Wilderness First Responder (WFR) is an internationally recognized certification. The curriculum is based on the latest and best medical practice for delivering first aid without immediate access to a hospital or an ambulance. This course prepares you to make educated medical decisions in the back-country. Whether you are leading trips professionally or recreating personally, these… Read More →
Sigurd F. Olson Journal Entries The Singing Wilderness. The Singing Wilderness, published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1956, was Sigurd Olson’s first book, and it was immensely successful, becoming a classic of American nature writing. For Sigurd himself, it was the culmination of a long and hard-fought dream. The journal entries and letters below, along with…
Matt Claybaugh ‘87 (above center) is the co-author of a chapter in Stories from the Field: A History of Wilderness Therapy, and the president and CEO of Marimed Foundations, an organization that has changed the lives of at-risk Hawai`i youth, the majority of whom are native Hawaiian, through ocean wilderness therapy for the last twenty-four… Read More →
By Mark Peterson and David Zentner Lake Superior Wilderness Conference | September 5-6 | Duluth, MN Rarely is federal legislation passed today with such unanimity as happened with the Wilderness Act 50 years ago this week. The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Act 373-1. The Senate approved it 73-12. President Lyndon Johnson signed the… Read More →
Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award Winners • 1991. Open Spaces, Jim Dale Vickery. Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award (SONWA) gave its inaugural award to Minnesota author Jim Dale Vickery for Open Spaces , a book that takes the reader to the unpopulated spaces in North America. Vickery, who died in June 2014, continued to write about… Read More →
Listening to a story is a creative pastime—an ancient tradition of the human spirit—that adds to the value of a person’s life and can influence how they care for themselves and the Earth. Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute Youth Programs value creative endeavors connected with nature and youth. We have created this online video collection to…
About the time Sigurd F. Olson was crafting his first book, The Singing Wilderness, Donna Arbaugh and her new husband, George, were building a summer place near the Boundary Waters. It was 1954 and using only hand tools, they built a small, off-the-grid cabin on a lot they leased from the government for $50 per…
In 1955, fifteen years before the Apostle Islands became a national park, little was known about the ecology of the islands. Partial surveys had been done in the 1820s and in the early 1900s but nothing comprehensive. Two Northland biology professors set out to change that. With retired Professor Bob Newton as their advisor, Jesse…
This symposium will feature presentations focused on the natural and human history of the Apostle Islands. Presentations will be of varying lengths and some will provide details about recent and long-term research and management projects, while others will provide summary overviews of discoveries and findings from a variety of studies, activities, or projects.
