Neighbors helping neighbors: ranchers band together to fight wildfires in eastern Oregon
“I’ve got 5 volunteers moving my cows this morning - only 2 of them are related,” texted rancher and WLA contractor Kim Kerns, who runs cattle and sheep in Baker
Saving Water with Fire
Forest health collaboratives are using fire to steward healthy headwaters across public and private land. That hard work flows downstream to all of us. Jagged, snow-capped peaks tower above a thick
Media Luna
A few weeks ago, I visited several ranches west of Tucson, with a group of conservationists on a conference field trip. In the dry desert air of the Altar Valley,
The Diesel-powered Beavers of the Big Hole
In August of 1919, the Lower Big Hole River ran dry. Well, not completely dry. Water still trickled between the large cobbles of the freestone stream. But it was dry
Growing rain in the desert
Landowner innovation and long-term research is showing that low-tech restoration practices not only capture more rainwater, they may create more rain. In the desert of southern Arizona lies a remarkable story
Rancher innovations to support soil health and water management as the climate changes
Soil health is gaining increasing notoriety as a major driver of agricultural water efficiency and drought resilience. But how can ranch managers and graziers rapidly improve soil health to cope
Teens take on species recovery
Colorado high school students release 250 endangered razorback suckers into the Colorado River, helping the endemic fish climb back toward safety. Fifty years after President Richard Nixon signed the Endangered Species
All together for the grayling
The beautiful fish that ignited a pioneering collaborative conservation model in Montana may not survive climate change. Was it worth it? In the summer of 1988, as apocalyptic wildfires ravaged Yellowstone
A comeback for the ages
Black-footed ferrets were once counted out. Their remarkable recovery now depends on creative collaboration between landowners and public wildlife managers. The rain finally let up, and the thunder quieted to a
The Ghost of the Prairie
Finding an endangered species on his ranch scared the daylights out of Russell Davis. What he did next may have saved his town. It’s before dawn, and a group of bird
A military proving ground shaped this conservation tool
After 15 years of serving the military’s growing needs for a combined science and access management tool, iSportsman is now available to private landowners to manage safe recreation access on
Surviving and thriving through generational change
By staying rooted in relationships with each other and the land, the Babbitt family kept their historic ranch together and secured its legacy for generations to come.