Voices of Our Lake Voices of Our Lake is a beautiful must-have publication for everyone who lives in or spends time in Whitefish. Its pages are filled with passionate vignettes written by citizens describing their personal histories and connections to Whitefish Lake. Each vignette includes a photograph of (or by) the individual contributor. The authors include long-time, well-known and respected community members with multi-generational attachments to Whitefish, including business owners, educators, students, artists, religious leaders, and community leaders. Whitefish Lake Institute staff members also contributed results of their many years of research on the lake as well as their own thoughts about the lake and the community. Together, we have rallied on behalf of Whitefish Lake with the hope of giving the lake a voice. A special thanks to the Cadeau Foundation and the Whitefish Community Foundation for making Voices of Our Lake available at no charge. The publication is available from the Whitefish Lake Institute office and in many local businesses.View full PDF of Voices of Our Lhttps://whitefishlake.wpengine.com/ake

 

Whitefish Area Water Resources Report: A Status of the Whitefish Lake Watershed Long-term conservation requires a baseline of scientific, cultural, and historical knowledge of an area; an understanding of its physical, biological, and chemical dynamics; and a program to monitor changes from the baseline. With these elements in place, adaptive management plans and education programs can be developed and implemented. Through this deliverable– the Whitefish Area Water Resources Report: A Status of the Whitefish Lake Watershed & Surrounding Area—WLI processed and analyzed the data and information collected since 2007 through its core monitoring program and assimilated historical data from project partners, resulting in a complete water quality status report and a scientifically comprehensive foundation for long-term water quality management of the Whitefish Lake Watershed & Surrounding Area. This report provides baseline knowledge, identifies known and potential concerns, and offers recommendations to the conservation management organizations responsible for the health of the watershed. The report has been peer reviewed by scientists, educators, resource managers and policy makers and is available to all resource management entities and the general public to increase our collective understanding of the resource and to make more informed resource management decisions. The final report is a deliverable on behalf of the City of Whitefish—as the project sponsor—to provide a complete watershed assessment and restoration plan to the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. View full PDF of the Whitefish Area Water Resources Report

 

The Montana Lake Book—3rd Edition Coordinated by: Mike Koopal, Founder & Executive Director: Whitefish Lake Institute and Lori Curtis, Science and Education Director, Whitefish Lake Institute The Montana Lake Book explains how lakes function, how they are threatened and how they can be protected. It also spells out simple actions you can take to help protect and preserve the lakes of Montana. Lakes are among our most valued – and most threatened – natural resources. For people, lakes provide recreation and drinking water; for fish and other wildlife, lakes provide habitat. Despite these critical roles, few people understand how their daily actions can threaten our lakes. Even if you live miles from a lake, you live in a watershed that directly affects lake quality, and it is everyone’s responsibility to understand how we can protect our lakes and clean water. Lake protection is an investment in our future and our children’s future. Learn how you can make a difference. The Montana Lake Book 3rd Edition was guided by an 17-person steering committee and was sponsored by the Flathead Basin Commission; Flathead Conservation District; Flathead Lake Biological Station, Flathead National Forest Service; Montana Department of Environmental Quality; Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation; Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks; Montana Watershed Coordination Council; and the Whitefish Lake Institute. View full PDF of The Montana Lake Book

 

Flathead Watershed Sourcebook: A Guide to an Extraordinary Place 2nd Edition By Lori S. Curtis, Science & Education Director: Whitefish Lake Institute

The 264-page book details the geography, cultures, natural history and economics of the Flathead Valley of northwestern Montana.

It includes:

• An overview of the human history, both native and European, cultures of the Flathead
• Descriptions of the unique natural history of the region’s geology and plant and animal life
• Explanation of land ownership patterns, land management and resource management Details of the economy, food and natural resource production
• 300 graphics and photographs.

Visit the Flathead Watershed Sourcebook website

The Flathead Watershed Sourcebook – and its companion website www.flatheadwatershed.org – was written for the Flathead Community of Resource Educators (CORE) and served as the author’s Master’s Thesis in Environmental Studies. It was sponsored by: F. H. Stoltze Land & Lumber; Flathead Audubon; Flathead Basin Commission; Flathead Conservation District; Flathead County River Commission; Flathead Lakers; Flathead National Forest; Flathead National Forest Resource Advisory Committee; Flathead Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited; Glacier Association; Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks; Northwest Regional RC&D; River Design Group; Soil and Water Conservation Districts of Montana, Inc.; the Sustainability Fund, the Whitefish Lake Institute, and several individuals.

Flathead Watershed Sourcebook Educators’ Guide The Flathead Watershed Sourcebook Educators’ Guide—a companion middle school curriculum for use with the Flathead Watershed Sourcebook was released in 2016. Another collaborative effort of the Flathead Community of Resource Educators (CORE) Watershed Education Committee, this project provides traditional and non-traditional educators with ready-to-implement, interdisciplinary activity based lessons that support the 8 chapters of information contained in the book. The lessons serve as a hands-on curriculum that link to both national and state teaching standards.

The Educator’s Guide collaborative effort began with a Delphi Study to ascertain from resource managers, scientists and educators, what content would be most valuable to include. Rather than developing the lessons based solely on educators’ ideas of what was needed, people who work in conservation, and who study natural ecology and cultural history were included in the development process. All of the lessons were also developed with Sense of Place in mind, each lesson focused on Flathead Watershed culture, history, or events. We are particularly grateful to the educators from throughout the Watershed who helped in the design, testing, and implementation of the Guide. It is our hope that as more educators have opportunities to use the Guide, they will provide feedback that will help us to continually improve its usefulness.The Educators’ Guide is available by contacting the publisher: info@flatheadwatershed.org or download here.