Who: YOU! And bring your friends!

What: Email Doug Burgum (Secretary of the Interior) and his Press Secretary

When: As soon as possible!

Why: On Valentines Day, hundreds of Rangers were fired with no notice and without cause. Lives were turned upside down and parks were hamstrung. A district court judge ruled in March that the February mass-firings of probationary employees were illegal, and ordered the Department of the Interior and other agencies to reinstate them. Reinstatements have now begun - but the Department is now planning even larger cuts (per the “Agency Reduction and Realignment Plan”). This Reduction In Force is targeting termination of 30% or more of the payroll, decimating our ability to safely manage parks, lands, and programs.

Now is the time to put pressure on DOI to stop slashing the workforce! 

Send the message below (personalize as much as you like!) to:

Secretary_of_the_Interior@ios.doi.gov and Interior_Press@ios.doi.gov

(You can also try calling 202-208-3100 x3, but they don’t always answer and the hold music isn’t great.

Dear Secretary Burgum,

I’m contacting you to demand that you halt all plans to reduce the Department of the Interior workforce. All DOI employees are critical stewards of our public lands who work on behalf of the American people.

A district court ruled the previous terminations illegal and ordered DOI to put public lands employees back to work. Now keep them there.

These places are important to me because… [This is the easy part! Add something like: I value the habitats provided by National Wildlife Refuges; the National Park Service preserves and tells America’s stories; my family grew up backpacking in National Forests, and I want to do the same with my children; public lands are a shared heritage to be preserved for future generations. Just a quick message about what they mean to you]

Our public lands are already suffering from these illegal terminations – please keep our Parks fully staffed. No more firings.

Thank you for your time.

[Name]

The “Fix Our Forests Act” (H.R. 471) is currently in the Senate Committee of Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. This bill includes provisions to circumvent NEPA and undermine the Endangered Species Act. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was enacted in 1970 and requires federal agencies to consider the environmental effects of their proposed actions. It mandates environmental reviews for federal undertakings and encourages public participation in the decision-making process.

H.R. 471 won’t “fix” our forests—it will only make it easier to cut down trees without the proper review on environmental impacts.

Consider adding your name to this letter to the Senate Committee for Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, opposing H.R. 471.

Heading to a protest? Consider printing this letter and collecting signatures to send to the Senate Ag Committee!

Share your thoughts with the Secretary of the Department of the Interior and voice your support for the National Park Service. Making postcards is a fun group activity that your family and friends can enjoy together. Here are a few ideas to get your ideas flowing:

• Dear Secretary Burgum, stop undercutting the mission of the National Park Service by prioritizing development and commercial interests over the preservation of our nation’s natural and cultural treasures.

• Secretary, your approach to resource management is eroding the National Park Service’s ability to maintain the integrity of our parks. When you compromise the protection of natural landscapes, you also diminish the legacy that NPS is tasked with passing down to future generations.

• Cutting staff within the National Park Service jeopardizes the health and accessibility of our national parks. These actions conflict with the NPS mission to preserve and protect natural and cultural resources.

• Hey yo Doug! Why did you sign that order saying parks had to be staffed and open but you won’t let them hire anyone? What’s with the hiring freeze?

Send your postcards to:

Secretary Doug Burgum
1849 C Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20240

Head to 5calls.org (or download the app) for an easy way to call your reps about issues you care about. Just add your location and the website will find your representatives and even provide a script you can use. In the Topics area under the Environment category you will see public land related issues, like “Defend our National Parks” and “Protect our National Forests from Unregulated Logging.” Choose a topic and start calling!

Psst…don’t want to speak to a real live human? Call after hours to leave a voice message.

Are you on social media? You can help us spread our message to new audiences! A simple story or post can help inform and inspire friends and family members who are unaware of the fight to save our public lands.

Use these hashtags: #ResistanceRangers, #ProtectOurParks, #RehirePublicServants

Check out our list of park sites with planned protests on our Events page, to find out about dates, times, and additional information about how to protest safely and effectively.