Our Commitment to an Inclusive Wilderness

Bob Marshall was best known as a passionate advocate for the protection of wilderness, but he was also a champion for the social justice issues of his day. Bob fought for the integration of Forest Service facilities and equal access to public lands in the 1930s. He was a tireless campaigner for the rights of workers as well. Bob fought for programs that would create tangible connections to wild nature for all Americans.

As an organization who bears his name, we aim to follow in Bob’s footsteps. As a committed group of public land stewards, we also stand with those that demand an American experience that is equitable, fair and just.

No matter how deep we feel our own connections to this place, now referred to as the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, we will never know it as the endless generations of the Salish, Kootenai and Blackfeet people did – those that simply knew these northern Rockies as home prior to the arrival of Europeans on the continent. Recognizing this overdue need to place the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, and the wilderness idea, in the proper context is the start of our journey. The Bob, and the National Forests on which it lays are part of a fabric of public lands established on the soil of native peoples, lands that were not free of humans, but rather lands that did retain their primeval character through the stewardship of those that lived on them.

With their complicated and often dark history in mind, we are committed to exploring all perspectives on our public commons. We are educating ourselves on the true history of the formation of our public lands, including the violent forced removal of tribal communities and the exclusion of people of color, in order to better understand how the past informs the future for the wilderness experience that is promised in the Wilderness Act.

Through intentional actions we will seek connections with nature for all Montanans and Americans – connections that come from time spent on the lands we all share. We will work to remove barriers for those that have not seen themselves as part of the American public lands story, including Black, Indigenous, People of Color and LGBTQ+ communities. We will explore our own actions, examine our own policies, and facilitate partnerships to help remove the vestiges of exclusion.

Specific actions that we will build upon in 2024 include:

  • A clear zero-tolerance policy for harassment or discrimination in any form, in any aspect of our work, including volunteer trips, internships, online and in-person outreach, and our office environment. This policy is expressed and outlined on our website, in our online volunteer registration form and at the trailhead before each project. 

  • Giving recognition to the native lands we are occupying at any time the BMWF is in front of the public. This includes our fundraising events, website and social media, and at the beginning of each volunteer project.

  • Listening to, learning from, and partnering with BIPOC and LGBTQ+ groups such as Here Montana, Latino Outdoors Missoula, Salish Kootenai College Upward Bound, Mission Mountains Youth Crew and Glacier Queer Alliance, and working to amplify their voices in the Wilderness Community through our own channels. 

  • Improving our Gear Library to loan quality outdoor gear to anyone who wants to participate on our volunteer projects, to ensure everyone has access to a comfortable and safe wilderness experience. More details.

  • Hosting affinity group Wilderness 101 education-focused trips teaching outdoor skills in a community-centered space to empower more confident wilderness users. More details.

  • Implementing our comprehensive Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) plan written in 2022 with the Avarna Group, and providing ongoing DEIA education and training for our staff and board members.

As an organization we have made a commitment to filling our community, our board and our staff with new voices, wide-ranging ideas and a wealth of different perspectives. We pledge to build meaningful relationships not only with our passionate volunteers, donors and supporters – but with those individuals and organizations that do the incredible work of connecting a new and more diverse generation to wild nature.

We encourage you to join us in this journey, and invite you to explore some other organizations doing important work in this arena:

Outdoor Afro
Greening Youth Foundation
Diversify Outdoors
Melanin Basecamp
Latino Outdoors
Venture Out Project
The Trail Posse
Native Women’s Wilderness
Color Outside
In Solidarity Project
Soul River Inc.
Unlikely Hikers
The Joy Trip Project
Compton Cowboys
…and so many more.