Summit participants. Photo credit: MDT
The Montana Wildlife & Transportation Summit (Summit) was held on December 4 and 5, 2018, at Carroll College in Helena, Montana. It was co-convened by the Montana Governor's office, Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), Western Transportation Institute (WTI), and Montanans for Safe Wildlife Passage (MSWP). The purpose of the Summit was to bring stakeholders together to strengthen working relationships, share information, and develop strategies to plan and implement wildlife accommodations; reduce animal-vehicle collisions; and protect wildlife and their movement across state highways. The emphasis of this first meeting was to build common ground among MDT, FWP, and the NGOs around wildlife and transportation issues in order to enable a more robust engagement of additional interested stakeholders in the future.
This Summit served as the initial meeting to explore the complex issue of wildlife and transportation conflict. It was intended to set the stage for future engagement with a broad array of interested partners, stakeholders and the general public. More than 160 people attended the Summit, including leadership, upper management, and staff from state and federal agencies, tribal nations, non-governmental organizations, and local government.