Grassroots OrganizingEducation alone will not protect our wild lands. WWC works to engage people in meaningful action to ensure our wild lands and waters are protected for generations to come. Some of these efforts have included a citizen's hearing and volunteer signature gathering of comment cards on attempts to repeal federal roadless protections, a day of action on climate change, and the Wild Sky Wilderness Festival in Index, Washington.
Developing Effective Coalitions
WWC works on developing winning coalitions around specific issues to
maximize our ability to improve protections for our wild lands
and waters, and to defeat damaging public lands policies. In Washington
State, WWC has led efforts to develop and coordinate coalitions
focused on reforming off-road vehicle use on national forest lands,
supporting wilderness designation for Wild Sky, Alpine Lakes and other unprotected
areas, and defending protections for roadless forests.
Working with Local Communities
While we work at both the national and state levels on a number of
issues, WWC also recognizes the importance of working with local
communities. Whether it is organizing local residents,
activists and business owners in Snoqualmie Valley in
support of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness proposal or supporting critical
federal funding for local counties for trail maintenance and forest
restoration, we feel it is important to work at a variety of levels to
accomplish our goals.
Success Stories
Citizen's Hearing on Proposal to Repeal Roadless Forest Protections
WWC led local efforts to organize a citizen's hearing focused on the
Administration's proposal to repeal protections for roadless forests
and on the mounting threats to our national parks. This important
hearing was sponsored by Governor Gary Locke, Senator Maria Cantwell
and Representative Jay Inslee and representatives from each office were
on hand to hear public comment. The event was a huge success attracting
more than 250 individuals to a packed auditorium in Shoreline with just
a few days notice.
More than 30 people stepped up to the microphone to address one or
both of these important conservation issues. More than 100 people
gave written comments for the record. Representatives from Trout
Unlimited, Republicans for Environmental Protection, Montrail, Outdoor
Industry Association, Washington Wilderness Coalition, Sierra Club,
WashPIRG, Washington Environmental Council, the Mountaineers and a host
of other local conservation organizations gave comments.
 4th Annual Wilderness Art Contest & Hike for Kids
More than 50 parents and children from Seattle’s Meridan School
and Index Elementary embarked on an annual pilgrimage to Barclay Lake,
surrounded by the Wild Sky Wilderness. The children bounded
down the trail through old-growth forests under the shadow of Mt
Baring. The hike served as the culmination of a poetry/essay/art
contest sponsored by Washington Wilderness Coalition. A list of notable
judges, including Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon and Seattle
Times Columnist Nicole Brodeur, reviewed the more than 70 entries and
chose a winner in each grade level (1-7). Prizes for the winners were
generously donated by a number of local businesses, including Top 10
Toys, Seattle Art & More and Sky Valley Sports in Monroe.
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