RISE Challenge Big Sky Summit
April 28, 2022 - 10:00 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. Best Western Plus Grant Creek Inn, Missoula, MT
Join us as finalist student groups compete for prize money at this exciting event! All participating students and adults, plus anyone wanting to show support for the students are welcome.
CONGRATULATIONS to our 2022 Finalist Teams!
Teams from the following schools will be competing at the Summit:
Aspire High School from Missoula
Frenchtown Elementary school
Ronan Middle School
Seeley-Sway high School
Two Eagle River School from Pablo
What is the RISE Challenge Big Sky?
The mission of RISE Challenge Big Sky is to create a generation of citizens with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to improve community resilience to natural disasters. Part inquiry-based learning, part competition, and part summit, it engages students in exploring their local communities to identify real-world environmental issues and develop solutions and action plans for making their communities more resilient.
What is the Summit?
Groups of western Montana middle and high school students and their teachers participated in the RISE Challenge Big Sky by selecting environmental issues impacting their communities, conducting in-depth research, interviewing experts, developing action plans for addressing the issues, and submitting written proposals explaining their plans. All written proposals are eligible for funds to implement their projects. The top student groups are invited to showcase their projects at the culminating Summit on April 28th for a chance to win unrestricted cash prizes between $200 and $1,000 from ASFPM.
How were the finalist student groups selected?
A panel of volunteer expert judges reviewed and scored the students’ written proposals using a scoring rubric. See judges’ bios below.
How will the Summit winners be chosen?
A second panel of expert judges will view each group’s verbal presentation, ask student representatives questions, and use a scoring rubric to determine the prize winners. See judges’ bios below.
Summit Agenda
Thank you to our teams of expert judges!
Written Proposal Judges:
Stephanie Hummel
Education Coordinator, Flathead Lake Bio Station
Stephanie is the Education Coordinator at the Flathead Lake Biological Station, working to connect local K-12 students with the amazing resources and ongoing research at the Station. Born and raised in Ohio, Stephanie moved to Montana during the summer of 2016 to work as an Interpretive Park Ranger at Glacier National Park. While at Glacier, she worked extensively with local students through the park’s Education Division and coordinated the park’s distance learning program. She has also worked at Zion National Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Laura Lundquist
Environmental Reporter, Missoula Current
After stints as an Air Force and airline pilot, Laura yearned to return home to Montana. With engineering and biology degrees, she landed a job with a Missoula environmental consulting company only to be laid off during the economic downturn in 2008. A friend recommended a career in environmental journalism. Since graduating from the University of Montana graduate journalism program in 2010, Laura has covered environmental issues in Idaho and Montana. Laura spends her free time playing music and exploring Montana’s mountains and rivers.
Cara R. Nelson
Professor of Restoration Ecology, University of Montana
Cara is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences at the University of Montana’s College of Forestry and Conservation and Director of the College’s Restoration Ecology Laboratory. The Lab generates knowledge about ecological processes associated with ecosystem degradation and repair - and innovates that knowledge into prescriptions for restorative interventions. Towards these ends, Cara and her students study the effects of large-scale disturbance on vegetation dynamics, the efficacy and ecological impacts of restoration treatments, and the science behind the selection of native plant materials. In addition to her position at the University, Cara leads the Ecosystem Restoration Thematic Group of IUCN’s Commission on Ecosystem Management and is a past Chair of the Society for Ecological Restoration. This past year, she led the effort to develop principles of ecosystem restoration to guide the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
Paul Rosenberg
President, Bitterroot Conservation District
Paul is a 24 year veteran of the US Navy and has a Bachelor of Science Degree in business from Hawaii Pacific University. He has 11 years of experience as a Soil Conservation Technician for the USDA Natural Resource and Conservation Service. He is a supervisor with the Bitterroot Conservation District and the current president of the Resource Conservation & Development Organization. Paul is an active member of his local American Legion Post and an all-around volunteer in many community service projects.
Summit Judges:
Sara Hartley
State Hazard Mitigation Officer for Montana and member of the Mitigation Team at Montana Disaster and Emergency Services (DES).
Sara works with federal agencies, state agencies, tribal partners, local jurisdictions, and private non-profits to further investment in natural hazard mitigation and resiliency across Montana. Sara was born in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (U.P.) and lived in Colorado for many years. She was the Hazard Mitigation & Resiliency Director for a local jurisdiction in Colorado where she assisted in recovery and mitigation efforts following a series of natural disasters before moving to Montana and beginning work with MT DES in 2019.
