Case Study: The Four Corners Foundation
Conservation is a way of protecting the future
How Four Corners Foundation transformed environmental permitting in Montana: faster processes, more precise information, and a better-protected natural environment.
Research, educate, empower
Four Corners Foundation (4CF) is a non-profit organization founded in 2003, dedicated to promoting the strategic and mindful use of water in the Gallatin River watershed and other regions of Montana. It works alongside local conservation districts to sustain the balance between agriculture, sport fishing, and the communities that depend on these rivers.
Protecting before managing
Montana is one of the last places in the United States where virtually intact cold-water watersheds still exist: critical habitat for wildlife and a livelihood for farming communities that rely on century-old water rights. But that abundance is fragile, population growth, urban expansion, and climate change are all putting pressure on wetlands and floodplains, placing at risk a balance that belongs to nature itself.
Modernizing Environmental Management
Before a digital system was introduced, environmental permitting in Montana was 100% manual: paper, spreadsheets, and a lot of time in between. There was no centralized traceability or historical visibility. Coordinating applicants, district administrators, inspectors, and agencies depended on this process, leaving room for information to get lost along the way.
Behind every permit is more than just an administrative process: it represents a vast territory where many realities coexist, and where every decision can affect an interconnected ecosystem. Snow acts as a natural water reservoir, accumulating during the winter and gradually being released throughout the spring, when the land needs it most. But population growth and climate change are accelerating snowmelt each season, disrupting a rhythm that nature has regulated for centuries. Every permit processed has a direct or indirect impact on this delicate balance.
When the project reached AH, we were not starting from scratch. We inherited an early-stage platform with two user types—administrators and applicants—and basic functionality already built by another team. The challenge was to bring the system up to the level required for the organization to operate with confidence. This meant strengthening the product, designing an experience tailored to the different roles within the system, and integrating historical and current information to provide a stronger foundation for conservation decisions.
With information, technology, and thoughtful planning, it is possible to protect these natural resources and preserve the balance on which an entire region depends.
Seeing It Up Close Changes How You Value It
Understanding Montana meant being there: traveling through the Gallatin River watershed, grasping its true scale, and understanding everything at stake.
Improving a system that was already in use meant working closely with the people who rely on it every day. Before touching a single line of code, we spent time with district administrators, gaining an on-the-ground understanding of how they actually manage each permit in practice.
Field research
Improvements were validated and prioritized alongside the people who use the system every day—not based on assumptions or from a distance.
Quality Processes
Structured testing and regression cycles helped maintain system stability as new features were added.
Working with people who are so passionate about what they do and the causes they stand for is contagious, it inspires enthusiasm and makes the cause feel like our own.
The name is no coincidence: in Old Gaelic, gilly means a guide on an expedition through the wilderness or along a river. It perfectly captures the role this platform plays for those managing permits involving Montana's rivers, wetlands, and floodplains.
Technology in Service of Montana's Rivers
Gilly was created to scale the permitting process known as the “Joint Application 310” without compromising rigor or oversight. What began as a pilot project for the Gallatin River watershed has evolved into a statewide platform.
End-to-End UX and User Experience
Redesigned core workflows, a refreshed interface, and purpose-built features designed to make day-to-day work simpler and more efficient.
AI-Powered Digitalization
Automatic data extraction from PDFs of historical and active permits, eliminating manual data entry, streamlining form completion, and bringing all information predating Gilly into the system.
Event Geolocation
Joint applications, emergency permits and complaints are displayed geographically for easy reference. Submissions can also be made directly by clicking on the map.
Permits and complaints registry
List of all historical and active permits, as well as the complaints on record. Provides visual access to supporting evidence, construction schematics, legal documentation, and digital signatures from all involved parties.
Offline Permit Inspections & Signatures
Inspectors can access permit data and work in situ using the inspector app. Complete forms and sign permits anywhere, with or without an internet connection. Review pending permits, complete inspections, and securely sign documents even when offline.
AI-assisted document scanning
AI-assisted form completion for legacy paper permits. Users can upload PDF documentation, and AI automatically extracts the relevant information to complete permit forms to build a solid historical record online.
Step-by-Step Guidance & Remote Assistance for Joint Applications
Intuitive UI guidance helps users navigate complex joint applications and permits step by step. Additionally, remote assistance enables staff to co-complete these forms with applicants, who can then review and digitally sign the completed documentation anywhere.
Screen 1 of 5: Event Geolocation
Information Drives Action
That's how long it now takes an applicant to complete a permit in Gilly, compared to the previous manual process.
Since AH took over the project in January 2024, the number of users has tripled, with no adoption friction.
Each of these districts now operates on the Gilly platform.
A complete historical record, digitized and centralized in a single system.
What Transcends
Every digitized permit, every district that joins the platform, and every hour an administrator saves from manual work means more time and focus redirected toward what truly matters: making informed decisions that support more efficient management of the rivers that sustain wildlife, agriculture, and entire communities.
When AXIS HUMAN joined this project, we took on more than a software development challenge. We made a conservation cause our own, one with a real impact on one of North America's most valuable freshwater ecosystems.
“A river is more than an amenity, it is a treasure.”
