The Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center's Kirk Horn Memorial
INVENTOR'S CHALLENGE WINNER...
BEAR BOLTS V2!
The Kirk Horn Memorial Inventor’s Challenge main goal was to promote new ideas for products that reduce human conflicts with bears or wolves. The Purpose of the Inventor’s Challenge was to help advance promising ideas in development and help inventors who may not otherwise have the financial means to bring their idea to commercial realization. Each entry reflected an understanding of a specific bear or wolf conflict issue and how it would reduce that conflict.
The panel of judges, included engineers and biologists experienced in wildlife conflict management. After reviewing each application, a selection was made that they felt, in their sole discretion, best fit the Purpose of the Inventor’s Challenge.
The Kirk Horn Memorial
INVENTOR'S CHALLENGE
Bears Bolts V2 jumped into the grizzly den with their design idea and will be AWARDED $10,000 to take their idea to the next step.
Thank you to all the participants for your ingenuity and passion!
All participants can be provided with judge's comments upon request if desired.
The Inventor’s Challenge is dedicated to the memory of Kirk Horn, a career wildlife biologist, educator, and dedicated supporter of the Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center. His interest in the GWDC dates to its inception when Kirk served as Director of Wildlife and Fisheries for the USDA Forest Service Northern Region in Missoula, MT. In 1989, Kirk organized an annual grizzly bear management class for agency managers at Lamar Station in Yellowstone National Park, and this week-long class always included a visit to GWDC. After Kirk and his wife Beth both retired from the Forest Service in 1999, they moved to Hebgen Lake near the GWDC to enjoy the wildlife and outdoor recreation they so loved, especially during the region’s deep winters.
Kirk joined the GWDC Board of Directors in 2012 and subsequently served as Board President to 2018. During his tenure, Kirk was instrumental in bringing the GWDC Riparian Center to completion. Kirk passed in 2019 and is greatly missed by the GWDC and all who knew him. Yet Kirk’s passion for wildlife and conservation endures through the many programs and organizations he worked with during his career and retirement, and the many people he taught and inspired.
We are sure Kirk would be excited to see the new and innovative ideas proposed for the Inventor’s Challenge to reduce conflicts between people and bears or wolves.
