This series brings timely and interesting wilderness topics to the public to raise awareness and inspire community discussion. These events takes place on the Second Tuesday in February, March and April in the large community room in FVCC’s Arts & Technology Building. Free of charge, all are welcome.
Presented by: Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation, Wild Montana Flathead-Kootenai Chapter, Northwest Montana Lookout Association, and the Natural Resources Conservation Management Program at Flathead Valley Community College (FVCC).
2026 Wilderness Speaker Series
All events will take place from 7:00-8:15 PM in the Large Community Room (#139) in the Arts & Technology Building at Flathead Valley Community College.
Come early to visit booths from the three presenting non-profits in the foyer before each presentation!
Tuesday, February 10th
Speaker: Rachel Schmidt, American Rivers
Topic: “Generations of Wild and Scenic Rivers”
Kick off the 50th Anniversary of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act with a talk by American Rivers’ Northern Rockies Dam Removal Specialist Rachel Schmidt, discussing the history and significance of some of our favorite Wild & Scenic river systems.
Rachel is a Montana born river rat residing in Whitefish. She has a long career in outdoor recreation industries including experiential recreation in the ski, raft and fly fish categories; sales, marketing and product development with one of the world’s largest firearms manufactures; and development and leadership in public lands, hunting and fishing conservation. She had the honor of serving the people of Montana by creating and directing the Montana Governor’s Office of Outdoor Recreation through the Bullock administration.
Rachel currently works with broad stakeholders, government agencies and Tribal Nations to expand river restoration efforts in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. When not recreating outdoors, Rachel spends a great deal of her time volunteering for the boards of conservation and recreation organizations as well as teaching hunters’ education and championing the future of hunting in Montana.
Tuesday, March 10th
Speakers: Leo Rosenthal, Montana FWP, and Sheena Pate, Flathead Rivers Alliance
Topic: “The Three Forks of the Flathead — Fish, Flow, and the Future”
Join us for an engaging evening exploring the past, present, and future of the Flathead River system through the lens of fisheries science, collaboration, and conservation.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks fisheries biologist Leo Rosenthal opens the program with an overview of the Three Forks watershed, highlighting long-term trends, monitoring efforts, and what the data tells us about two of the Flathead’s iconic native trout: bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout.
Following the science, Sheena Pate, Executive Director of Flathead Rivers Alliance, will connect the dots between data and action. Sheena will spotlight collaborative partnerships across the Three Forks, current threats and conservation trends, and the upcoming the 50th Anniversary of the Flathead Wild & Scenic River designation in 2026.
Together, Leo and Sheena bring complementary perspectives – agency science and nonprofit collaboration – offering a powerful picture of how fisheries management, community engagement, and river advocacy intersect.
Leo Rosenthal has been the Flathead East Fisheries Management Biologist for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks for the past 19 years. Originally from the mining city of Butte, America, Leo received a B.A. in Biology from the University of Montana in 1997 and an M.S. In Fish and Wildlife Management from Montana State University in 2007. Leo's management area includes the Swan River, and South and Middle Forks of the Flathead River.
Sheena Pate is the Executive Director of Flathead Rivers Alliance, where she leads collaborative efforts to steward and protect the 219+ mile Flathead Wild & Scenic River system. With over 20 years of experience as a hydrologist, communications specialist, and watershed project coordinator in Montana and Colorado, she brings both scientific expertise and a passion for public engagement to her work. A lifelong river enthusiast, Sheena believes awareness is a critical first step toward lasting conservation. She holds degrees from the University of Montana and Colorado State University and can often be found on the river with her family.
Tuesday, April 14th
Speakers: Franz Ingelfinger, Montana FWP
Topic: “What’s Happening to the Elk in the South Fork of the Flathead?”
Elk numbers in the Flathead’s South Fork has been a topic of interest for generations. Today, elk numbers are at lows not seen in almost a century. The general perception of those with a history hunting the area is that predators are the root cause of this decline. At the same time, the legacy of past forest management, including harvest history, fire suppression, Wilderness designation, and now, recent large-scale wildfires, have resulted in habitat changes that affect forage quality and quantity, and thermal cover in winter. To inform management, Montana FWP recently initiated a collaring effort to evaluate habitat use, movement, fecundity, and survival of cow elk. Franz will share information from the first years of this study and discuss factors influencing elk numbers in the South Fork drainage.
