TGIF. We can't wait to get outside this weekend. You? Before calling it a day, catch up on the latest news. Here are today's must-read headlines:

• Have a hot news blurb for Industry Buzz? Or a burning story idea for another one of our columns? We've created a new form where you can submit the latest and greatest news tips. We'll be checking it often to ensure we don't miss anything.

• A bill presented yesterday before the U.S. House of Representatives would give Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke power over identifying half a million public acres to hand over to the Chugach Alaska Corporation in exchange for an equal area of its private land. Conservationists are concerned about the fact that the legislation doesn't identify exactly which public or private lands would be traded.

• Merrell has launched a pretty cool marketing campaign that, well, is really way more than just a marketing campaign. #MerrellMagic is all about doing good deeds to surprise and delight hikers, like throwing a surprise pizza party for a hard working student trail crew, or building a pop-up lemonade stand in the desert, or plucking a bunch of grimy PCT thruhikers off the trail for a luxurious night in a Yosemite hotel. Follow along at MerrellMagic.com. 

• Global Brand President of The North Face, Arne Arens, has joined the board of The Conservation Alliance. Arens fills the seat vacated with the passing of Ann Krcik. “Having Arne serve on our board says a lot about The North Face’s commitment to conservation,” said John Sterling, Conservation Alliance executive director. “We are excited to connect Arne to our efforts to protect North America’s wild places.”

• California's $4 billion Proposition 68 is an unprecedented investment in state recreation and conservation—and Outdoor Industry Association predicts that it will be a standard for other states to replicate. OIA wants the those who care about recreation, even those in other states, to support the legislation.

• One year ago, President Donald Trump launched his attack on public lands. This is what has happened since then, according to The Wilderness Society.

• Lyn Michaud is hanging up his hat and looking forward to retirement after 40 years of running The Ski Shop in Van Buren, Maine. The store will be open for another full week until May 5. “I want to thank everybody for the business we’ve done with us,” Michaud told a reporter with Fiddlehead Focus. “They’ll see us more on the slopes now than on a sales floor.”

• We’re seeing more and more women’s “empowertisement campaigns” from outdoor brands. Think REI’s Force of Nature and The North Face’s Move Mountains. But sometimes, even companies with the best intentions to support women’s initiatives can miss the mark, according to this blog post.

• We feel super lucky. The talented Stephen Sebestyen, who used to be the web producer with AIM's Outdoor Group, was promoted to digital director for the entire group, which means he'll have more involvement with SNEWS as well as with SKI, Backpacker, Climbing, and Warren Miller Entertainment.

• And lastly, Stunt Puppy, the upstart dog gear company, hired Park City-based SIMBOL Communications as their public relations agency of record.