Promoting the benefits of hunting through education

The SSAA has a proud history of involvement in hunting and conservation activities, with our various Conservation & Wildlife Management (CWM) branches widely acknowledged as pioneers in this important area. In fact, one of our key roles is to promote the sustainable use of hunting and the many flow-on benefits it brings, such as protecting our native species.

That is why the SSAA is proud to sponsor the popular Hunting the Menu television series, which aired on Foxtel, community stations and various online streaming platforms over the past six weeks. The high-quality, six-episode series successfully showcased to the general public just how ethical we, as hunters, are in our activities. The show not only promoted the benefits of sourcing free-range food for the table, but it also fits perfectly with the aims of our Association in educating the wider community about our chosen recreation.

With around 80 per cent of our members identifying themselves as hunters in our recent membership survey, it is clear that hunting should and will remain an important focus area of the SSAA. Hence, we are already spearheading new initiatives to further our work in this area, as we look at how we can raise our support for hunters generally.

In conjunction with the Hunting the Menu series, we broadcast a nationwide advertisement inviting non-shooters to ‘Join Us’ in our safe, fun and all-abilities recreation. To view the ad and to catch up on all of the Hunting the Menu episodes, head to SSAA TV, where you can also browse our other informative videos.

Similarly, the Australian Hunter magazine was brought in to showcase sustainable, ethical hunting activities. First published in 2000, the magazine is still going strong and I’m pleased to report that this month marks its 60th edition.

Continuing our role as educators, we took the time to speak with the Federal Shadow Justice Minister Clare O’Neil MP about our recreation and our concerns regarding the National Firearms Agreement review. We also voiced our disappointment about the low quality of public debate surrounding the lever-action shotgun issue, including the recategorisation decision – an evaluation that, as we have repeatedly pointed out, was based on emotion, devoid of any evidence and will not result in any public safety benefits.

With Federal Parliament now well underway, informing governments of all persuasions, along with the lawmakers of our land, about the real-life workings of firearms policy is another key role of the SSAA and our political arm, SSAA Legislative Action (SSAA-LA). You can rest assured that we will continue our work in this area, a message that we heard loud and clear in the membership survey.

As our Association continues to grow, it is timely to offer a reminder about the many ways in which you can keep in touch with all the workings of SSAA National. This much-loved magazine was voted the most popular way to receive information about our activities in our survey, but there are many other avenues through which you can connect with us.

To receive timely updates, members are encouraged to subscribe to our E-newsletters, with a regular monthly edition issued, along with a dedicated SSAA-LA version for those with an interest in the politics of firearms. We also have a Facebook page located that publishes daily updates.

If you need to discuss your membership, including upgrading to the SSAA Members Firearms Insurance, the team at the SSAA National Membership Office can be contacted on 02 8805 3900. As always, the SSAA is here to serve our members, as we have done since 1948.

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