Wildlife Ambassador Project 2024 Season Wrap Up
Conservation Northwest / Oct 18, 2024 /
Conservation Northwest’s outreach encourages the public to recreate with respect to wildlife while enjoying the great outdoors.
The Wildlife Ambassador Project completed ten weekends of outreach this summer, from July to Labor Day, at various trailheads across the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Conservation Northwest volunteers and staff conducted in-person education at three trailhead locations across the I-90 corridor.
This work began as a pilot project in 2023 with the Snoqualmie Tribe and the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, with help from the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust. The project’s simple yet ambitious aim is to connect people to the information needed to recreate with respect to wildlife and habitat.
2024 Impact
Staff and volunteers tallied nearly 14,000 total engagements at the Middle Fork Snoqualmie Trailhead and Campground, Pratt Lake Trailhead, and the Snow Lake Trailhead. Of those engagements, 3,700 resulted in conversations specific to wildlife and habitat and how to recreate with respect to natural resources while on public land.
Conducting 52 total outreach days across various locations, 30 Conservation Northwest volunteers helped staff educate the public about general wildlife awareness, best practices in bear and cougar country, and tips to reduce impacts to wildlife and habitat. This project also shared principles from the Snoqualmie Tribe’s Ancestral Lands Movement.
This summer, the project focused on encouraging trail users to stay on the trail, keep pets leashed, give wildlife space, and secure food or garbage, especially when camping. It also equipped trail users with specific “dos and don’ts” during possible encounters with bears or cougars.
The Wildlife Ambassador Project champions a wildlife-conscious outdoor ethic across Washington’s popular trails and campgrounds. While public lands offer a great source of enjoyment and provide myriad benefits like physical and mental health, we also know that wildlife and habitat are susceptible to negative impacts caused from outdoor recreation. It’s our responsibility to recreate with respect when we enjoy the great outdoors to ensure our public lands remain home to diverse wildlife and healthy ecosystems.
Thanks to the many volunteers who helped make this season a success!
From the Field
This project’s immense impact could not have been accomplished without its tireless and talented volunteers and seasonal staff. Hear more about the season from Conservation Northwest’s staff that led outreach at popular trailheads:
(Left) Conservation Northwest created distributed pamphlets about cougar and black bear. The Wildlife Ambassador Project distributed many ‘Recreate with Respect’ stickers (Right).
(Left) Whiteboards were a critical tool for public engagement at trailheads. (Right) Outreach tables invited the public to share their wildlife and wildflowers observations from the trail.
Looking Ahead
Next year, this project hopes to focus on additional high use areas where in-person outreach about wildlife can benefit the landscape and human visitors alike.
Are you interested in getting involved? If you have yet to volunteer with the project and would like to, please use this volunteer interest form and join us for Conservation Northwest’s 2025 Wildlife Ambassador Project volunteering training.
The Wildlife Ambassador Project is part of Conservation Northwest’s Wildlife-Recreation Coexistence Program, which aims to better outdoor recreation and wildlife dynamics through education, outreach, science and policy.
This project is done in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service, Snoqualmie Indian Tribe, and the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust, through a generous grant from:
The River Network
Learn more about the Wildlife Ambassador Project on its webpage.