Engage Western Montana’s Glacier Country is a tool to facilitate communication, encourage participation, enhance transparency, collect feedback, build community connections, support inclusive engagement, and promote education and awareness.

It is an important tool for Western Montana’s Glacier Country Community Engagement Program, which was implemented to foster community engagement, and to build public support around a shared vision for the destination—balancing economic development, sustainable tourism and quality of life.

Western Montana's Glacier Country is a regional nonprofit organization with a focus on ensuring economic sustainability for the region while preserving the quality of life for residents and quality of place for visitors. We are recognized as the official destination organization (DO) for Western Montana and are funded in part by the Montana Lodging Facility Use Tax and by private partnership funds. The Glacier Country region includes Flathead, Glacier, Lake, Lincoln, Mineral, Missoula, Ravalli and Sanders counties.

Vision

Western Montana’s Glacier Country will be the leading destination steward of our region’s cultural heritage and natural environment, balancing the quality of life of our residents with the quality of our visitor experiences.

Mission

Western Montana’s Glacier Country partners with Western Montana communities to welcome visitors and support livelihoods while protecting quality of life, extraordinary outdoor resources, and cultural heritage.

Strategic Pillars and Deliverables

• Be an Advocate for Western Montanans: Represent local interests in tourism development.
• Encourage Responsible Tourism: Promote sustainable practices among visitors and stakeholders.
• Enhance Experiences in Rural Communities: Bring tourism benefits to less-visited areas.
• Shape Demand & Disperse Visitors: Manage tourist flow to protect natural resources and community well-being.
• Stakeholder Alignment: Foster collaboration among residents, businesses, and visitors for mutual benefit.

The five strategic pillars and deliverables are a direct result of Glacier Country’s Destination Stewardship Plan, a community-driven plan developed from extensive community input collected from meetings, focus groups, surveys and individual discussions in all eight counties.

Glacier Country’s Community Engagement Program—a program born from the Destination Stewardship Plan—seeks to work with community members to identify and address issues that affect the community’s well-being, support efforts to promote sustainable tourism, and increase awareness and communication surrounding important matters within their communities.