ASC, Sierra Club offers grizzly bear tracking programs Published July 19, 2012 BOZEMAN, Mont. -- Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation, a Bozeman-based, non-profit organization that links scientists in need of data with adventurers who want to protect the environments they travel in, has teamed up with the Sierra Club's Mission Outdoors Initiative to offer free grizzly bear tracking programs in several Western Montana mountain ranges during three weekends in September. These programs will be an experience of a lifetime for military veterans, their families and members of the public to learn how to track these amazing animals and contribute to an important body of knowledge imperative to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service's understanding of grizzly bear activities in the range. These citizen-science programs cultivate a sense of stewardship for the environment. ASC founder, Gregg Treinish explains, "When people participate in these projects, they connect with the landscape in a new way. In addition to greatly contributing to our scientific knowledge of this area, volunteers will gain a profound connection to the Western Montana ranges and one of their most charismatic species." ASC's grizzly tracking citizen-science program is in its second year, and the partnership with the Sierra Club will increase the reach and scope of the program both to foster an ethic of stewardship and an appreciation for wilderness, in addition to honoring military veterans and families. Participants will spend two days tracking and two nights camping and will receive training not only on the areas they are traveling in, but also in non-invasive grizzly bear tracking techniques and DNA collection. The experience of learning how to track animals in the wild and contributing to a body of science is rewarding, especially for those involved in the Sierra Club's Mission Outdoors Initiative whose bonds may have been tested while family members were away serving their country. Stacy Bare, the Sierra Club Military Family and Veterans Initiative coordinator, attributes the healing power of being outside and discovering the natural world as one of the best ways to connect with the family. "You can never go into the mountains and feel unchanged," she said. "When you're working together with such amazing animals like grizzlies, you have a touchstone experience. When things get tough, you have a wonderful memory to return to and you know you can get outside on your own with your family in a fun, safe way." This free opportunity is open to members of the public as well as military veterans and families, and will be offered three times - Aug. 31 through Sept. 2, Sept. 7 through Sept. 9 and Sept. 21 through Sept. 23. For more information or to sign up, visit the following website: http://www.adventureandscience.org/trackbears.html About Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation was founded in January of 2011 with the understanding that many people traveling in the outdoors genuinely want to do more for the places they visit but often struggle with how to help. ASC exists to bridge this gap by pairing adventure athletes already traveling to some of the earth's most difficult-to-reach places with the scientists who need information from these areas. ASC also has the goal of creating unique and innovative learning experiences about science while also saving the scientific and conservation communities millions of dollars in data collection costs. For more information on ASC, visit www.adventureandscience.org. About the Sierra Club Mission Outdoors Mission Outdoors is Sierra Club's initiative to provide access to outdoor experiences to people of all ages and backgrounds. Through direct programming, advocacy and education, Mission Outdoors aims to give all Americans a meaningful outdoor experience. Read more at http://www.sierraclub.org/missionoutdoors.