Fostering land stewardship and conservation in the American West
through teaching, research, outreach and leadership.
program impacts 2019
Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative (UHPSI) within the Yale School of the Environment focuses on stewardship and conservation in the American West. At its core, UHPSI seeks to engage in teaching, research, and outreach on land stewardship, primarily through mentoring students on applied research and management projects with western partners.
OUR TEAM
Indy Burke, PhD
Michelle Downey, MS
Current Students
Latest news
The Vital Role of Working Lands in Western Conservation—Annie Miller
Working lands — the farms, ranchlands, and working forests that support livelihoods — are a vital component of the western landscape, and their ecological, economic, and social importance is difficult to overstate. In addition to supplying much of the food we eat, they hold critical wildlife habitat, provide vital ecosystem services, and represent a way Read more about The Vital Role of Working Lands in Western Conservation—Annie Miller[…]
Improving Restoration Funding for Working Lands in Colorado
The Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust (CCALT) is exploring the development of an internally managed Agricultural Resiliency Fund to provide landowners with support for projects that contribute to the long term operational, ecological, and economic viability of conserved farm and ranchland, as well as wildlife habitat. CCALT’s portfolio represents over 450 conservation easements on working Read more about Improving Restoration Funding for Working Lands in Colorado[…]
Understanding the Impacts and Implications of Rural Gentrification in the American West
Many amenity towns in the Western United States are struggling with rapid in-migration and its corresponding impacts on natural resources, socioeconomic inequality, and community culture and character. The regional growth associated with three rural hubs in the West–Summit County, Colorado; Jackson, Wyoming; Bend, Oregon–can offer insights into this phenomenon of rural gentrification. In partnership with Read more about Understanding the Impacts and Implications of Rural Gentrification in the American West[…]
Rural Gentrification: The Housing Crisis — Mara MacDonell
There are two things that are common knowledge if you live in a ski town (and you don’t have a trust fund to support you): 1) Getting a job is easy, which is good because you’ll probably need at least two; and 2) there is no housing. Previous to matriculating at Yale, I lived in Read more about Rural Gentrification: The Housing Crisis — Mara MacDonell[…]
Is Oregon’s Land Use System Protecting Farmers? — Shannon Bell
Between 2001 and 2016, 11 million acres of farmland in the United States were developed, with 4.1 million acres converted to urban and highly developed land uses and almost 7 million acres converted to low-density residential use. The 2017 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Census revealed that from 2012 to 2017, the amount of Read more about Is Oregon’s Land Use System Protecting Farmers? — Shannon Bell[…]
Flagstaff, Arizona’s journey through rural gentrification — Molly Ryan
I’ve been living on the East Coast for over eight years now. When I meet someone new and tell them that I grew up in Arizona, they usually respond with a comment about the weather. “You must be used to this kind of heat!” they say. I know what they’re imagining: a dry, sandy landscape Read more about Flagstaff, Arizona’s journey through rural gentrification — Molly Ryan[…]
Climate Change and Plant Communities: Reshaping Ecosystems for Livestock and Wildlife — Scott Carpenter
During the month of August, I was unfortunate enough to be impacted by two extreme weather events associated with climate change. In Wyoming, multiple field days were cut short due to hazardous air quality resulting from the ongoing wildfires in California and Oregon. While 2020 saw the second highest acreage burned since 1960 (the highest Read more about Climate Change and Plant Communities: Reshaping Ecosystems for Livestock and Wildlife — Scott Carpenter[…]
Global change and root production: how does land use and climate change affect life belowground? — Uthara Vengrai
Roots do everything. They are the connector between plants and soil–the interface at which many of the transactions of life are made. Roots (with the help of their mycorrhizal associates) conduct a plant’s search for nutrients, water, and shelter. They scour the soil for the ingredients of life and support whole ecosystems of microorganisms, plants, Read more about Global change and root production: how does land use and climate change affect life belowground? — Uthara Vengrai[…]
Augmenting local water supplies in Southern California: Difficult Tradeoffs — Ryanna Fossum
Our day-to-day experience with fresh water varies drastically depending on where in the country we live. This week, as I pulled off a highway in Connecticut to avoid the torrential downpour from Hurricane Henri, I thought about my work back home in Los Angeles to adapt to long-term drought. If I had superpowers, one of Read more about Augmenting local water supplies in Southern California: Difficult Tradeoffs — Ryanna Fossum[…]
Why Water Utilities Should Invest in Natural (Green) Infrastructure — Lily Colburn
Water utilities provide drinking, wastewater, and stormwater services to millions of people across the United States, including for residential, commercial, and industrial uses. These essential service providers are responsible for offering safe and affordable resources to their customers, which include identifying, protecting, and enhancing a drinking water source, pumping water from the source to a Read more about Why Water Utilities Should Invest in Natural (Green) Infrastructure — Lily Colburn[…]
A Sustainable Redesign of the Secure Rural Schools Act: Reimagining county payments to prioritize the ecological and cultural value of forest ecosystems over the economic value of timber resources — Shannon Bell
In May of 2021, Janez Potočnik and Isabella Teixeira, the co-chairs of the International Resource Panel (IRP) that was launched by the United Nations Environment Programme, published a think-piece on how we should best value biodiversity. The piece, titled Building Biodiversity, asserts that our current approach to preserving biodiversity has failed to account for the Read more about A Sustainable Redesign of the Secure Rural Schools Act: Reimagining county payments to prioritize the ecological and cultural value of forest ecosystems over the economic value of timber resources — Shannon Bell[…]
Forest Collaboratives and Habitat Connectivity in the Northern Rockies
Laura is a Conservation Connect Fellow at the National Forest Foundation (NFF) and a U.S. Media and Storytelling Intern at the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative (Y2Y). Based in Missoula, MT, she is coordinating and facilitating forest collaboratives in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge and Idaho Panhandle National Forests with NFF. Her work involves facilitating conversations among collaborative Read more about Forest Collaboratives and Habitat Connectivity in the Northern Rockies[…]
Natural (Green) Infrastructure in Oregon
Lily is a Financial Analyst Intern with the Natural Infrastructure Initiative at the World Resources Institute (WRI). She is researching the relationship between resilient water utilities and environmental health. In particular, Lily’s work is centered on the need for more widespread financing and funding opportunities for natural (green) infrastructure projects in Oregon. She is researching Read more about Natural (Green) Infrastructure in Oregon[…]
An introduction to the wildlife crossing structures that help animals move over and under Highway 93 in the Flathead Reservation, Montana. —Luca Guadagno
Driving north of Missoula through the Flathead Reservation, vehicles on US Highway 93 pass under a semi-circle arch of a vegetated overpass. Built to facilitate wildlife movement across the busy road, the overpass is a visible reminder that motorists are not the only individuals moving across the landscape. What motorists may not see as they Read more about An introduction to the wildlife crossing structures that help animals move over and under Highway 93 in the Flathead Reservation, Montana. —Luca Guadagno[…]
In Colorado’s San Luis Valley, what happened in Crowley County is something of a ghost story.—Cloe Dickson
The two communities are not close, at least not geographically. From Alamosa County, the largest city in the San Luis Valley, Crowley County’s namesake town lies some 150 miles to the southeast. La Veta Pass, the route of the old Denver Rio Grande Railroad, offers east-west access through the magnificent Sangre de Cristo mountains, whose Read more about In Colorado’s San Luis Valley, what happened in Crowley County is something of a ghost story.—Cloe Dickson[…]