Why Supporting Policy in Washington Is Important

Let’s start with some basic facts. Tigers live in Asia. Asia is very large. Asia is also very far away. New Delhi, the capital of the India (the country with the largest tiger population) is 7,480 miles from our capital of Washington, D.C.

These factors add up to a common problem faced by many well-intentioned citizens who want to take action to help save wildlife and the environments they call home but feel utterly helpless to do anything.  What can an average United States citizen possibly do for tigers and other imperiled species half a world away? Well, quite a lot actually. 

Taylor Tench (Clemson T4T), Senator Time Scott (R-SC), Diane Dotson (Clemson T4T)

As a global superpower, the United States government has a stake in every international issue, and that includes endangered species conservation. The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), US Agency for International Development, and the US State Department all have international conservation programs in countries around the world. Since our inception, Tigers for Tigers has been a large supporter of FWS’s Multinational Species Conservation Funds (MSCFs). The MSCFs allow the Fish and Wildlife Service to provide grants supporting on the ground conservation efforts for tigers, rhinos, elephants, apes, and marine turtles.  Past projects have benefitted tiger conservation in the forms of scientific research, law enforcement training and capacity building, and public education to reduce the demand for wildlife products.

It is important to remember that the amount of money the government makes available to the MSCFs is subject to change annually. Each year the government must create (or at least attempt to create) a new budget, which means every federal program is at risk of a reduced budget. This is where we can take action. Tigers for Tigers members have a huge voice on the Hill, and have been effective at letting our Congressmen know that tiger conservation is extremely important to us and that we need more money to support tiger conservation efforts.

In addition to funding international conservation programs, the United States is in an important position to take a leadership role on combatting the illegal wildlife trade through law. As the second largest importer of illegal wildlife products (China is #1) we have a responsibility to stem the tide of this $20 billion a year industry. Fortunately there are currently two bills in Congress that will strengthen the United States’ ability to fight the illegal wildlife trade. The Senate bill is the Wildlife Trafficking Enforcement Act (S.27) and the bill in the House of Representatives is the Global Anti-Poaching Act (HR. 2494). Only several days after T4T members traveled to D.C. this month to meet with their Congressman to discuss these two bills, the Global Anti-Poaching Act moved out of Committee and was introduced to the House floor. If this bill passes, it would be a huge step in the fight against wildlife traffickers, not only here in the US but also abroad. When the United States takes a stand on an issue, it is usually the start of a paradigm shift as other countries begin to follow suit.

Right now, international wildlife conservation is garnering more media attention than it has in a very long time. The wildlife trafficking and poaching crisis is at the forefront of our Congressmen’s minds. This momentum can die down at any time, which is why our voice matters now more than ever. By supporting these policy initiatives we can save tigers from the comfort of our homes. If you’re a true tiger fan call, write, or email your Congressman today and let them know you want to keep our mascot alive!

Click here to support the Multinational Species Conservation Funds today.

Go Tigers!

Taylor Tench

T4T Tackles Wildlife Trafficking in D.C.

Hello Tigers!

Last week we had students, alumni, and faculty from four of our Coalition Schools make the trip to Washington, D.C., to speak to their Congressmen about supporting international conservation efforts. T4T’s objective was to gain an increase in funding for the Multinational Species Conservation Fund (MSCF) and to obtain co-sponsors for bills in the Senate (Wildlife Trafficking Enforcement Act) and the House (Global Anti-Poaching Act).

The MSCF is used by the US Fish and Wildlife Service to provide grants for on the ground conservation projects that benefit not only tigers, but also elephants, rhinos, great apes, and sea turtles. Additionally, the two bills we were looking for supporters for are incredibly important in the United States’ effort to combat illegal wildlife trafficking.

(Pictured L to R) Pete Stone, Taylor Tench, Dr. Baker, Robin Lloyd and Sienna Fisher.

I had the privilege of working toward our goals on the Hill last week with Sean Carnell, our National Coordinator, Robin Lloyd of Auburn University, Sienna Fisher of the Rochester Institute of Technology, Pete Stone of Clemson University, and Dr. David Baker of LSU.

For most this was their first time meeting with their Congressmen to discuss issues important to them. “I was very surprised on how accessible people in Congress really are,” remarked Robin of Auburn University.

In our meetings, we communicated to the Congressmen and their staffers the importance of protecting our mascot in the wild, and exactly how the initiatives we were asking them to support would do so.

Dr. Baker, Director of Laboratory Animal Medicine at LSU and in charge of the care for their live mascot Mike, mentioned, “It was interesting to see how much the legislators have to ‘juggle’ at one time. It’s understandable that their personal knowledge of Acts might be minimal…if it is not in an area in which they have particular interest.”  This is exactly why our voice on the Hill is so important, and as constituents to these Congressmen protecting our mascot is of importance to them. They are well aware of the tiger schools that so many of their constituents identify with, and many times are alumni or fans of those very same universities. In fact, when we walked into Representative Duncan’s (R-SC) office, he and Pete were wearing the exact same Clemson lapel pin!

