Mission Mountain Tribal Wilderness presentation set for October 9

POLSON — “The Mission Mountain Tribal Wilderness” by Terry Tanner will be the next evening program of the Mission Mountain Audubon Society on Tuesday, October 9 at 7 p.m. in the Polson Library Meeting Room.

To the Pend d’Oreille, Salish and Kootenai Tribes, the Mission Mountains have been an important landscape for their food, water, medicine, culture, religion, history and survival. The Mission Mountains Tribal Wilderness, established by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, is celebrating its 30th Anniversary in 2012. Significantly, it was the first wilderness designation of tribal land by a tribe in the United States.

Terry will discuss the history of the wilderness as well as describe his involvement in the Native Lands and Wilderness Council, an indigenous-led collaborative that develops land management strategies for global challenges facing indigenous populations today.

Terry Tanner coordinates field projects covering recreation sites throughout the Flathead Indian Reservation. In addition, he has given presentations on the Mission Mountains Tribal Wilderness at the World Wilderness Congress meetings in South Africa, Alaska and Mexico. He is one of the founding members of the Native Lands and Wilderness Council and continues his involvement today.