Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness Launches New Website

Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness staff have been hard at work over the past several months on a freshly re-designed website. The new site makes it easier to take action to protect the wilderness, find information about upcoming events, and get connected to us on social media.

Visit our new site to take action and you'll be entered into a drawing to win a Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness swag bag full of giveaways like a pint glass, t-shirt, stickers, and more. Between now and October 31, 2017, visit our website and complete at least one of the following actions to enter the drawing:

Winners will be announced in November. Many thanks to Jesse Ross, our talented website designer and developer, who brought the ideas behind this project to life.

Questions? Contact Cori Mattke at 612-332-9630.

Photo credit: John Wartman.

Meet the 2017-2018 Conservation Fellows

Friends of the Boundary Wates Wilderness is proud to introduce you to the 2017 - 2018 Conservation Fellows cohort. High school students Kiki Ndogu, Blessing Joseph, Sarah Ndogu, Gemma Yoo, and Noa Carlson began their work with the Friends last month. They are busy learning about the work of the Friends, the environmental issues facing Minnesota, and meeting with people who work in the conservation field. Meet the fellows »

The Conservation Fellows Partnership is a 10-month collaboration between the Friends and high school students of color. We provide an advocacy mentorship experience as well as opportunities to share diverse cultural perspectives about the environment.

Learn more on our website or contact Betsy Daub at 612-332-9630 with questions.

New Bill Threatens the BWCAW

Representative Tom Emmer has introduced a bill in Congress, co-sponsored by Representative Collin Peterson and Representative Jason Lewis, that reinstates the Twin Metals mineral leases on the edge of the BWCAW. The bill, if passed, would also require Congressional approval to establish national mounuments and to withdraw Superior National Forest land from mining activities. Our members of Congress need to hear this bill sets a dangerous precedent, revokes basic environmental protections in Minnesota, and puts a national treasure at risk.

Call Your Representative »

Photo credit: Karen Berg Monk.

Our New Executive Director, Chris Knopf

The Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness Board of Directors recently hired nonprofit and conservation leader Chris Knopf as our new executive director. Chris brings a unique blend of life and work experiences to his role at the Friends. After practicing environmental law for several years, Chris served as the Ohio Office Director for The Trust for Public Land and worked as a major gifts officer with the Indian Land Tenure Foundation.

Chris also has a deep love for the outdoors and enjoys paddling, backpacking, biking, hiking, and photography. Make sure to introduce yourself to Chris at our next event, give him a call, or stop by our offices to say hello.

Learn more about Chris »

Take Action: Proposed School Trust Lands Exchange

A proposed land exchange between the State of Minnesota and the U.S. Forest Service would give the state 30,000 acres of federal land outside of the BWCAW in exchange for making some of the state land within the wilderness area federal. Some parcels that would move into state ownership would facilitate future mining projects. Plus, this proposal puts an additional 56,000 acres of federal land at risk of being exchanged in the future.

Tell the Forest Service this land exchange, as proposed, is unacceptable.
Send your message »

Photo credit: Benjamin Olson Photography.

Take Action: PolyMet Draft Dam Permits

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently released two more draft permits for the proposed PolyMet mine. PolyMet proposes keeping hundreds of millions of gallons of mine waste and polluted water in their "flotation tailings basin" behind a dam that is already forty years old.

According to the draft permit, this dam would need "perpetual" maintenance. This means that hundreds or even thousands of years from now, people will need to continue inspecting and repairing the dam regularly.

Tell the DNR these draft permits are too risky and that dam failure threatens our water, wildlife, and communities downstream.
Contact the DNR »

Photo credit: Johnathan Wayward CP, Mount Polley, British Columbia.

Get to Know Ella Gray, Forest Policy Intern

Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness welcomes Ella Gray as our fall Forest Policy Intern. Ella will be working on researching forest management policies and practices in the Arrowhead Region and their potential impacts on the landscape.

A Minneapolis native, Ella grew up hiking and canoeing across northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and northeast Iowa. Ella is a graduate of Reed College, where she studied biology, and the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, where she began studying forest ecology and management. She recently moved back to Minneapolis to continue her studies at the University of Minnesota. She is excited to help the Friends' work to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Other News

Your Feedback: Wild & Scenic Film Festival

Did you attend the Wild & Scenic Film Festival screenings in Minneapolis or Duluth? We want to hear from you. What did you love? What can we do better in the future? Fill out this short survey to tell us what you think. The survey is only five questions long and should only take a few minutes to complete.

Take the survey »

Thank You Members and Partners

Before the giving season gets into full swing, we wanted to take a moment to thank all of you who contribute your time, energy, and money to Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness. Your passion for the BWCAW and Quetico-Superior ecosystem is truly inspiring. Thank you for making our work to protect, conserve, and restore the BWCAW possible.

Photo credit: Noah Linck.

Upcoming Event: Getting to Green

It wasn't that long ago that conservation and protecting the environment were bipartisan priorities. Why did that change? Spend an evening with Frederic C. Rich, the author of Getting to Green: Saving Nature: A Bipartisan Solution on October 30th at 7:00 p.m. in Minneapolis. Tickets are free, but required for entry into this event hosted by Conservation Minnesota.

Photo credit: Ari Espay.

Get tickets »