SCI Needs To Own The Future
By Jeff Meyerl, SCI President
Originally published in the August 2025 edition of Safari Times.
As Safari Club International members, we have a shared commitment to save hunting for future generations. This is serious because there are those in the world who strive to end hunting. Literally, it’s for all the marbles.
But it is not about any kind of doom and gloom. Rather, it is an invigorating challenge because we are right, and the future of wildlife is in the balance. Together, we can make a difference.
With that in mind, I thank everyone for putting their trust in me as President, and I promise to do everything I can to realize SCI’s mission to protect the freedom to hunt and promote sustainable use wildlife conservation worldwide. SCI is ours to protect and shape. How well we protect it now and how we shape the organization now will determine what the future of both SCI and hunting will look like for generations to come.
Continuity is key for SCI to forge into the future, which will be bright when SCI succeeds. We cannot and we will not accept anything less than success. As we build a stronger future together, we must stay focused on our mission and not become complacent.
Just like when we hunt, we need to stay the course in protecting the freedom to hunt and see each challenge through to its successful end.
This is not rocket science, nor is there anything mysterious about it. It’s just doing the right things every time and every day. The operative term is “doing.” Doing things and taking action are what separate winners from losers, and we’re winners.
As the summer comes to an end, our minds all turn to upcoming hunts. But we cannot forget that membership is critical for SCI’s growth. Greater membership means we can have a louder voice and more influence throughout the world. Our collective voices are heard through the efforts of SCI’s Advocacy Engine. We have the biggest and most powerful team in the hunting world when it comes to legal and regulatory matters. Their reach extends from official government bodies and courts to the hunting fields themselves.
So, with all of this, what does a membership mean? Why belong to the finest organization of hunters the world has ever known? The long-term investment in protecting hunting has value now, and that value increases as time goes by because we are constantly attacked by anti-hunters who want to eliminate hunters and hunting everywhere forever.
Our future is in our hands. With your help, we win. Without it, hunting is in jeopardy. I invite every member to become involved and be heard.