Brookings Wildlife Federation to discuss women in the outdoors

BROOKINGS The Brookings Wildlife Federation will host Jennifer Cheek at its infolunch at noon on Aug. 1 at the Brookings County Outdoor Adventure Center, 2810 22nd Ave. S.

Cheek will give a presentation titled Beyond Pink Camo: Whats Really Helping Women Get into Hunting.

Pink camo refers to a 2024 bill passed by the South Dakota Legislature that allows hunters to wear pink hats, vests, and other safety apparel.

Cheek is an assistant professor in the Department of Natural Resource Management at South Dakota State University.

She will address the questions Whats keeping women from sticking with hunting and whats actually helping them stay? She will relate real stories from women hunters across the Midwest and West.

Cheek is an authority on womens participation in hunting and other outdoor activities.

Cheek studies the decisions women make to begin outdoor activities like hunting, and how people engage with conservation. She works with state agencies, nonprofits and local leaders to improve conservation outcomes and broaden participation.

For groups like the BWF, she has practical ideas for the federations outreach efforts to increase public participation in outdoor activities. The federation contributes to several programs that mentor youth and women in outdoor activities, e.g., Becoming an Outdoors Woman event at the Beacon Hill Gun Club, and support of the South Dakota Wildlife Federations one-week conservation camp for youth.

Cheek has a Ph.D. in natural resource policy and behavior from University of Michigan. Her other research interests include food and agricultural systems, forestry management, and human dimensions in conservation.

A buffet lunch will be available for a free-will donation. The BWF is affiliated with the South Dakota Wildlife Federation, which has about 2,300 members, and the National Wildlife Federation, which is the oldest and largest conservation organization in the U.S.

The BWF, a 135-member group, is in its 45th year of supplying conservation information and activities to the Brookings community. For more information, contact BWF President Bob Kurtz at 605-695-1361.