Mongolia
Kent Madin Biography
In 1984, Kent Madin and Linda Svendsen, directors of Boojum Institute, had an opportunity to organize a group of friends to take the first group of tourists to visit the Wolong Panda Reserve . While on that trip they realized how narrowly the Chinese government defined tourism, largely a matter of herding large groups from meals to museums to shopping to hotels. Kent and Linda plotted with their local guide, Lin Xue Biao, to bring groups to China for adventures: hiking, horseback riding, rafting, cycling.
Forming Boojum Expeditions, Kent and Linda organized the first horseback trek in Inner Mongolia. During the next decade they pioneered trips on horse, foot, mountain bike and raft in China, Tibet, Xinjiang and Manchuria. On that first Inner Mongolia ride, they were married in a traditional Buddhist ceremony.
In 1993 a contingent of Mongolians (Outer Mongolia) visited Bozeman Montana on an exchange program organized by the US State Department. With their interest in Asia, Kent and Linda were invited to be part of the hosting team. From that meeting, Boojum's involvement in Mongolia began. Sensing another opportunity, Kent and Linda sought out partners in Mongolia to establish a local tourism company and develop adventure tours by jeep, horseback, foot, camel and kayak. Starting with a first horseback trek in 1994, Boojum Expeditions now offers a full range of travel experiences in Mongolia, supported by Khovsgol Lodge Management Company, our subsidiary office in Ulaan Baatar founded in 1998. We have full time local staff in Ulaan Baatar capable or arranging and guiding any trip you can devise.
Kent and Linda are also the founders of the Boojum Charitable Fund, a non-profit dedicated to connecting travelers and their donated funds directly to specific local projects in health, education and sustainable development.
In 2007, Kent was asked to become the Honorary Consul of Mongolia representing the Northern Rockies (MT, WY, ID) because of his extensive knowledge of Mongolia and Boojum's history of supporting local communities and Mongolian/ American relations.
