Grand Canyon Wildlands Council formed in March 1996 after a handful of us heard Dave Foreman, Reed Noss, and Michael Soule present the Wildlands Project, a continental effort to protect and reconnect wildlands from the Yukon to Central America. Conservation biology and advocacy had come together in the Wildlands Project and its concerns matched our own--about how changes in surrounding lands and waters were altering wild nature in and around Grand Canyon and the Colorado River.

At the certain insistence of Kim Crumbo, our first president to be, we met over beers at Flagstaff’s Beaver Street Brewery and attempted to start a conservation group above the din of sports fans. To our betterment, or detriment (remains to be seen), we seem to have pulled it off. 

The Wildlands Council is a group of ardent conservationists, river runners, backcountry enthusiasts, land managers, university professors, and scientists. Many of our members have worked, studied, and practically lived in the Grand Canyon. The desire to take action emerges from this intimate familiarity. By whatever path you have come to love the wildlands of the Grand Canyon region, we welcome you to join us.