Mr. Durglo is a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (“CSKT” or “Tribes”) of the Flathead Reservation (“Reservation”), Montana. He is the head of the Tribal Preservation Department and the Chairman of the Tribes’ Climate Change Advisory Committee (“CCAC”), which directs the Tribal Government’s study of, and response to, climate change. The CCAC is responsible for development and implementation of the Tribes’ Climate Change Strategic Plan and oversees the local impact assessments that inform the evolution of the Plan. The Plan’s mitigation and adaptation strategies are guided by local impact assessments. These assessments evaluate the vulnerabilities and risks climate change presents to multiple aspects of Tribal and Reservation life, including forestry, land, fish, wildlife, water, air, infrastructure, people, and culture. Mr. Durglo directed the preparation of the Tribes’ Climate Change Strategic Plan in 2012 and 2013, and has been responsible for overseeing subsequent updates of the Plan in 2016, and now the ongoing 2022 update.
Mr. Durglo has spoken with and documented the histories of numerous Tribal elders. These elders gained their knowledge through the passing on of stories from their ancestors, a body of knowledge that, taking into account their approximately 70-80 years of life, covers 150 to 250 years of Tribal history. These Tribal elders have made important climate change observations based on their ancestral knowledge and their own lived experience.
Mr. Durglo also directs the EAGLES program for Tribal youth. EAGLES stands for Environmental Advocates for Global and Local Ecological Sustainability. The program engages Tribal youth to increase their awareness of and involvement with environmental and climate change issues in their local communities on the Reservation.
Mr. Durglo received a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from the Salish Kootenai College in 2002. In addition to his current roles as Head of the Tribal Preservation Department and Chairman of the CCAC, he has worked for the Tribes for more than three decades in different capacities. Mr. Durglo has been involved with the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals’ Climate Change Adaptation Planning Workshop. He also served as the co-chair of the National Tribal Science Council and the chair of the EPA Region 8 Tribal Operations Committee, which consists of EPA tribal environmental directors in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and North and South Dakota.
In 2016, Mr. Durglo received the White House Champions of Change for Climate Equity Award for his work on the Reservation. The award recognizes work that empowers low-income and underserved communities to prepare for and adapt to climate change. In 2017, he received the Climate Adaptation Leadership Award for Natural Resources from the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies. Mr. Durglo has taught workshops and seminars on climate adaptation planning throughout North America.