Mountain & Prairie Podcast

Tony Bynum is a conservation photographer, scientist, and advocate who’s spent decades working at the intersection of public lands, Indigenous rights, and environmental storytelling. Based in Montana, his images have helped shape national conversations around energy development, landscape protection, and the cultural importance of the Northern Rockies. His work has been published widely and used by countless conservation organizations to make the case for protecting wild places. Before photography became his profession, Tony spent many years working for the Yakama Nation as a senior scientist, eventually landing in Washington, D.C., where he helped shape tribal environmental policy at the highest levels of government. But his path was never linear. A born-and-bred Westerner, he’s been a cowboy, a fly fishing guide, a federal program manager, and a backcountry wanderer. His guiding principle—“Don’t just love something, do something for it”—has carried him through an unconventional but deeply impactful career.