Mission and Goals
Our Mission
"To foster a community spirit of shared responsibility for the ecological stewardship and restoration of public and protected lands."
What We Do
The Chapter organizes restoration projects to improve the condition of habitats in the Northern Rockies. We select a wide range of projects representing the many needs for restoration in the region, including fire restoration, wetland plantings, stream bank stabilization, and reseeding old logging roads. The duration of our projects range from an evening for seed collections to weekend long projects as well as many one day events. Volunteers get to work in spectacular scenery and while spending enough time outdoors see the wildlife. The view of an elk herd descending to water in the spring, a mating grouse, or even the tracks of a wolf pack remind our volunteers of the benefits our work brings to our wild places.
While we often see dramatic, satisfying, results over a weekend of activity, restoration takes time and commitment. We seek to adopt places where our volunteers can return to continue restoration projects over several seasons, and see the long-term benefits of our work. The stewardship of lands creates an understanding and appreciation of place among our volunteers. Friendships are born and our community is strengthened.
OUR GOALS
- Create a strong network of volunteers, capable of caring for these sites through trainings, educational opportunities, and partnerships with other local organizations.
- Encourage community-based involvement in projects by recruiting volunteers who live in communities near project sites and/or are members of user groups who frequent those sites.
- Develop and implement high quality, science-based restoration techniques. We aim to contribute to the scientific field of ecological restoration.
- Collaborate closely with land managers and other stakeholders to identify key sites in need of ecological restoration.
- Serve a diverse audience including urban and rural residents, adults, middle and high school students, disadvantaged youth, local watershed protection groups, local outdoor clubs, and other recreational users of local public lands.
- Have fun, work hard, and celebrate the deep love of mountains, forests, streams, and open spaces, that inspire our work.
