ICL has worked to protect and restore Idaho’s air, water, lands, and wildlife for over 50 years. In each and every of those years, we’ve relied on our members to make this work possible. Our accomplishments do not just fall on the shoulders of our staff—but on our entire conservation community. Our members are at the core of our conservation community, and are the heartbeat of our organization. Our blog series “Faces of ICL” tells the stories of ICL members, the people who make this work possible.
My name is Jesse Murphy (He/Him). I grew up in McCall and now live in Boise. I try to spend as much of my time as possible recreating outside via mountain bike, skis, raft or kayak. For work, I am a marketing director for UnitedLex, and am a real estate agent.
I am an outdoors and adventure sports person. I spend the majority of my free time pursuing experiences throughout Idaho’s landscapes with family and friends. In essence, a big portion of my happiness parallels ICL’s work, which explains why I am so grateful for everything they do. What excites me most about ICL’s work is the sum of all its parts and the breadth of what they cover to create a cohesive impact vs. a single issue.
I’ve known about ICL long enough that I cannot quite remember how I discovered the organization, but I believe it was through a field marketing event like a film premiere. I had been following ICL on social media and supporting them through fundraising events for years. Everything they do and support aligns to what I value. One day a few years ago it hit me, and I kind of called myself out, that I should take on more action in addition to liking or sharing social posts to better help the ICL team make progress on their initiatives. So, I put my money where my mouth was and became a member and volunteer in 2022. As an ICL member, I consider my biggest impact as simply helping enable and empower the expert and passionate ICL team to do what they do best and fulfill ICL’s mission.
It’s hard to sum up the things I love about Idaho and my hopes for the future of the state. I love Idaho’s unique balance of vast wilderness areas, wildlife and free flowing rivers that are within proximity to our municipal areas. It enables us to have a lifestyle and life balance that is nearly impossible to find anywhere else. For Idaho’s future…I hope that we keep the next generation in mind as we manage and develop today’s policies. Growth is inevitable for our area. Instead of fighting it, I hope we can steer and manage it in a sustainable and data-driven fashion to preserve and conserve as much of Idaho’s pristine wildlife and wildlands as possible.
Conservation in Idaho needs more help than you realize and help can come in many different forms. Whether it is financial support or through a unique skillset you have, your support is important and, in many cases, you’ll be able to see the impact.
Not an ICL member yet? Become an ICL member today!
Interested in sharing your ICL story? Contact Development Communications Associate, Kayla Wilcox by email at [email protected]