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Our Work...
The O'Connor Center is a research and public education program focused on
building a better understanding of the rich past and promising future of the
Rocky Mountain West region of the U.S. and Canada. By expanding its view
of the entire Rocky Mountain West from its home in Missoula, Montana, the
O'Connor Center is uniquely positioned to do work of significance to the entire
region. Regions emerge from real connections between people and
places. The Center honors these connections by reaching across the
boundaries of disciplines, ideologies, and political jurisdictions to affirm
the growing importance of land-based and regionally defined places in cultural,
social, and economic life.
Working up and down regional scales across the disciplines of history,
socioeconomics, and public policy, the Center engages in wide-ranging
activities in research, teaching, and public education.
Regional history and culture - Only in the telling of the region's
stories can the patterns of living here be revealed and understood.
Through public presentations and conversations - lectures, symposia, exhibits,
publications, and scholarly research - we offer opportunities to celebrate the
region's culture, understand its heritage, and weave varying threads of our
regional identity.
Regional economy - Throughout history, regions that prosper, both
materially and culturally, are ones that understand their past as well as
continually engage in shaping their future. The region's economy is
changing in dramatic ways and this change offers both challenges and
opportunities. Successfully adapting to this change requires constant
learning at the community and regional levels.
Regional public policy - From population growth to energy development to
public lands management, the Rocky Mountain West faces unique challenges in
public policy. The region has a long history of divisiveness and
brittleness in many important areas of political discourse. We attempt to
bring additional information and understanding to important issues, and work in
partnership with others to explore possibilities for the future.
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