Pete Stone & Taylor Tench pose outside Jeff Duncan's Office

These types of experiences are also great bonding experiences among Coalition members and strengthen relationships between schools that can be turned into great collaborative work throughout the academic year. When asked what he enjoyed most about the trip, Dr. Baker said, “Spending time with and getting to know the students and the T4T staff, and visiting with legislators and their aides.”

When asked what he enjoyed most about the trip, Robin said, “Meeting with Senators and Representatives on the Hill was very insightful and it felt good to be doing some real political conservation and using my voice for tigers in the wild.”

As a Coalition, our strength is in our numbers. So many students, faculty, alumni, and fans from across the country working toward a common goal can make a tremendous difference for tigers. Even in the current political climate, where it is difficult to make forward progress on any issue, we can still make great strides for conservation as Sienna from RIT so excellently pointed out: 

“I have hope though, for the legislation that we were supporting. It is certainly of bipartisan interest to protect species such as tigers from poaching, as it is certainly a very broad scope as far as the impact it has on the US. Some may see the environmental implications as enough reason to act, but not everybody is willing to throw resources into conservation simply to preserve a species and an ecosystem. National security may be the primary concern of others when tackling the issue of poaching and wildlife trafficking. Still, no matter the true motive, by reauthorizing and continuing to raise the amount of money allocated to the MSCF and supporting bills that increase the enforcement of trafficking laws and further incentivize anti-poaching stances around the world, we are all helping save tigers.”

If you want to build on the work T4T does in DC, write to your Congressmen asking for their support on these pieces of legislation to help ensure the continued survival of our mascot. 

GO TIGERS!

Taylor Tench

Policy Intern

NT4TC

College Daze: Pete Stone. The man. The myth. The Biggest Clemson Football Fan We Know

Pete Stone not only has the best dance moves in the southeast, but as a 2003 Clemson graduate is the biggest Clemson Football fan we know. Pete has coined the term "save our mascot" and has been involved with T4T on and off for the past several years. In addition, he has been filming an ongoing documentary on Tigers for Tigers since 2013. Sit down and buckle up because this is the best "College Daze" post yet!

Pete Stone in his "college daze"

C: Describe your college experience in 3 words:

P: Absurd, Adventurous, Ambidextrous.  

C: Unfortunately not everyone has been able to experience a REAL college football game day. Could you please explain what a college football game day is like?  

P: Words can do no justice to the glory that is College football just as words fail to capture the highest spiritual ecstasies of life, so must the energy of college football be experienced to be explained.   The words of Shakespeare, the poetry of Maya Angelou, the beauty of a Rembrandt, the melodies of B.B. King, must all be experienced to truly catch a glimpse of the Divine connection that flows through these phenomena and speak to us about the beauty of life and the energy of love.  Rubbing the rock, running down the hill,  the roar from a sea of orange as an immortal glides towards the end zone of history are all on the same fixture as the majesty of a waterfall or the boundless rolling waves upon the ocean’s surface. In a word, game day is – magical, but only if Clemson wins….

C: How would you describe tailgating at Clemson?

P: Tailgating is a way of life at Clemson.  In fact, so grand is tailgating at Clemson that outsiders might mistake the tailgate as the day’s main event. Although as great as it is, it is still merely a build up to and celebration afterwards of the main course of the Tiger’s football game, unlike the Gamecocks’ fan base, where due to lack of real football, tailgating actually is the main event.  More accurately for Gamecocks, tailgating is a method of pregame sedation, and when it starts wearing off in the third quarter, they awaken to realize they’re not Alabama, they flood back towards the concrete jungle to again drown their sorrows away and escape to their curtail riding SEC worship.  Although Clemson only tailgates to complement the larger event of the game itself, we’re still two time back-to-back winner of the Southern Living top tailgating school in the nation award!

Young Pete with brother at Danny Ford game in late 80's, and then with brother at ACC championship game in 2011.  

As for me, I cannot enjoy tailgating until after the day’s battle has been fought in the valley; there is too much pre-game anxiety. Death Valley got its reputation for a reason, it takes being all in to generate the kind of noise that is Clemson loud and shake the south land. After the game though, tailgating is like the victory meal at a mead hall from warrior days of old where you relive the day’s highlights and relish with fellow tigers the thrill of victory.

C: It's easy to get conservationists involved with saving tigers, but we're working on tapping into those passionate fans to get involved as well. Why it is important to get college football fans engaged in saving the tiger?

P: My first answer to why Clemson football fans should save the tiger is because we can.  Clemson fans could be the difference in the world determining if the tiger survives in the wild.  What a legacy to send across the nation and world.  What better way to continue the legacy of our ancestors and pass it onward to our children?  Clemson is saving the iconic majestic creature of the animal kingdom from extinction while South Carolina eats their mascot at Bojangles. 