Franz has worked in natural resources for more than 20 years, having earned a master’s degree emphasizing wildlife management from the University of Wyoming. He’s worked with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks since 2016 and currently serves as the Kalispell area wildlife biologist. Franz’s scope covers wildlife management efforts across the greater Flathead Valley area, including a large portion of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex.
Archive — Watch past presentations here!
2024 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
2023 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
2022 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
“Four-Fifths a Grizzly”
Speaker: Doug Chadwick
Through DNA, scientific studies and his own personal stories, Chadwick challenges anyone to consider whether they are separate from or part of nature.
“In Search of the Mount Cleveland Five”
Speaker: Terry Kennedy, author
Terry shares stories of his climbing endeavors with colorful Montana climbers and their close calls, antics and tears – with the grief and inspiration of the Mount Cleveland tragedy always present.
“A Deep Time Tour Through Montana's Wilderness Areas”
Speaker: Kallie Moore
Join the University of Montana’s Fossil Librarian to journey through the ancient past of some of Montana's Wilderness areas and find out what kind of life was roaming around the Bob Marshall Wilderness around 500 million of years ago
2021 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
“A New Way Into the Wild: Inclusion as a Criterion for the Future of Conservation”
Speaker: Dr. J. Drew Lanham, PhD
Dr. Lanham explores the issues of diversity, inclusion and justice in conservation work in this in-depth discussion with BMWF’s Bill Hodge.
“Working the Wilderness - Early Leaders for Wild Lands”
Speaker: John McCarthy, author
John shares excerpts from his book, Working the Wilderness, about the people who built the foundation for the wilderness program that exists today.
“Owls of Montana”
Speaker: Denver Holt of the Owl Research Institute in Charlo, MT
One of the world’s leading experts on owls, this interactive presentation will leave you with memorable and practical tips for identifying every local owl species.
2020 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
“Whitefish Range Wildlife”
Speaker: Tim Thier
Tim shares three decades worth of knowledge from monitoring and researching wildlife in the North Fork of the Flathead and Whitefish Range.
2019 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
“Women Write the Wilderness”
Speaker: Susan Purvis, explorer, educator, and Go Find author
Susan discusses the challenges in writing about her personal experiences with wild places and how women’s narratives can connect people to the landscape.
“Rangers, Trappers, and Trailblazers: Early Adventures in the Bob Marshall Wilderness”
Speaker: John Fraley, author
The story of the 1928 trip of the Forest Service's Robert Marshall through the South Fork, and how Bob’s wilderness ethic may have been informed by this 8-day, breakneck trip.
“Wilderness Fisheries Management”
Speakers: Jim Vashro, retired FWP fisheries manager; Leo Rosenthal, FWP fisheries biologist; Matt Boyer, FWP science program supervisor
Montana FWP fisheries managers describe efforts to preserve fisheries integrity in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex.
2018 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
2017 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
2017 Wilderness Speaker Series Lecture #1: Mountain Goats of Northwest Montana PART 1
2017 Wilderness Speaker Series Lecture #1: Mountain Goats of Northwest Montana PART 2
“100 Days of Solitude”
Speaker: Amy Pearson, Adjunct Professor, Humanities Division, FVCC
Fire lookout, poet, and English Professor at FVCC, Amy Pearson, will share the life changing experience and writings that resulted from the summer she lived and worked at Jumbo Lookout in the heart of the Bob.
“THE NAMES OF THE STARS, A Life In The Wilds"
Speaker: Pete Fromm, wilderness author.
Acclaimed author of "Indian Creek Chronicles," the story of his seven winter months alone in the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness tending salmon eggs, Pete's newest book, "THE NAMES OF THE STARS; A Life In The Wilds" is the story of another month alone in the wilderness caring for fish eggs, this time the Bob.
2016 Wilderness Speaker Series Recordings
2016 Wilderness Speaker Series Lecture #1: "Wilderness Fire Management"
2016 Wilderness Speaker Series Lecture #2: "From Yellowstone to Yukon, Nature Needs Half"
2016 Wilderness Speaker Series Lecture #3: "This is the Crown of the Continent, Our Home" Rick Graetz