Category: Projects

Now Hiring Students and Open House

Posted on by Downey, Michelle

Ucross High Plain Stewardship Initiative (UHPSI) is now HIRING graduate and undergraduate students enrolled in courses to work as research assistants or speaker coordinators during the academic year (September/Oct 2020– May 2021). Projects focus on applied conservation and stewardship issues in the West and collaborate with western partners. All work will be completed remotely.  Information on how to apply and projects Read more about Now Hiring Students and Open House[…]

FAQ for Student Research Assistants

Posted on by Downey, Michelle

Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative typically hires students, undergrad to PhD, to work as paid research assistants during September/October-May to complete conservation work for a western partner. This program is referred to as our Research Assistant program. The projects are selected by UHPSI staff and will be advertised early in the semester. Student applications for Read more about FAQ for Student Research Assistants[…]

Saving Grasslands with Stakeholder Collaboration — Humna Sharif

Posted on by Downey, Michelle

Preview: Grassland habitats across the world are facing multiple threats due to anthropogenic changes, and species dependent on these ecosystems are suffering as a result. In North America, the Thunder Basin Region represents one of the remaining contiguous expanses of intact grasslands. There are conservation practices already taking place in Thunder Basin, and new approaches are Read more about Saving Grasslands with Stakeholder Collaboration — Humna Sharif[…]

Balancing Rights in the Context of Outdoor Recreation — Talia Niederman

Posted on by Downey, Michelle

As the number of outdoor recreationists expands due to a confluence of improved technology and social trends, humans and wildlife increasingly overlap in their demands for natural spaces. Over this past year, our UHPSI project team has explored this issue in the context of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. A dramatic and alluring landscape, this region Read more about Balancing Rights in the Context of Outdoor Recreation — Talia Niederman[…]

Annual Report 2019 — Michelle Downey

Posted on by Downey, Michelle

Please find our 2019 annual report below. We are incredibly grateful for all the partnerships and collaborations that have allowed UHPSI to provide over 65 students with experiential learning opportunities during 2019. Thank you to our students, partners, and supporters! Full PDF 2019 Annual Report here.

Wildlife-Friendly Ranching in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Rory Jacobson and Anna-Sophia Haub are working with partners at the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, and the University of Pittsburgh to study ranchers’ perspectives on conservation and wildlife management in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. To understand the economic, social, and cultural drivers behind these perceptions and management strategies, they are Read more about Wildlife-Friendly Ranching in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem[…]

Climate Vulnerability in the Crown of the Continent

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

UHPSI students collaborated with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to assist with a Landscape Conservation Design (LCD). The Crown Managers Partnership created this design to model spatially-explicit future conditions in the Crown of the Continent ecosystem, which encompasses parts of Montana, Alberta and British Columbia. As a preliminary step in LCD development, our student research Read more about Climate Vulnerability in the Crown of the Continent[…]

Development of a Feasibility Tool to Evaluate Grassbank Potential in Thunder Basin, Wyoming

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Our team worked with The Nature Conservancy Wyoming to research the feasibility of a creative approach to grassland conservation in the Thunder Basin region of Wyoming. The approach is called “grassbanking” and it brings together ranchers and conservation organizations to enhance environmental performance and ranching livelihoods by offering access to discounted grazing leases in exchange Read more about Development of a Feasibility Tool to Evaluate Grassbank Potential in Thunder Basin, Wyoming[…]

Highlighting Indigenous Relationships in the West: A Special Issue of Indigenizing the News

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Indigenizing the News is a digital magazine dedicated to Native nations, cultures, and contemporary issues in North America. Through a special issue of the monthly newsletter, Meghanlata Gupta shared a variety of news articles, videos, and images that discuss how Indigenous communities collaborate with local, state, and federal governments to pursue shared management and conservation Read more about Highlighting Indigenous Relationships in the West: A Special Issue of Indigenizing the News[…]

Western Speaker Series

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

The Western Speaker Series connects conservation professionals and Yale students to explore and discuss a range of issues facing land stewardship in the American West. The Symposium Coordinators worked with UHPSI staff to plan presentations, career chats, and technical training by western conservation professionals that provide our students with valuable knowledge and insight. The 2019-2020 Read more about Western Speaker Series[…]

Impacts of Recreation on the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

In partnership with the Northern Rockies Conservation Cooperative, UHPSI research assistants investigated trends, conditions, and projections surrounding recreation in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) to identify possible recreation ethics for the region. Growing negative impacts of recreation on the ecosystem necessitate a reevaluation of attitudes surrounding recreational access and growth. Through conversations with participants in Read more about Impacts of Recreation on the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem[…]

Solar Feasibility Study for Tensleep Preserve in North Central Wyoming

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

UHPSI research assistants worked in partnership with The Nature Conservancy’s Tensleep Preserve, located in North Central Wyoming, to conduct a solar feasibility study for the preserve. Renewable energy technologies like solar and wind play an increasingly important role in building rural energy independence and resilience. Efforts to pursue this study were in response to the Read more about Solar Feasibility Study for Tensleep Preserve in North Central Wyoming[…]

Pulse of the River —Reid Lewis

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

The Southwest is a dry place. This statement should not surprise anyone; when you think of Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico, you think of Prickly Pear and Saguaro, desert sunsets and dusty streets. What may not so quickly come to mind are the rapidly growing cities of Los Angeles, Phoenix, Albuquerque, Denver, and Las Vegas. Read more about Pulse of the River —Reid Lewis[…]

Engaging the Jackson Hole Latinx and Youth Communities in Bridger-Teton National Forest Review Processes —Eve Barnett, Haley Leslie-Bole, and Jesse Bryant

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

BACKGROUND Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF) in western Wyoming is the third-largest forest in the continental United States. It is a key piece of the biodiverse Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, home to everything from charismatic megafauna like wolves and grizzly bears to birds and trout. It is also a place that has been shaped inexorably by human Read more about Engaging the Jackson Hole Latinx and Youth Communities in Bridger-Teton National Forest Review Processes —Eve Barnett, Haley Leslie-Bole, and Jesse Bryant[…]

Urbanization & Human-Wildlife Conflict in the West —Amy Zuckerwise

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Black bear at a bird feeder Carnivores have become social media sensations when they enter into urban areas. Hundreds of videos of bears breaking into houses and raiding the refrigerators or mountain lions lying under an unsuspecting resident’s back porch can be found with one quick online search. After a predator shows up in a Read more about Urbanization & Human-Wildlife Conflict in the West —Amy Zuckerwise[…]