Advocacy 101: Tips to Get You Started

From the skintrack to the comment line, here’s how to turn your love for winter into real impact

We’re all busy and we only have so much bandwidth. When it comes to advocacy, doing some is better than none. Here are six steps you can take toward protecting the places you love.

Jason Hummel Photography

By John Smidlein
Policy Intern

May 1, 2026 – This winter has been weird – dry and warm. I’m sure some of you, like me, have stared at a favorite run in early February wondering ‘are there normally this many rocks?’. I’m also sure, like me, you’ve been part of the conversation: “bro you should have been here during XXXX year, it was nuclear. Deepest season of my life. My 112s were nothing, had to pick up 120s and I used them until April.” 

This year has also been politically tumultuous. Focusing on just the environmental picture, the current administration has rolled back protections on nearly 88 million acres of public lands, opened national forests, Arctic wildlife refuges, and federal waters to logging, drilling, and mining (Center for American Progress, September 2025), while gutting the agencies meant to protect them through mass staffing cuts. 

These two situations have me thinking about the future, especially of the places I care about most. The daunting question that follows is: “what can I do?” Glad you asked! Here’s a quick read to help you take that first step toward protecting the places you love. I think of it as a timeline: Informed → Engaged → Active → Leading. You don’t have to be at the end of that spectrum to make a difference, you just need to be willing to plug in where you can. Below are some steps to help you figure out where to start.

Find Your Trusted Source

You can’t track every policy fight, so find an organization that does it for you. A good one is credible, transparent, and focused on the issues that matter to your backyard. Winter Wildlands Alliance is one option if you care about backcountry winter recreation and conservation; we send action alerts and a regular newsletter that break down federal policy and its impacts. From rulemakings and agency guidance to funding and forest planning, we work to help you understand what is coming down the pipeline and what it means for skiers, splitboarders, snowshoers, and snowmobilers.

For on-the-ground issues closer to home, browse our Grassroots Network directory to find organizations working in your region. These groups are deeply rooted in their communities and can connect you to local campaigns, public comment opportunities, and the conversations shaping how winter recreation happens where you live.

Know the Landscape

You already look at maps. OnX, Caltopo, that beat-up guidebook that lives in your pack. Next time you’re zooming into your favorite zone, start noticing the land designations. Most of the terrain we love sits on National Forest or BLM land, federally managed public land that belongs to all of us. The agencies managing that land make decisions: Travel Management Plans, Forest Plans, and OHV designations, which are all things that directly affect where you can go and what it looks like when you get there. Decision-makers want input from the people who use the land they manage, so the first step is understanding where you recreate. 

Start Small

Pick one thing this season:

  • Sign up for action alerts from one or two trusted organizations. These will allow you to easily reach out to your lawmakers. 
  • Submit a public comment on an issue affecting your local forest.
  • Call your ranger district. They are your ground-level contact, the people actually managing your trails, your terrain, and the decisions that affect your access. Ask to be added to their mailing list. Planning processes and upcoming comment periods often exist long before anything is publicly posted, and a 3-minute call goes further than you’d think. Try: “I recreate in X area regularly and I’m concerned about Y. Who should I be in touch with as this develops?”
  • Share a post from a trusted org, and say why it matters to you! That extra context makes it more meaningful (and less like just another repost). I always appreciate being introduced to organizations through people I trust, and your network probably will too.

How to Write a Comment That Actually Counts

Agencies are legally required to consider public input, and your comment goes on the official record. The formula is simple: who you are, where you go, and why it matters to you. Name the place specifically. “The north-facing trees off the ridge on the X drainage” brings more impact than “the backcountry.” A comment rooted in your personal experience and connection to a place carries more weight than a form letter. Remember to always be respectful, we’re looking to build a community of stakeholders and the land managers are a key part of that.

Show Up Locally

Forest planning meetings, scoping sessions, town halls. These don’t always draw big crowds, but they’re where decisions get shaped before they’re finalized. Scoping in particular is your highest-leverage moment: it’s the phase where public input is most influential to how a project gets designed. You don’t even have to speak. Showing up, listening, and submitting a written comment counts.

Bring a Friend

The best advocacy tool you have is a tour. Bring someone along, show them a place you love and mention what’s at stake. That’s it, that’s the pitch. The conversations that happen in the lodge, in the carpool, over post mission beers, that’s how movements actually grow. That’s the spirit of our Ski Kind campaign. It’s about community, respect, and looking out for one another and the landscapes we recreate in. Advocacy can start with a simple invitation.

The Bottom Line

You already care enough to wake up early and get fresh tracks. You probably spend a lot of time and money on gear and education that lets you develop your backcountry skills. That kind of passion is the hard part, because it’s impossible to manufacture. People care about these places deeply. We just need to channel it into action.

We’re lucky to live in a country with a deep conservation culture and some of the most accessible public land in the world. That only stays true if the people using it show up to protect it. You don’t have to do everything, but doing something could make the difference between having places to ski and watching access disappear. And let’s be real, no places to ski would leave you with way too much time on your hands.

One action, this season. Pick yours.

Sign Up For WWA Action Alerts
Find Your Local Grassroots Group
Donate to Show Your Support For Our Work

Winter Wildlands Alliance is a national nonprofit organization working to
inspire and empower people to protect America’s wild snowscapes.