Idaho Rangeland Conservation Partnership was excited to be able to get people back together for great information sharing, discussion, and breakout sessions at their 2022 Annual Meeting. One of the great strengths of IRCP has been the annual meetings where diverse stakeholders of Idaho’s rangelands gather to share information, cross-educate, and discuss with each other topics concerning Idaho’s rangelands. This year the meeting was held March 17 and 18 in Nampa at the Idaho Fish and Game office.
Opening speaker, Jared Talley, PhD, set the stage with his energetic and informative presentation on collaborating across differences. The session then continued with “Sage-grouse 3.0 — Greater Than Grouse” where panelists Matt Cahill, Sagebrush Sea Program Director for The Nature Conservancy; Brian Rutledge; Brett Dumas, Director of Environment Affairs for Idaho Power; and Jarod Blades, Branch Chief of Resources & Science Idaho State BLM shared their perspectives on the sage-grouse plans — what is working; what should be changed; how to keep from having to come back to this issue. Following the panelists presentations, there was opportunity for questions and discussion. The meeting attendees then counted off for breakout sessions where there were facilitated questions to continue the discussion and share out information from each group.
The second day opened with “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: How Can We Put It to Work for Idaho?” with IRCP Steering Committee Jason Pyron and with the USFWS as the Moderator. Panelists for this session were June Shoemaker, Idaho BLM Acting Associate State Director; Tawnya Brummett, Forest Supervisor Boise National Forest; and Darren Parker, State Director for Natural Resources, Senator Jim Risch.
The second topic for the was “Recreation — Getting Back on Track” moderated by Brenda Richards, IRCP Coordinator. Panelists sharing information on this topic were Brenda Richards, IRCP Coordinator; Gretchen Hyde, Idaho Rangeland Resources Commission Director; and Haley Netherton-Morrison, Boise State University. Haley shared information on the topic from a study she is working on centered around recreation in Idaho and rangelands. After the panelists presented their information their were questions and discussion, and then the meeting attendees again were counted off to participate in breakout sessions to continue discussion, learn from each other, and offer some ideas and thoughts around the increase in recreation on Idaho’s rangelands and thoughts on how to manage it.
Both days were recorded.
To view Day One’s recording click on https://youtu.be/rvdXvuUcouY
To view Day Two’s recording click on https://youtu.be/dZoDjxuwU6o