Duane Matt

Duane Matt is a member of the Confederated Salish Kootenai and Pend D ‘Oreille tribes located on the Flathead Indian reservation located in western Montana.  Mr. Matt currently works as a Geologist with the Division of Energy and Mineral Development (DEMD) in Lakewood, CO.  DEMD is part of the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development (IEED.)  He previously worked as both a Reclamation Specialist and Technology Coordinator with the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) in Denver, CO.  Both DEMD and OSMRE are part of the Department of the Interior (DOI).

Before working for DEMD, Duane worked for the Bureau of Land Management (Initial Attack Fire Dispatcher), Scientific Applications International Corporation (Field Geologist), Bureau of Reclamation (Geological Intern), United States Department of Agriculture (Smokejumper), Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (Minerals department) and National Park Service (Helitack/Firefighter). 

Duane also worked as a schoolteacher on the Laguna-Acoma reservation in New Mexico.  He holds a Master’s Degree in Geology and a Bachelor’s Degree in both Geology and English/Secondary Education.  Mr. Matt was a member of the University of Montana cross-country and track-and-field teams 1986-1990. He also possesses six years of experience coaching both boys’ and girls’ high school cross-country and track-and-field.  Duane is a founding board member of the Society of American Indian Government Employees, a Lifetime SAIGE member, and has served on the SAIGE Board of Directors for many years in different capacities.  Duane is also a member of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES.)