A new short film, “Father + Nature,” tells the story of John Turner, a humble western Wyoming cowboy whose career included some of the most impactful conservation decisions of the last century.
The film emphasizes the perspective that individuals from agriculture, ranching, hunting and fishing can bring to conservation work and concludes with an opportunity to donate to a scholarship fund for to these students at the University of Wyoming.
“This idea of national parks was forged in the West. It was forged with people working the land,” Turner says in the film as an example of that connection. Our “national parks have become programs that have inspired the entire world.”
Featuring footage from the Triangle X Ranch and the Snake River in Teton County, the film offers a portrait of Turner through the voices of three generations of family. Turner’s grandparents founded the Triangle X Guest Ranch on the edge of Grand Teton National Park in 1926. Growing up on the ranch, Turner’s experiences as a horseman and fly fisherman informed his future career moves.
He served in the Wyoming State Legislature in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1989, President George HW Bush appointed Turner to lead the US Fish and Wildlife Service, where he expanded collaborative approaches to the conservation of endangered species, protected wetlands and oversaw the creation of dozens of new national wildlife refuges. In 1993, he became president of the Conservation Fund and protected more than 2.8 million acres across America. In 2005, President George W. Bush appointed him Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Scientific and Environmental Affairs.
“Impact is judged through the lens of history,” says John Koprowski, dean of the UW Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources. “John Turner’s legacy is one of the enduring achievements of his incredible six decades of leadership roles in conservation.”
Turner served as chairman of the board of the UW’s Ruckelshaus Institute in the early 2000s and as the Beverly and Eldon Spicer Visiting Professor of Environmental and Natural Resources at the UW. The university awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2010. He remains actively engaged as an emeritus board member of the Haub School, where he is a vocal advocate for conservation-oriented students and those connected to Wyoming’s agricultural industry .
“Father + Nature” premiered during the 2023 International Fly Fishing Film Festival in Seattle on Jan. 12 to a sold-out crowd. The film is now showing in theaters across the country as part of the festival. It will be shown in Denver, Colo., on Feb. 17, Green River on March 3 and Jackson on March 9, with an in-person appearance by Turner, as well as numerous other venues this year. Mark Turner produced the film. Learn more about “Father + Nature” and watch a trailer at www.flyfilmfest.com/films/.
The film ends with a call to viewers to contribute to scholarships for the Outdoor Guide Certificate Program, offered through the Haub School, at www.givecampus.com