“Don’t post grip and grin pictures. Especially of predators and iconic African zoo animals. I get it. People say ‘screw you’ and I get hate mail. But you have to understand, if we are going to change the hearts and minds of the people, we can’t go out and say ‘screw you.’ We have to say, there is a great story to be told about your deer. You don’t have to take your broadheads and put the logo out there, and chest bump and high five. Just don’t post those pictures.”

— Tom Opre

Past POMA President, filmmaker and conservationist, Tom Opre, joins the GoWild podcast, Restless Native. 

Tom is passionate. He loves wildlife, hunters, and the wilderness. And he has a deep understanding of what it means to be a consumer. And a conservationist.

What Tom is not is apologetic. He has a matter of fact way of delivering his views and the facts he’s acquired over the years. He’s not here to soft serve anything to you.

Tom has a really vibrant view of the state of conservation, being a steward of the land, and particularly, hunting. Some people or organizations that seem to think we have decades to figure out hunter recruitment and decline. Tom doesn’t. And as someone who sees a future he wants to change, he’s not an armchair conservationist, either. He’s dedicated himself and his work to putting a foot forward in finding a solution.

This is the second in a series of podcasts done at POMA Conference. The first was Brandon Butler.