Podcast Summary: The Origins Foundation Podcast

Episode 610 – Pud Howard || From Desert To Paradise
Date: December 2, 2025
Host: The Origins Foundation
Guest: Pud (Pood) Howard

Episode Overview

In this episode, the Origins Foundation ventures to the heart of Australian duck hunting: Sale, Victoria, home of Pud Howard. Pud, a lifelong hunter and conservationist, details his decades-spanning journey from childhood duck hunts to spearheading the ambitious restoration of the Heart Morass wetland. The conversation explores the vital link between hunting and habitat conservation, the cultural depth of hunting communities, and the necessity of passionate succession for conservation initiatives. Pud’s deeply personal narrative, laced with practical knowledge, family legacy, and a fair dose of bush humor, underscores the reality that effective wildlife management starts with caring for the land.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Pud’s Background and the Cultural Roots of Duck Hunting in Victoria

• Pud (nickname from youth, real name not shared) was born and raised in Sale, Victoria, a region renowned as the "heartbeat" of duck hunting in Australia.
  • “Born and raised in Sale. Yes.” – Pud (04:16)
• Sale and its wetlands, especially the Gippsland Lakes, have long been critical for water birds and a focal point for hunting culture.
• Victorian duck hunting culture stands out as the strongest in Australia, even as wetland habitats shrink in other states due to banning or reduced interest in hunting.
  • “There’s always been very good water here.” – Pud (05:06)

2. Legacy and Influence: Family and Conservation

• Pud’s conservation ethic stemmed from his uncle, Herb Got, a “doer” and founding member of Field and Game Australia who dedicated his life to protecting local wetlands.
• Pud reflects on inheriting Herb’s legacy, feeling the weight of “becoming” Herb for his generation.
  • “Pooh. Do you know what you sound like right? You are Herb.” – Host (11:47)
• Herb’s activism included hands-on efforts: photographing bird rookeries, restoring wetland flow by physically digging channels, and meticulously recording history.
• Pud continues to maintain Herb’s archival photos, writings, and passion for wetland health.

3. The Field and Game Australia Model: Funding Conservation

• Hunters in Victoria, led by Field and Game, lobbied for license fees and a dedicated Duck Stamp program, ensuring hunting license revenue funded wetland acquisition and management.
  • “At the hunter’s request, that we have a license fee set up, and that license fee go to a wetland purchase fund.” – Pud (15:12)
• These funds contributed directly to creating state game reserves, blending hunting access with conservation priorities.

4. The Heart Morass Restoration: From Wasteland to Wetland

• Genesis: The Heart Morass, once derelict from salinity and neglect, was acquired by Field and Game Australia in partnership with Watermark (a local conservation group), philanthropic trusts, and governmental agencies.
  • “They said, look, if anybody’s interested, we’d like to talk. So we stepped up… …We have 1.2 million. That’s all we got… The family involved… said, we’ll take it.” – Pud (35:01)
• Restoration Achievements:
  • Over 66,000 trees planted, significant weed control, restoration of water flow and structure, and creation of varied habitats (open water, edge, and forest).
  • Grazing used strategically to maintain beneficial open edges and feed for birds.
  • Strong community and youth involvement, including school children and conservation groups.
  • “We planted 66,400 recently… 66,000 trees on the property.” – Pud (36:20)
• Challenges:
  • Learning from failed planting (losses and adaptations), constant threat from invasive weeds, inexorable need for active ongoing management.
  • “Now it’s not restoration anymore, it’s maintaining and managing.” – Host (47:12)

5. Perspective on Conservation and Hunting’s Role

• Hunting is core to Pud’s identity, but he firmly believes that “if you’re going to hunt, you must conserve.”
  • “The best way to conserve is habitat… With this place—yes, we’re duck hunters, but all the rest of the bird species come along for the ride...” – Pud (21:40)
• Restoration success benefits not just ducks, but swans, cockatoos, and many other species.
• Pud voices concern about future leadership in conservation; he fears a lack of passionate successors poses risks to the ongoing stewardship of such projects.
  • “You said, I’m worried about who’s next.” – Host (20:21)
  • “Unless you’ve got somebody passionate there to drive, it won’t work.” – Pud (20:56)
• The need to dispel the myth of hunters as mere takers—hunters are disproportionately land stewards and investors in habitat.

6. Public-Private Partnerships – Opportunities and Pitfalls

• Pud critiques the current limitations of government-managed game reserves: chronic underfunding, excessive regulation, and a lack of flexibility compared to NGO or private efforts.
  • “The government, they’re constrained. They’re constrained by budget… There are areas… that the government realizes we don’t have the money…” – Host (40:41)
• The conversation suggests public-private partnerships (as seen in American models) could benefit Australia, provided government bureaucracy doesn’t stifle innovation or timely action.
  • “Australia’s overregulated... the NGOs would walk away very quickly.” – Pud (41:53)
• Case in point: strategic grazing is banned on public reserves, leading to habitat decline, whereas the Heart Morass uses it to create essential open feeding grounds.

7. Philosophy and Future: The Essential Role of Habitat

• Pud and the Host agree: no matter your ethics or aims, habitat is the key for any thriving wildlife population.
  • “If you had to… say to them, ‘What’s the most fundamental thing that you need for wildlife to survive?’… The answer is habitat.” – Host & Pud (53:23-53:33)
• Pud is realistic; he fears for the future of both hunting and wetland conservation if the next generation doesn't step up.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Heritage and Succession:
  • “Who's coming after you with the passion that you have? … I don't know.” – Pud (02:00)
• On Conservation & Hunting:
  • “If you’re going to hunt, you must conserve. You must conserve.” – Pud (18:39)
• On Partnership Challenges:
  • “The first thing they said was, look, if hunting's an issue, we won't bother going any further. Oh, that is not negotiable in this whole scheme of things.” – Pud (32:46)
• On Restoration:
  • “Now it’s not restoration anymore, it’s maintaining and managing.” – Host (47:12)
  • “You give it two years and it’d be a jungle... now we’re removing trees, getting rid of them because it’s just too much.” – Pud (47:33, 47:54)
• On the Future:
  • “I don't think it has to be any better than what it is, but it's gotta be maintained. And that's what I would hate to see… that the property is let go…” – Pud (51:26)
• On the Universal Need for Habitat:
  • “If you had to ask Georgie Purcell… What's the answer? The answer is habitat.” – Host & Pud (53:31-53:33)

Key Timestamps

• Sale and Duck Hunting Meccas: 04:26 – 05:44
• Origins of Field and Game & Uncle Herb: 11:01 – 13:10
• Hunters Funding Conservation: 15:09 – 16:11
• Heart Morass Acquisition and Restoration: 28:30 – 38:09
• Public vs. Private Conservation Management: 38:41 – 46:09
• The Future—Concerns and Hopes: 50:10 – 52:56
• Habitat as the Foundation: 53:23 – 53:51

Tone & Style

The tone is warm, candid, and laced with dry Australian bush humor. Both host and guest are deeply passionate, pragmatic, and often nostalgic, but balance sentimentality with a no-nonsense approach to stewardship, conservation, and the everyday realities of hunting and land management. While lighthearted moments surface (e.g., wildlife and dog interruptions, friendly jibes), the essential message is clear: without proactive, passionate people and active management, both wildlife and hunting traditions are at risk.

Conclusion

This episode is much more than the story of a man and a wetland—it’s a living testament to the intertwined fates of hunting culture, habitat restoration, and community legacy. Pud Howard’s journey from “desert to paradise” is a model for conservation efforts worldwide, and a wakeup call: the stories we inherit are only as strong as those willing to retell and renew them.