Montanans are folks of all kinds – ranchers, farmers, business owners, outdoorspeople, conservationists, and everyone in between. The Montana Legislature is a place where we all come together to make decisions about our home, and whether we agree or not, I see Montanans as folks who can disagree and remain friends. This attitude embodies the Legislature. We wrap up a lively session with a number of critical wins for Montana's lands and wildlife. 

Public lands at risk because the state Legislature is taking steps to weaken Montana’s constitutional right to clean water, air, and land.

Idaho’s passage of Senate Bill 1170 weakens cyanide mining safeguards by transferring oversight from environmental experts to lawmakers, allowing mining companies to operate with fewer safety rules despite cyanide’s well-known risks. This shift endangers Idaho’s clean water, wildlife, and outdoor heritage—resources GYC is working to protect in Kilgore, where a foreign, financially unstable company is exploring for gold. Without action, an open-pit, heap-leach cyanide mine could transform this unspoiled corner of the Centennial Mountains. 

Right now, members of Congress are proposing a plan to sell-off our public lands. The very lands that unite us as Americans, that pump billions of dollars into Western states’ economies, and that have been part of our heritage for generations.  

We need you to tell Congress our public lands are NOT for sale.  

A fourth-generation cattle ranch in Lincoln County is partnering with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition to improve winter habitat for elk, prevent disease transmission between cattle and elk, and protect the future of their ranching operation. Recognizing the need for alternative wildlife management solutions, GYC has developed innovative private land conservation agreements that reduce conflict between elk and cattle and help ranchers live alongside wintering wildlife.

Wyoming’s 68^th Legislative Session came to a close March 7, 2025, after eight tumultuous weeks. GYC’s Wyoming-based staff, our communications team, and Government Affairs Advisor Richard Garrett were entrenched in the day-to-day, and often minute-by-minute, action as many bills were moving through the legislative process. For the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem to remain whole and intact we must actively engage with all stakeholders to craft sound policies that honor Wyoming’s tremendous wildlife, diverse habitats, and remarkable abundance of public lands. Your voice and support are critical for protecting our shared interest in this ecosystem. 

In late January, 125 ranchers, land managers, and conservationists gathered in Cody, Wyoming, for the Wyoming Virtual Fence Symposium. The event was a catalyst for change, bringing folks together to explore the potential of virtual fencing (VF) in revolutionizing livestock management, conservation efforts, and rangeland health.

We recap our 2024 favorite conservation moments and wins in Greater Yellowstone.

Modern gold mining often involves stripping hillsides, crushing rock into dust, and using cyanide solutions to extract gold from low-grade ore. Although this method of heap-leaching is economically efficient, it poses substantial environmental risks. Numerous catastrophic mining failures in the U.S. in recent decades offer a cautionary tale of what could go wrong if the financially unstable foreign mining company currently exploring for gold in the Centennial Mountains above Kilgore, Idaho are permitted to mine.

This summer, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, in partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, hosted the first of a series of meetings to bring information to producers on the reservation about programs that support agriculture and wildlife. 

A growing number of Idaho hunters, anglers, farmers, ranchers, outdoor recreationists, families, and conservationists have joined the Clean Kilgore Coalition to protect the precious water, land, wildlife, and outdoor heritage that Excellon’s toxic gold mine would threaten.  

Muddy Ridge is an expanse of undeveloped land in the northeast portion of the Wind River Indian Reservation removed from Tribal control in 1920 to create irrigation infrastructure for non-Tribal residents. GYC is working in lockstep with Tribal leadership from both the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes to advocate for the repatriation of Muddy Ridge and resolve this decades-old injustice.