Something about college football tradition connects us to generations past and future. We talk about the great moments that elevated our spirits and of past players like Greek poets spoke of their Olympians. Somehow we hash out the great metaphors of life with the team on the field and find hope to face our own lives with a collective, tenacious, and triumphant spirit.  Needless to say we have pride in our mascot and what it stands for.  Our tiger mascot, which has represented the icon of our Saturday afternoon passion, now needs us to represent them in their fight for survival.  Furthermore, the tiger being an apex predator and king of the jungle means as Gandhi says, “Where tigers live well, everyone lives well.”  In short, by protecting tigers, we are protecting the jungle itself, the people of the area, and the world as a whole. 

Clemson can prove that we are one of the best things to happen to the world.  Too often environmental concerns become a partisan issue, a left versus right thing.  The issue becomes an attack on one group or another.  The issue of there being fewer than 3,200 tigers in the wild needing to be saved is thankfully not a politically polarizing issue; it is one that the majority of people already agree we need to do something about.  Furthermore, Clemson, LSU, Auburn, and Mizzou and more have the answer of what can be done, we can embrace what we are best at, our passion for the tiger and use that passion to literally save our mascot from becoming extinct in the wild and confined merely to a cage like the mascot of our rivals.  The tiger’s iconic image of king of the jungle is important to our image; Indeed, the tiger paw of Clemson could become both an international symbol for football and the force that saved the tigers for everyone 

C: Couldn't have answered that last question better myself! So how did you get involved with T4T?

P: My involvement with T4T came in a roundabout way.  I have bled orange my entire life; I was small in the late 80’s, but still old enough to know that Saturday was “Coach Ford’s day” and Sunday was the Lord ’s Day.   Once a student at Clemson, my classes enriched me with a deep understanding of the extreme humanitarian crises occurring in our world that are very preventable.  In this state, football is king, the passion a thing of beauty.  Likewise, I formed a belief and faith in my Clemson family that if we could put forth that much effort towards football, then we could also unite and harness that energy to be a leader for additional positive changes in the world.  In my senior year, I ran for student body president with this as my platform.  Of course being a senior, I knew that even if I somehow won that I wouldn’t be around since I was graduating.  The comedian part of me wanted to win so my first official act as president could be to resign from office.  I figured I had little chance anyway since I had always avoided student government like the plague, but hoped the attention to the campaign could also bring about attention to pushing the Clemson fan base to unite its passion for various humanitarian efforts.  I was ultimately kicked out of the race for illegally putting signs in trees and when they caught on I wasn’t going to be around the next year anyway. 

Pete at the 1st National T4T Summit in 2013 at Clemson

After graduating and cleaning out old boxes, I rediscovered a tiger flyer I received at a Clemson football game as a kid in the late 90’s.  The flyer talked about Tigers going extinct.  Anyhow, I decided the cause so natural for Clemson to save its mascot from extinction that we could be a game changer for the Tiger.  Especially at that time, Exxon mobile ironically was one of the largest supporters of Tigers and their contributions were nothing compared to what Clemson has the power to unleash.  I formed this idea called “save our mascot” and wanted to make Clemson open dates be changed on the schedule to read ‘Clemson vs. Extinction.”  I figured this printed on all the schedules with links online to a website about what Clemson was doing to save tigers could be huge.  I e-mailed President Barker who e-mailed me back about Dr. Tonkyn and the already existing T4T group.  I was thrilled the ball was already rolling with a group.  I was perplexed that I knew nothing about it while at Clemson, guess that’s what happens to philosophy majors, in our own world. Anyway, I worked in 2007 with Dr. Tonkyn and T4T on a Clemson vs Extinction campaign in which we got Coach Bowden involved with a PSA and raffled Tiger art at.  Thus, it obviously dawned on me in 2007 that the little flyer I got about tigers while in middle school back in 1996 or 1997 must have been from Takako and T4T crew back when they were getting started!

C: What advice would you give to T4T members and leaders?

P: My advice for other T4T members and leaders is to have fun!  Saving the world is a joyous event.  We will pass through this world but once, let us do so not trudging through it depressed and full of gloom but full of joy.  It’s a privilege to do this work, to be a tiger and protect tigers! Keep your message simple and positive.  Let fans know that it is not an either/or decision, to either support football or support saving the tiger; rather, combined. These two ideologies strengthen each other.  Simply inform others that Clemson can be the difference that saves our mascot from going extinct in the wild as fewer than 3,200 remain.  Ask them to join the fight with the Clemson family and work together to (simple focus of the cause at time) save tigers!

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On behalf of everyone involved with T4T, many thanks to Pete for everything he's done for Tigers for Tigers and continues to do! (That includes entertaining us on the dance floor.)

If you would like to learn more about what YOU can do & how you can get involved, visit our website here. Of course, follow us on Twitter & likes us on Facebook!

Go Tigers!

Carrah Lingo
Communications Associate
NT4TC

clingo@clemson.edu