Vital Ground

One artist’s contribution to conservation.

Artist Claire Emery carved and painted these woodcuts for her 2026 calendar collaboration with the Vital Ground Foundation. Each monthly image tells a story about the nonprofit’s habitat-conservation projects. The stories behind each image are elucidated in the glossary, giving people around the state (and country) a taste of the critical land protection happening behind the scenes to maintain the character and ecological integrity of Montana. As Claire explains, “Bozeman, and the state in general, is changing rapidly with the influx of new people and businesses. The reason we all choose to live here—the wild country, the land-based culture—is at risk. Active conservation of our wild and working landscapes preserves what we cherish and love about Montana. Each image here tells a piece of that important story.”

September
Wetlands are fountains of life, sinks of carbon, and habitat often at risk. Beavers create and maintain them, and countless species follow, including humans. Along the Yaak river in northwest Montana, Vital Ground’s Broadie Habitat Preserve protects lush wetlands for grizzlies, beavers, and many, many more species.

October
Rub trees are the social media of grizzly life. In intact wild forests, a discerning eye will notice rubs on trees where bears scratch and rub their bodies on the bark. These rubs declare, “I am here!” Movements are recorded, territories are marked. And meanwhile, brilliant hunters from above, the goshawks thrive in these same wild forests. Who do you notice as you look and listen in the woods?

November
Wildlife corridors span valleys and rivers, linking mountain strongholds. Protecting privately-owned land within them is key for species such as grizzlies (and other widerangers) who require regional connectivity between ecosystems. Vital Ground’s Wild River Project helps conserve a formerly-subdivided corridor along the Kootenai River. These acres connect the Yaak Valley and the Cabinet Mountains of northwest Montana, and the small grizzly populations within them.

December
While bears hibernate, others range on. Wolverines, marvelously adapted for snow travel, persist in the Lower 48 in even smaller numbers than grizzlies. Even discerning eyes rarely see the elusive wolverine, but the discerning mind knows they are there, climbing ice walls, loping through snow, brilliantly thriving in a world where few can. Hail to the Wild Wolverine! Hail to Intact Wild Ecosystems where countless species thrive, and clean water comes from. Connected wild habitat benefits everyon—grizzlies, humans, wolverines, goshawks, and many other neighbors and friends. May we all be a part of it.