WILD ROCKIES

February 2025 Newsletter

Thanks for Celebrating With Us!

It was wonderful to see our WRFI community in Missoula show up for the release of our collaborative beer with Native Root Coffee and Imagine Nation Brewing Co. last night. That support raised funds for our new Amistades Sin Fronteras Indigenous Student Scholarship, which means we can offer two scholarships of $1,000 each to Indigenous Students taking WRFI courses this year. Not to mention, the coffee stout turned out beautifully - thank you Native Root and Imagine Nation for bringing this idea to life!

Weren't able to make it to the launch event but want to support the collaboration? Coffee beans from Native Root are for sale at Imagine Nation, as well as cans of the Amistades Sin Fronteras Coffee Stout (also look for it around Montana!). You can also support the Amistades Sin Fronteras Indigenous Student Scholarship here:

"We were thrilled to see the folks who came out to support our newest partnership and the exciting new scholarship for Indigenous students. Several WRFI alums and their parents attended and were able to reminisce about what the WRFI program meant to their kids. Thanks for a great night!"

-Kelsey Wellington, WRFI's Student Experience Manager

Let's Talk 2025 Scholarships

Choose from New and Established Scholarships Alike

WRFI is committed to providing more financial aid than ever before in 2025! A big piece of that puzzle will come from our growing list of scholarship opportunities, including four new scholarships available to WRFI students in 2025. Some scholarships are course-specific, and some of them have deadlines, so make sure to read more about each one below and apply as soon as possible. We're always happy to answer questions you may have - reach out to wrfi@wrfi.net or reply directly to this email!

Available Scholarships for 2025 WRFI Students:

• WRFI's new Amistades Sin Fronteras Indigenous Student Scholarship: This scholarship was established to support Indigenous students interested in taking WRFI courses. The inspiration for the scholarship came from conversations with a WRFI alum who works with Native Root Coffee as their Director of Impact. Just yesterday, Native Root and WRFI hosted a kickoff party with Imagine Nation Brewing Company and a collaborative coffee stout beer release! WRFI is committed to give two scholarships of $1000 each through this scholarship in 2025.

• Matt Thomas Montana Afoot and Afloat Scholarship: In 2025, WRFI is committing to give one $5,000 Matt Thomas Scholarship and two $2500 Matt Thomas Scholarships to students on Montana Afoot and Afloat. These scholarships will prioritize students with a demonstrated financial need and an academic focus on the human/nature relationship.

• WRFI's new Seek The Joy Scholarship: A generous donor has funded a new scholarship at WRFI for the next five years. In 2025, this scholarship will prioritize students looking to attend Southwest Climate Studio Art, Cycle the Rockies, and Environmental Ethics. WRFI’s Seek the Joy Scholarship will be awarded to students who seek the joy of being alive. These students delight in the physical and emotional experiences in life. They harvest beauty in both the sublime and the ordinary. Seek the Joy scholars notice and create moments of happiness for themselves and others. They actively fill what poet Mary Oliver calls their “one wild and precious life” with meaning and wonder. WRFI’s Seek-the-Joy Scholarship will cover up to 50% of the cost of tuition.

• The Joel DiBiase Memorial Restoration Ecology Scholarship: This scholarship is made possible by the family and friends of Joel DiBiase and is available to students enrolling in the Restoration Ecology in Greater Yellowstone course beginning in the spring of 2022. Joel was a student on the 2019 Restoration Ecology course and sadly passed away in April 2021. Joel studied Environmental Science at Humboldt State University and Sacramento State University. His passion for the outdoors and his commitment to restoring, conserving, and preserving our public lands was contagious and admirable. Through this memorial scholarship we keep Joel’s legacy and love for wild spaces alive.

• WRFI's new Kelty Camping Gear Scholarship: Kelty Camping Gear is sponsoring a new-to-WRFI $1000 scholarship for a student with demonstrated financial need seeking to attend a course in the summer of 2025.

• WRFI's new Custom Sock Lab scholarship: Custom Sock Lab is sponsoring a new-to-WRFI $500 scholarship for a student with demonstrated financial need seeking to attend a WRFI course in the summer of 2025.

WRFI 2025 Course Update

Secure Your Seat Today!

Enrollment is in full swing for WRFI's 2025 courses! We're stoked to welcome a new class of students into the field with us as we dive into important topics and build confidence in the backcountry. If you're thinking about joining us, be sure to fill out a general application today so we can assist in choosing the best WRFI course for you before it fills up! Check out how many seats are currently left in each course:

Colorado Plateau: 2

Southwest Climate Studio Art: 9

Cycle The Rockies: 8

Restoration Ecology Section 1: FULL

Conservations Across Boundaries: 5

Environmental Ethics Section 1: 3

Restoration Ecology Section 2: 7

Environmental Ethics Section 2: 9

Montana Afoot and Afloat: 9

Featured Course: Cycle the Rockies

28 Field Days | 6 Semester Credits | $5,996-$7,495

June 13-July 8, 2025

This course takes place on a bicycle tour of Montana, beginning in the ranchlands and coalfields near Billings, through various energy production facilities on the central plains, to the center of energy policy debates at the state capitol in Helena, and finally over the Divide to Glacier National Park. Students on this course will explore the ecological, social, and economic issues associated with energy production and use, and global climate change. We will traverse rolling plains and beautiful mountains, enjoying the changing landscapes and meeting with people deeply involved in energy and climate issues. Traveling by bicycle will give us a unique perspective and an appropriate pace for examining the past, present and future of energy and climate change in the West.

"I realized that [Cycle the Rockies] was an opportunity for me to grow academically and to grow in my backcountry, physical, and mental experiences. I saw challenges as opportunities to grow...go in wit the mindset that 'this is hard but I'm gonna come out a better, stronger person afterwards', and you will.”

-Elijah Manzer, Cycle the Rockies '24

Fresh from the Field: Ella Rowland

Farming with Fidel: Lessons from a Neighbor’s Garden

Looking for inspiration on sustainable farming and community resilience? Check out this beautiful blog by Southwest Climate Studio Art student Ella Rowland, where she shares the valuable lessons learned from working in community partner Fidel's neighborhood garden. From planting rainbow chard to grappling with climate change's impact on food systems, it's a powerful reminder of how we can all get more connected to the land and our food sources.

Read the full story here: