Mountain Mamas have reason to celebrate the news that one of our own, Tracy Stone-Manning, is now confirmed to lead the Bureau of Land Management. Tracy has a long track record as a consensus builder and a leader (like Mamas!) who will protect our public lands and strike the right balance of land use and stewardship at the BLM.
BLM Director is a critically important national post. And we are lucky to have someone who understands the value of our public lands and the importance of bringing recreationists and wilderness advocates together with community businesses, loggers, and ranchers to improve our rural economy while protecting our outdoor way of life for our kids and theirs.
Collectively, the Mountain Mamas and our partner organizations’ work involves bringing people together to conserve our public lands. We believe that by bringing together folks who don’t always agree politically, we can leave a stronger public lands legacy and outdoor recreation economy to those that will follow us. And we’re teaching our kids what it looks like to work together and compromise – a lost art these days for sure!
It’s the consensus-building conversations around kitchen tables from the Rocky Mountain Front to the Blackfoot Clearwater watershed and many places beyond, that help us all build a healthier, more sustainable future for our public lands.
Tracy also knows the value of Montana’s outdoor recreation economy — one of our fastest-growing sectors fueling more than $7.1 billion in consumer spending, supporting 71,000 jobs which contributes more than $2.2 billion in wages and salaries to Montana workers.
As the nation continues to grapple with the economic impacts of the pandemic, we need leadership that can see the role our outdoor recreation economy continues to play in economic recovery.
Thankfully, Tracy is exceptionally qualified, because the BLM has not had a legally confirmed director in nearly five years, despite the vast amount of responsibility it wields over millions of acres of public lands. The breadth and scope of work under the BLM, including its “multiple-use” mandate, require thoughtful collaboration, a road that she has traveled well.
We thank Senator Tester for helping to bring a highly qualified professional (who does actually hike, fish, camp and hunt on our public lands), into this crucial national leadership position.
Tracy understands that healthier public lands set the table for healthy economies…and healthy families.
We can be grateful that we finally have someone with the right experience, temperament, and conservation mindset to lead the BLM, which manages over 8 million acres in Montana.
The Mamas congratulate Tracy on this new opportunity and look forward to working with her collaboratively to meet the goals outlined in the “America the Beautiful Initiative.”
This is a collaborative response from Mountain Mamas, Wild Montana, Montana Wildlife Federation and Business for Montana’s Outdoors.
EN 
SP