Diane Snyder

Excerpt from Program:
"Hope and inspiration will mobilize communities across the west into action. For almost a decade, Wallowa Resources has been working in Wallowa County to create a new relationship between the land and community. This organization is one example of 'what can be done' and has begun to pave the way for a new conservation economy, driven by ecologically sensitive land management techniques, the use of local knowledge with science, and the passion and collective resources of a diverse set of stakeholders.

"Community Based Conservation is a nascent movement in isolated areas of the United States. It has emerged from the gridlock of special interest conflict over natural resource management, and in response to the collateral damage inflicted on watersheds, wildlife and rural communities alike. Over the past 10-15 years, pockets of leadership have slowly and methodically been established and the cumulative social, economic and environmental impacts are beginning to attract attention.

"Wallowa Resources is an actively growing nonprofit, community-based conservation organization in Northeast Oregon with a mission to promote natural resource stewardship, prosperous families, and a broader understanding of the links between community well-being and ecosystem health.

"Throughout the last nine years, Wallowa Resources has collaborated with growing numbers of state, federal and tribal agencies, local businesses, land owners, environmental organizations, educational institutions, special interest groups, local, as well as state and regional representatives to bring restoration projects, the associated business opportunities, and natural resource education to Wallowa County. In this growing process we have learned from the challenges that face our community and identified the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead. Wallowa Resources has grown from a small outreach group into a diverse and dynamic organization that offers Wallowa County programs in natural resource education through the now-forming Wallowa Mountain Institute; natural resource stewardship through on-the-ground projects that improve watershed function, and range, riparian and wildlife habitat; policy and management collaboration to bring improved place-based decision-making to our community; and specialized small diameter wood product development and marketing.

"Critical to Wallowa Resources' success to date is the strategy of community-based conservation wherein the local community provides leadership and accepts the implicit responsibility for achieving tangible conservation objectives. This strategy is built on values of inclusiveness, transparency and democracy. It is not a strategy of local control, but of locally led collaboration - with trust and constructive relationships between diverse stakeholders, a pre-requisite for success.

"This year, Wallowa Resources will invest over $1 million in restoration projects, impact nearly 0.5% of the non-farm workforce in the County, and will contribute to the restoration of several hundreds of thousands of acres."

Presentation Outline:

• Wallowa Resources
• Fundamental Requirements
• Beginning Our Work
• Community Based Natural Resource Management
• FlowCheck Structures