NAPLES, Fla. – Florida’s hunting and conservation efforts took center stage on Florida’s Voice Radio with Drew Steele, as key voices in the outdoor community emphasized the growing importance of responsible wildlife management, conservation education, and protecting the right to hunt and fish.
“What you’re gonna see is there’s bears that die every year. Today, a hunter doesn’t pay anything to the state for the bear to die,” Thompson said. “We’ve developed so well, but we’ve also managed our wildlife incredibly. Now we have sportsmen willing to buy a license, take a bear, and fully utilize the resource—from the fur to the fat to the meat. That’s conservation.”
WATCH: Executive Director of All Florida, Travis Thompson and Founder of Florida's Voice, Brendon Leslie discuss the revival of responsible black bear hunting in the state pic.twitter.com/G0ghI1B7Om
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) April 25, 2025
Thompson said the FWC’s proposed harvest of about 200 bears from a population of more than 4,000 is a careful, science-driven approach that would honor both the animal and the ecosystem.
Modern Huntsman founder Tyler Sharpe echoed the value of responsible hunting, tying it to a growing interest among Americans in knowing where their food comes from.
“We found that food is one of the easiest on-ramps,” Sharpe said. “A lot of people are looking to have a relationship with their food, and hunting is part of that. It becomes more of a community thing when you combine hunting knowledge with chefs and cooking traditions. It’s about respect for the resource at every step.”
WATCH: Modern Huntsman Founder Tyler Sharpe speaks on food, and knowing where your food comes from as an "on-ramp" to developing an interest in hunting pic.twitter.com/XqDqSwj1cr
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) April 25, 2025
Sharpe emphasized that understanding how to prepare game meat properly deepens the connection between hunters and the food they harvest, further strengthening conservation ethics.
Meanwhile, efforts to permanently protect the right to hunt and fish in Florida—and beyond—were highlighted by the International Order of T. Roosevelt’s executive director, who led the push for Florida’s Amendment 2, which voters overwhelmingly passed in 2024.
“There’s a well-funded, organized effort out there working every day to end fishing and hunting in North America,” he said. “Even if you take the highest numbers, you have 2 million anglers and hunters in Florida, but 7 million people voted to protect it. That means millions who don’t hunt or fish recognized how important this is.”
WATCH: @LHilgemann with @IOTRofficial explains why it was so important to pursue a right to fish and hunt in Florida, and how that effort is now being expanded to other states pic.twitter.com/sLipvd9RK4
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) April 25, 2025
The success of Amendment 2 is now fueling similar initiatives in more than 10 states, he said, as hunters, anglers, and conservationists work to safeguard the North American conservation model.
Opponents of Amendment 2 had raised concerns about the law potentially allowing activities like black bear hunting in urban areas, but supporters have argued that such fears misrepresent the strict regulations and ethical practices tied to modern wildlife management.
Catch Florida’s Voice Radio weekdays from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. on X, Facebook, YouTube, Rumble, the official Florida’s Voice website.
