by Yellowstonian
As if pointing into the night sky and identifying a familiar constellation in the cosmos or even beholding the moon, there are universal places that most members of our species knows by heart. On terra firma, one of them is Yellowstone, perhaps the best-known nature preserve on this satellite we co-inhabit called Earth.
For the billions who are conversant with Yellowstone by name, most will never have the opportunity to visit but they can dream of doing so from afar—even from the other side of the world they can care, and in so doing, their curiosity and concern for the wild creatures who call the ecosystem home is its own form of advocacy.
A few years ago, Jenny Golding and George Bumann, a married pair who live in Gardiner, Montana near Yellowstone’s northern boundary had an idea: why not create a virtual “summit” (conference/convention/happening) that requires no physical commute or plane ride to attend, no hotel reservations, and can be accessed using a laptop or cell phone from anywhere on the globe where there’s internet?
It’s been a long while since any of the major conservation organizations in Greater Yellowstone staged an annual conference that explores the issues shaping this wildlife-rich region that is a national natural treasure. When Golding and Bumann launched their inaugural Yellowstone Summit, I referred to it as a kind of Yellowstone lollapalooza filled with entertaining conversations about our world’s first national park and forces shaping its larger whole.
That appellation was true then, and is truer today. Those of us who hold Greater Yellowstone in our hearts have a yearning, especially in these times, to come together. And we want to rally. You can attend by signing up here. To see the entire 2025 speaker line-up, click here. Given that this is the 30th anniversary of Yellowstone wolf reintroduction, the Summit has enlisted a range of renowned experts who will speak on everything from wolf behavior and the political environment in the Northern Rockies to trophic cascades and bioacoustics.
Yellowstonian is proud to be a media collaborator with the Yellowstone Summit and one of our contributions this year is a conversation with famed Yellowstone winterkeeper Steve Fuller (who is also a Yellowstonian columnist) and in the final stretch of his last season after spending 52 years at Canyon. This main entrée is only one dish among a smorgasbord of delicious food for thought being served up by Golding and Bumann. The headliners include prominent public land managers, scientists, artists, citizen advocates, experts on wildlife, geology and culture and many surprises thrown in.
A VIP Pass gives you virtual access to everything—dozens of stimulating conversations—and all for less than the cost of a lift ticket at a local ski resort or dinner at a fancy restaurant.
As an example of the depth, have a look below at the two-part conversation Yellowstonian had last year about Greater Yellowstonian’s amazing world-renowned wildlife migrations featuring Gregory Nickerson from the Wyoming Migration Initiative and Paradise Valley, Montana conservationist and tech guru Jeff Reed, who is at the forefront of bioacoustics work in Yellowstone. Read Yellowstonian story on that work being coordinated with lead park wolf biologist Dan Stahler.
A VIP pass allows you to savor all of offerings from the comfort of home or office at your own leisure—even while making a roadtrip. Yellowstone Summit, like Yellowstonian, is meant to be about rallying community. Below is a short conversation we recently had with Golding and Bumann.
Todd Wilkinson for Yellowstonian: Why did you create the Yellowstone Summit?
Jenny Golding: Yellowstone holds global significance and captivates a worldwide audience. For the 23-plus years we’ve been educating visitors in the park, we’ve had the privilege of engaging in conversations with scientists, historians, artists, photographers, writers, filmmakers, park managers, tribal representatives, naturalist guides, ranchers, seasonal employees, outfitters, local residents, and thousands of our own students. Through their perspectives, we’ve come to see Yellowstone in new and profound ways, deepening our own connection to this extraordinary place. We wanted to share those same kinds of meaningful, behind-the-scenes conversations with a broader audience—bringing together Yellowstone lovers from around the world to celebrate and honor this iconic ecosystem.
Yellowstonian: What’s been the greatest sense of satisfaction the two of you have enjoyed by bringing people together?
George Bumann: For me, the greatest sense of satisfaction comes in bringing together a world-class group of presenters–some of which the general public would never know existed without the Summit–and to see attendee’s reactions. I love seeing how the program elevates understanding, solidifies their desire to know more, and inspires us all to be a part of this one-of-a-kind place and the efforts that will ensure its future.
(NOTE: Enjoy the snippet below from 2024 featuring Golding herself discussing a 200-mile, 21-day hike through Greater Yellowstone from Turpin Meadows outside Grand Teton National Park e to the north entrance of Yellowstone).
Yellowstonian: You don’t have to live in Greater Yellowstone to “attend” the summit. By design you’ve created recordings that “participants” can watch at their leisure from anywhere in the world. Give us a sense of the level of interest in the GYE that exists nationally and globally.
Golding: Nearly 2000 people from across the globe attend the summit. Yellowstone lovers from every corner of the US to Europe, Australia, Canada, and the UK attend. To witness how much Yellowstone means to so many people, and to bring them together in one place for a few days of connection over the park we all love, is deeply rewarding.
Yellowstonian: You’ve been involved in many of the discussions. What have you learned?
