Resources

This video is one of a series produced by the Western Landowners Alliance that demonstrates the rewards, responsibilities, and challenges associated with ranching in the west. This episode follows the story of Cooper and Ashley Hibbard, fifth generation ranchers, as they explore progressive grazing strategies that improve the health of the land and the plants and wildlife that are an integral part of their Montana ranch.

See other videos from their Stewardship with Vision series.

This report provides members of the policy-making and land management community with an introductory understanding of the broad array of issues facing rural and mountain communities in Colorado due to extreme weather events and changes in historical weather patterns. The report explores a wide range of conversations and on-the-ground observations, including action strategies, from the ranching, farming, and recreation sectors which are augmented by local news coverage, government and non-profit sector reports, and the scientific literature.

A team from the Warner College of Natural Resources and College of Agricultural Sciences created the S&T Ranch Simulation Game—an interactive game that simulates the daily decisions required of managing a ranch. The game is based on state-and-transition (STMs) modeling approaches that are increasingly becoming popular tools in long-term planning. The game is designed to teach participants how to use ecological site descriptions, understanding the tradeoffs between ranch profitability and provision of ecosystem services, and recognizing the path dependence of transitions. The game was featured in a peer-reviewed paper in Rangelands, the journal for the Society of Rangeland Management.

A diverse conservation toolbox can access a wide range of financial incentives and target conservation efforts where they are most needed. Tools for Conservation on Private Lands provides an overview of different tools available to ranchers and landowners, highlighting a number of financial incentives that can be used to support conservation on private lands. Included in this report are summaries of findings from a survey of more than 300 conservation professionals with experience in the implementation and successes of strategies ranging from conservation easements to carbon offsets.