January is Roadless Month on The Wild Idea.
Throughout the month, we’re exploring the landscapes, communities, and ideas shaped by America’s roadless public lands — and what’s at stake as these protections face renewed threats.
Why? Because decisions being discussed right now affect public land forever.
Join us all month long for conversations about roadless landscapes across the country, from the Southern Appalachians to the Tongass, the Gila Wilderness, and beyond. Check back for new episodes, resources, and opportunities to engage all month long, and please follow us on social media or share this episode with a friend.
The Badger–Two Medicine is a place where roadless protection, wildlife habitat, and deep Indigenous responsibility converge. For generations, it has been central to the lifeways, origin stories, and stewardship practices of the Blackfeet Nation — long before Montana existed as a state.
As The Wild Idea continues Roadless Month, hosts Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds turn their focus to one of the most culturally and ecologically significant landscapes in Montana: the Badger–Two Medicine, located on traditional Blackfeet Nation lands and one of Montana’s most significant roadless areas.
Situated along the Rocky Mountain Front, just south of Glacier National Park, the Badger–Two Medicine is a place where roadless protection, wildlife habitat, and deep Indigenous responsibility converge. For generations, it has been central to the lifeways, origin stories, and stewardship practices of the Blackfeet Nation — long before Montana existed as a state.
Joining the conversation are Terry Tatsey, a member of the Blackfeet Nation with lifelong ties to the Badger–Two Medicine, and Peter Metcalf, Executive Director of the Glacier–Two Medicine Alliance. Together, they explore why this landscape matters, how decades of advocacy successfully ended oil and gas leasing in 2023, and what is now at stake as the U.S. Department of Agriculture considers rescinding the Roadless Rule.
Terry shares teachings passed down from his grandparents and elders, describing the Badger–Two Medicine not only as a refuge for wildlife and food, but as a place of balance, responsibility, and reciprocity. Peter offers historical and geographic context, explaining how the Badger–Two Medicine functions as a keystone landscape connecting Glacier National Park, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, and the Great Plains.
The episode also examines how roadless protections have shaped travel management, conservation outcomes, and community collaboration — and why the potential loss of the Roadless Rule threatens to unravel decades of progress.
Today we discuss:
- The cultural and spiritual significance of the Badger–Two Medicine to the Blackfeet Nation
- Intergenerational teachings, responsibility, and reciprocity on the land
- The formation and work of the Glacier–Two Medicine Alliance
- Oil and gas leasing threats and the decades-long effort to stop them
- How the Roadless Rule protects landscapes without wilderness designation
- Wildlife, water, and ecological connectivity along the Rocky Mountain Front
- Travel management, road closures, and community-led conservation victories
- Tribal consultation, policy gaps, and Indigenous leadership in land protection
- What rescinding the Roadless Rule could mean for the Badger–Two Medicine in Montana and beyond
Links & Resources
Policy & Legislation:
- The Roadless Rule (U.S. Forest Service, 2001)
Organizations & Advocacy:
Places & Landmarks:
Connect with Today's Guests
Terry Tatsey (Miastowatsis) Crow Tail Feather was born and raised on the Blackfeet reservation and has lived on the family ranch on Badger Creek his entire life. Terry raised his family on the ranch, worked for Blackfeet Community College and served on the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council.
Peter Metcalf is the Executive Director of Glacier-Two Medicine Alliance, a community-based grassroots conservation organization located on the Blackfeet Nation in NW Montana. Through grassroots advocacy, public policy work, and strategic partnerships, he works to protect wild public lands from development and improve their management, support Indigenous shared stewardship, enhance connectivity between protected areas, and recover native species like grizzly bears and bison.
Prior to joining GTMA in 2019, he completed an MS in Environmental Studies and most of a Ph.D. in Forestry and Conservation Science at the University of Montana, with an emphasis in natural resource governance and policy. A long-time wilderness river and backpacking guide and outdoor educator, Peter is passionate about connecting people to wild places and inspiring them to defend and steward wild, intact landscapes and native species. In his free time, Peter enjoys exploring Montana’s public lands and rivers by foot, boat, or ski, gardening and cooking, and cheering on the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.
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