers have always worked under the assumption that with hard work anything can be accomplished. We must continue to work and think like this….and maybe new partners will seek us out. If not, we’ll have the right record to tout as we invite them into our circle.
Keep up the hard work!!
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