Bumann: The overarching lesson for me is how little I actually know. As an educator and lecturer on Yellowstone Park topics, I’ve spent decades amassing an understanding the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, and yet, every presenter shares their wondrous slice of Yellowstone in ways that inspire me to dig deeper still. Bringing the Yellowstone Summit together and working with each of the speakers gives me ways to explore the park in ever more delightfully dizzying ways and to learn to see places I have known for years, for the first time again.
Yellowstonian: There is a staggering amount of ecological illiteracy out there and often the problem is exacerbated by the factless posts circulated on social media. On the other hand we have witnessed the transformative effects of people learning new things and becoming empowered to be more thoughtful passionate advocates for wildlife and natural places they inhabit. Can you each share an example of that happening?
Bumann: Each time a Yellowstone Summit participant emails and tells us that a backpacking program on the Summit inspired them to take their own first outing or that they discovered something new from the crows in their neighborhood from something shared at the Summit, I know we’ve hit the mark. Our goal is not only to transform the way we see and experience the first national park, it’s to re-invigorate direct involvement with the natural world across the globe and foster ecological literacy in the modern age. Yellowstone is a great place to inspire people to find the wildness wherever they happen to be, to celebrate it, cultivate it, and bring themselves into direct, meaningful relation again.
Golding: I’ll be honest that loving a place like Yellowstone is challenging; the pressures that threaten the park from seemingly every angle is heartbreaking, and facing them can feel insurmountable. What the summit does for me and so many others is remind us that we’re not alone in our deep caring for the park and our desire to make a difference, breathing new life into our commitment to protect this place. To be in community with so many other folks that care so deeply about Yellowstone, and to learn from speakers even more reasons why the park is such a precious place, is uplifting at a time when we need that energy more than ever.
Here is the full schedule of events for the 2025 Yellowstone Summit
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20
- Yellowstone Wolf Recovery: A 30 Year Retrospective with L. David Mech, Doug Smith, Ed Bangs, Mike Phillips, and Steve Fritts
- The Invisible Microbes in Old Faithful Geyser with Eric Boyd
- Yellowstone Safe Passages: Addressing Wildlife-Vehicle Conflicts in Montana’s Upper Yellowstone Watershed with Daniel Anderson
- Clark’s Nutcrackers and Whitebark Pine in Yellowstone National Park: Maintaining an Iconic Mutualism with Diana F. Tomback
- Yellowstone in Music: Classically Composed with Jett Hitt
- Mac’íispa – Geochemistry and Traditional Stewardship with River Webb
- 4pm Live: Summit Welcome and Kickoff Party with Jenny Golding and George Bumann
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21
- Microbes & Minerals: Revelations from Mammoth Terraces and Its Ties to Coral Reefs, Space, Roman Aqueducts and Your Kidneys with Bruce Fouke
- In the Tracks of the Grizzly with Casey Anderson
- Yellowstone for the Future: How to stay Informed and Support the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem with Cara McGary
- Call of the Wild: An Artist in Greater Yellowstone with Parks Reece
- Photographing a Winter Wonderland with Lisa Culpepper
- Yellowstone Wolf Stories from the Field with Rick McIntyre
- 2pm Live (VIP): Yellowstone Tracking Challenge: Test Your Wildlife Detective Skills with Brad Bulin
- 4pm Live (VIP): Indigenous Earth Science and the Nimiipuu (Nez Perce) Ethnogeology of Mac’ ispa (“The Smelly Place”/Yellowstone National Park) with Roger Amerman
- 6pm Live (VIP): Let’s Talk Yellowstone!
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22
- Deciphering Wolf Howls: Bioacoustics in Yellowstone with Jeff Reed
- Winterkeeper Stories with Steve Fuller and Todd Wilkinson
- What Lies Beneath: Exploring Yellowstone Lake’s Mysterious Vents with Rob Sohn
- Film Highlights of 2024 with Bob Landis
- Plan Your Yellowstone Trip with Shauna Baron
- Three Things in Yellowstone You Should Stop Ignoring with Cedar Mathers-Winn
- 12pm LIVE (VIP) Eavesdropping on Yellowstone’s Wildlife Presentation and Q&A with George Bumann
- 2pm Live (VIP): Into the Wild: Exploring Yellowstone’s Backcountry with Carolyn Bulin and Jenny Golding
- 4pm Live (VIP): The Legacy of Wolf 907 with Rick McIntyre
- 6pm Live (VIP): Yellowstone Trivia Night! with Nicole Harkness and Virginia Shoup
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23
- Beyond the Hype: Uncovering the Ecological Impact of Yellowstone’s Wolves with Dan MacNulty
- Having a Swell Time: A Celebration of Yellowstone in Postcards with Ruth Quinn
- Bringing Wolves Back to Yellowstone: Stories from the Project Veterinarian with Mark R. Johnson, DVM
- A Time to Bloom: A Phenology of Yellowstone Wildflowers with Sam Archibald
- Mindful Photography in Yellowstone with Jenny Golding
- 9am Photo contest entry and voting deadline
- 9am VIP Giveaway entry deadline
- 12pm Live (VIP): Let’s Talk Yellowstone!
- 2pm Live: Summit Wrap Up! Photo Contest, Giveaway, and Trivia Winners Announced
NOT YET REGISTERED? SIGN UP HERE
