Kathleen Voight is working with the Additive Conservation department of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust (CCALT) to determine funding priorities for their internally-managed Agricultural Resiliency Fund. CCALT holds easements over 700,000 acres of ranchland across Colorado, with the goal of conserving working landscapes for the benefit of future generations. The Agricultural Resiliency Fund will support landowner-initiated projects that enhance conservation values, ecosystem services, and agricultural viability on ranches under conservation easements. Projects might include improving water infrastructure, restoring wildlife habitat, and increasing fire mitigation on private lands. Rangelands cover nearly two-thirds of Colorado. When managed effectively, rangelands provide numerous ecological benefits, all while supporting local communities and livelihoods. Our research will determine priorities for CCALT’s Additive Conservation team in order to develop a strategic framework for evaluating proposals and allocating funding through the Agricultural Resiliency Fund. This project builds upon research completed by a team of last year’s Ucross Research Assistants.
FELLOWSHIP BRIEF
COLLABORATOR
Brendan Boepple (MEM ’19) — Director of Additive Conservation at The Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust (CCALT)
STUDENT RESEARCHERS
Kathleen Voight, Research Assistant | Kathleen Voight is a Master of Environmental Science candidate interested in agricultural land management throughout the Rocky Mountain West. Her research focuses on resiliency and drought adaptation in crop production and livestock grazing in southern Colorado. Prior to coming to the Yale School of the Environment, Kathleen worked in environmental education and in agriculture, growing diversified vegetables and raising pastured livestock, in Colorado. Kathleen holds a BA in History of Art from Yale University and she is a current Rocky Mountain Farmers Union Fellow. In her free time, Kathleen likes to bike, hike, and ski as often as possible. See what Kathleen has been up to. | Blog