Northland College, Wilderness Inquiry Form Cooperative Alliance

Representatives from Wilderness Inquiry present Northland College President Michael A. Miller, left, with a miniature birch bark canoe commemorating a cooperative alliance between the two organizations. Pictured with President Miller are Northland alumna and Wilderness Inquiry staff member Hilary Bulger, center, and Wilderness Inquiry Executive Director Greg Lais, right. Photo courtesy of Northland College.

Northland College and Wilderness Inquiry are celebrating a new cooperative alliance that expands opportunities for people to participate in environmental education activities.

The agreement, signed at Wilderness Inquiry’s Minneapolis headquarters by Northland College President Michael A. Miller and Wilderness Inquiry Executive Director Greg Lais, outlines a dynamic partnership that will ensure new opportunities for students and educators across the upper Midwest.

“Wildnerness Inquiry has been a leader in environmental and outdoor education for many years,” said Miller. “We are proud to partner with an organization whose values are so closely aligned with our own.”

The agreement emphasizes collaboration between the two organizations, encouraging the development of joint programming for the region’s youth, the cross promotion of existing educational opportunities and the development of adaptive equipment to enable individuals with physical limitations to explore previously inaccessible wilderness areas.

“We've been hiring Northland College graduates for years, and we are very excited about the promise and potential of our partnership,” says Lais. “We work with thousands of youth in the outdoors, and every one of them should know about Northland as an option, especially if they are interested in the environment.”

Following the signing, Lais was joined by Northland alumna and Wilderness Inquiry staff member Hilary Bulger to present Miller with a miniature birch bark canoe, a traditional method of transportation developed by Native Americans and used extensively by both Native communities and fur-traders in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Wilderness Inquiry is a leading organization in outdoor education, leadership, adventure and inclusion training whose mission is to provide outdoor experience to people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds. Founded in 1978, the organization conducts over 250 events each year, serving more than 9,000 people annually.

Northland College and its Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute are located in Ashland. Founded in 1892, Northland enrolls 600 students from across the nation and across the world.