“We’re not gonna turn things around without changing government, because government can make big changes. I mean, if you’ve got a politician who’s running for office, who thinks he’s smarter than 98% of the world’s climate scientists ... they’re crooks or they’re dumb-asses.”

— Yvon Chouinard of Patagonia in the Conservation Hawks film COLD WATERS

What’s the single biggest threat we face as anglers? Some folks will tell you it’s habitat loss from unchecked development. Others will claim it’s overfishing. Others will point their fingers at pollution, or invasive species, or a lack of public fishing access, or an entire generation of kids who spend all their free time in front of screens.

While these problems are serious, and while they’re all worthy of our concern, they also pale in comparison to the one truly massive threat to our fly fishing.

Human-caused climate change.

If we want to pass a healthy natural world along to our kids and grandkids, then it’s vital that anglers think about climate, and talk to each other about climate, and demand that our politicians act on climate.

Fortunately, there is one sporting nonprofit — Conservation Hawks — that focuses solely on the climate crisis. You may have read Conservation Hawks-sourced climate stories here in Hatch Magazine, or in Fly Fisherman, American Angler, Salmon & Steelhead Journal or even Angling Trade.

You might have seen the short CH climate films COLD WATERS, CHROME, and CONVERGENCE in the Fly Fishing Film Tour (F3T.)

You may even have watched the CH climate documentary IN THE HEART OF THE ROCKIES on the Sportsman Channel earlier this year.

There’s a reason why so many of the top brands in the fly fishing world — Orvis, Scientific Anglers, Costa, Winston, Sage, Abel, RIO, Redington, TroutHunter, Yeti, Adipose Boatworks, Fishpond and Patagonia — have supported Conservation Hawks’ climate efforts. If we don’t act on climate change in the near future, our fishing, which is already at risk, will slowly wither on the vine.

Right now, environmental champion Patagonia is matching every single donation to Conservation Hawks that comes in via its website. When you visit the Conservation Hawks page and make a tax deductible contribution, Patagonia will match your donation of up to $10,000.

Even better, you can make a donation in someone else’s name as a gift. Which means you now have the perfect Christmas present for your conservation-conscious brother, or for your climate change-denying uncle ... the one who insists that he personally knows more about our long term weather patterns than all the scientists who have ever lived.

If you care about your fishing and your future, please join Hatch Magazine in supporting Conservation Hawks. Click here to visit Patagonia’s website and make a donation.