The Right Place^TM Campaign

We don't need to save thousands and thousands of acres—
just those acres in exactly the right place.

–Douglas Chadwick (Wildlife Biologist, Author and Vital Ground Board Member)

Vital Ground is taking action to reverse loss of habitat and declining grizzly numbers by launching The Right Place_^TM Campaign, an endeavor to purchase biologically important tracts of private land in northwestern Montana, northern Idaho and British Columbia.

In the northern Rockies, millions of acres of public lands are fairly well protected and serve as core habitat areas for grizzlies and other wildlife species. But separating these core habitats are strips of privately owned property containing homes, businesses, ranches and transportation corridors. The increased development and traffic in these areas disrupt wildlife movement across the landscape. 

Given the vastness and natural abundance already found in our forests and parks, we don't need to save thousands and thousands of acres of private lands. We only need to save the tens or hundreds of acres that strategically connect these core habitats—only those acres that are in exactly the right place. Vital Ground has been working with conservation and wildlife management partners for several years to strategically identify the private lands—the right places—that, if permanently protected, will allow natural grizzly bear movements between ecosystems and help prevent possible demographic and genetic isolation.

The Right Place_^TM Campaign contains two fundraising initiatives to address habitat conservation in this trans-border region: the Cabinet-Purcell Wildlife Linkage Initiative and the Selkirk Grizzly Bear Habitat Conservation Initiative. Through these initiatives, Vital Ground is conserving key lands via fee title acquisitions and conservation easements in identified linkage areas.

Donate: The Right Place_^TM Campaign represents one of the greatest fundraising challenges in Vital Ground's twenty-year history. Every dollar you contribute helps us secure key parcels and makes a huge impact on protecting grizzly bear habitat and wildlife corridors in the trans-border region.

We are currently raising funds to purchase properties in two defined linkage areas (Highway2/Troy and Highway 200/Noxon) under the Cabinet-Purcell Fund. 

Linking Landscapes: Protecting  landscape linkages is crucial to ensuring the viability of the grizzly bear populations of northern Idaho and northwestern Montana. 

To learn more about The Right Place_^TM Campaign and the linkage zones we are conserving, explore the Linking Landscapes: Connecting Grizzly Bear Recovery Zones map.