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America's Great Outdoors Listening Tour

7/29/2010 11:04:46 AM

Please join senior representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other federal agencies for a public listening session on conservation, recreation and reconnecting people to the outdoors.

Please join senior representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other federal agencies for a public listening session on conservation, recreation and reconnecting people to the outdoors. The session will be held Friday, August 6, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon in the Hudson River Valley—whose magnificent landscapes served as the cradle of American History.

 

This past April at the White House Conference on America’s Great Outdoors, President Obama signed a memorandum establishing the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative to develop a conservation agenda worthy of the 21^st century and to reconnect Americans with our great outdoors.  The President understands that protecting and restoring the lands and waters that we love and reconnecting people to the outdoors must happen at the local level. 

 

Therefore, President Obama directed the principal leaders of the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative to travel across the country to listen and learn from people directly involved in finding grassroots solutions to conserving our lands and waters and reconnecting Americans to the outdoors.  The President indicated that the sessions should engage the full range of interested groups, including tribal leaders, farmers and ranchers, sportsmen, community park groups, foresters, youth groups, businesspeople, educators, state and local governments, and recreation and conservation groups. 

 

The Hudson Valley has an important place in conservation history and was one of the first regions in the country designated by Congress as a National Heritage Area.  Its natural resources and beauty have inspired collaborative conservation initiatives that are helping revitalize urban and town centers and rural communities.  A private conservation movement is protecting working farms, safeguarding critical water resources, and supporting a vibrant tourism industry. Public-private partnerships are helping people enjoy, protect and revitalize the river and Valley. 

 

The August 6th public listening session and discussion are an opportunity for leaders of the America’s Great Outdoors Initiative to hear from you and other voices in the Hudson Valley about solutions for building a 21^st-century conservation and recreation agenda and for reconnecting people with the outdoors. Here are the details.

 

Listening Session and Discussion Information

 

When:              Friday, August 6, 9:00 a.m. – noon

 

Where:             Marist College

                        Student Center

                        Poughkeepsie, NY

                       

For directions, go to: 

http://www.marist.edu/about/directions.html

 

Who:                     Senior Washington, D.C., and local leadership from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies will be present to hear your thoughts and to participate in a conversation with you about America’s Great Outdoors. 

 

This event is free and open to the public.  For planning purposes it would be helpful if you Register would pre-register by Tuesday, August 3 by sending an email to joseph.heller@ny.usda.gov with your name, the name of the organization with which you are affiliated, if any, and your telephone number.

In the event you are unable to participate in person, please submit your comments and stories via the America’s Great Outdoors website at http://www.doi.gov/americasgreatoutdoors/

John Dennehey, Senior Planner