Our Mission

The Glacier Institute serves adults and children as an educational leader in the Crown of the Continent ecosystem with Glacier National Park and Flathead National Forest at its center. Emphasizing field-based learning experiences, the Institute provides an objective and science-based understanding of the area’s ecology and its interaction with people. Through this non-advocacy approach to outdoor education, participants can be better prepared to make informed and constructive decisions which impact this and other ecosystems.

Our Classroom

The Glacier Institute courses take place in a spectacular outdoor classroom throughout the Crown of the Continent ecosystem.  Today, the phrase is used to describe the larger ecosystem that boasts millions of acres and spans the U.S.-Canadian border.  Besides Glacier-Waterton International Peace Park, the ecosystem includes the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, the North Fork Valley, the Blackfeet Reservation and thousands of additional acres of public, private and tribal lands spanning from Banff National Park to the Scapegoat Wilderness.  The Crown of the Continent is the only ecosystem in the lower forty eight states where all indigenous predator and prey species are naturally occurring including grizzly bears and gray wolves.  It is a place rich in biological diversity, Native American heritage and unique geological features.  The Glacier Institute is an equal opportunity provider of education.