Marie Noland
Storm Water Maintenance & Program Specialist, City of Missoula
Marie is the Program Specialist for the City of Missoula, Department of Public Works & Mobility – Storm Water Utility and manages the storm water maintenance program. This program includes managing repair work on storm infrastructure with over 7,000 dry wells and over 70 miles of storm pipe, as well as assisting with maintenance on Missoula’s two federal levees and reporting to the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). She also organizes city programs with local non-profits for public outreach and education regarding the nature of storm water, its importance to our watershed, and how to keep our rivers, streams, and aquifer clean.
Traci Sears
NFIP/CAP Coordinator, DNRC
Traci is the National Floodplain Insurance Program (NFIP) Coordinator for the State of Montana. She works with local communities and state and federal partners on flood recovery, the Community Rating System (CRS), mitigation, flood insurance, policy issues, and permitting to reduce flood losses and build community resilience. Prior to joining the State of Montana, Ms. Sears started her floodplain management career while working as a local county planner in Montana. Her responsibilities included overseeing the Lakeshore Protection and CRS programs in Flathead County. Since 2004, she has held numerous positions on the Montana Association of Floodplain Managers (AMFM) Board. She also previously worked for United Way, directed a non-profit youth program, and was a proud member of the United States Coast Guard. Ms. Sears is a Certified Floodplain Manager and holds a B.A. in Criminal Justice with a minor in Planning from Florida Atlantic University. Ms. Sears is a founding member of the Montana Silver Jackets Program, the Montana Stream Restoration Committee, and Montana CRS Users Group. She is actively involved in national flood policy issues and is the current Region 8 representative with the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM). She advocates nationally for western state flood issues, the NFIP, and sound mitigation and land use planning.
Todd Seib
Environmental Health Specialist, Missoula Valley Water Quality District
Todd is a Water Quality Specialist with the Missoula Valley Water Quality District with a research background in toxicology and biochemistry. At the District Todd works to identify threats to our drinking and surface waters, inspect businesses to help prevent releases of chemicals into our environment, and bring awareness to the community about our sole source aquifer, and enforce local water pollution regulations.
Dan Spencer
Professor of Environmental Studies, University of Montana
With degrees in geology, theology, and ethics, Dan is active in many areas of teaching and research. He has three primary areas of interest: community participation in ecological restoration, environmental and social justice issues connected to economic globalization, and the intersection of religion, ecology, and environmental ethics. Dan is also a big proponent of experiential education. He has taken students to Latin America, southern Africa, and Vietnam to study issues related to sustainable development, environmental justice, and climate change adaptation. He also has taught for the Wild Rockies Field Institute and currently serves on the WRFI Board.
Check out winners from the 2021 RISE Challenge Big Sky
1st PLACE WINNER - Missoula Online Academy
$1,000 plus implementation funds
Project: Students recognize that we need people of all ages to create out-of-the-box solutions to problems surrounding local climate resilience. Students propose developing a Youth Climate Advisory Committee to serve their city and county in climate change issues and environmental concerns.
2nd PLACE WINNER - Aspire Middle School/Learning With Meaning, Missoula
$800 plus implementation funds
Project: The school’s new property experiences significant springtime flooding from the Bitterroot River. To use this part of their campus during that time, students propose carving wooden boats to get around the flooded land.
3rd PLACE WINNER - Arlee School
$600 plus implementation funds
Project: Students propose creating a Flood Risk Sign and volunteer monitoring process to show the current flooding risk in a place commonly seen by people in their community.
4th PLACE WINNER - Aspire High School/Learning With Meaning, Missoula
$400 plus implementation funds
Project: The school’s new property is prone to flooding from the Bitterroot River, which could impede learning and recreation. The flooding can’t be stopped, so students want to be able to travel around the area even with water everywhere. Students propose using a combination of waders and building artificial floating islands attached to a removable rope system.
5th PLACE WINNER - Ronan Middle School
$200 plus implementation funds
Project: The school and community have experienced unannounced power outages due to severe weather including high winds, winter weather, and flooding. Students propose designing a safety pamphlet, along with safety kits, to be distributed to school staff, students, and community members that describes a safety plan during such power outages.
