Field Notes: Uniting for Conservation
Grace Hershberg
Field Notes is a compilation of first-person essays composed across many years by IWJV partners, board members, and staff. Our professional work in collaborative conservation is inspired by our personal experiences, relationships, and conversations in the field. That “field” can look very different depending on the work at hand: Sometimes it is one of grass hay at sunrise or deep within the sagebrush sea. Other times it’s in a conference room at an agency’s headquarters, or in a public hearing in the halls of Congress. In this series, we hope to share a few stories from these wildly different fields with you.
In this Field Notes entry, Restoration Landscape Manager Grace Hershberg takes us to Montana's northern great plains, where she coordinates habitat restoration efforts across huge areas with more than twenty valued partner organizations.
Along the streambank of a lush, green, riparian system—
Atop a hill where prescribed fire had recently run through a stand of conifers, leaving new green grass just starting to pop—
Amongst the sage, observing red angus cattle with collars hanging from their necks—
That is where I spent my summer: Exploring the many ecosystems north-central Montana has to offer.
When I started working for the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Hi-Line Sagebrush Anchor Restoration Landscape program back in February, I never could have imagined the variety of conservation projects I would be involved in—from mesic and woody draw restoration, to fence removal and modification, restoring crested wheatgrass stands to native plant communities, grazing system improvements, and removing conifer encroachment from sage-grouse habitat. The Hi-Line Sagebrush Anchor represents almost 1.5 million acres of BLM lands containing the most secure greater sage-grouse population in Montana, along with critical habitat for big game species and migratory grassland birds. Working at a scale this large can pose some challenges. But while tackling a wide range of landscape-level habitat and conservation objectives, one thing remained constant: I was never alone. A partner in conservation was always standing by my side.
Through the Montana Grassland Partnership, a collaboration created as a product of the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance (RSA) and Winnett ACES Conservation Committees, I work with more than 20 organizations to accomplish goals related to the Hi-Line Sagebrush Anchor. The work of this partnership extends way beyond the boundary and goals of the BLM’s Restoration Landscape area, and I am lucky in my position to have the flexibility to help this partnership in a variety of ways.
This summer has been all about bringing partners together to identify upcoming projects and discuss what has and hasn’t worked for folks who have been working in this landscape for years.
Every day looked different. Some days I was out in the field with partners from the BLM deploying cameras in woody draw systems, and discussing how best to monitor these places. We pondered how we as land stewards can improve these unique habitats, and how to manage the massive amount of data that comes with having numerous cameras on the landscape.
Other days I spent time with agricultural producers, listening to people who have spent their lives here keenly observing what is happening on the ground. We work together to plan projects through RSA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program so as to enhance and restore this landscape. The projects range from improving grazing systems by upgrading water infrastructure, to replacing old, dilapidated fences to facilitate wildlife movements, and even exploring the benefits and limitations of new technologies like virtual fencing.
And sometimes, I just spent hours upon hours with partners discussing ways to benefit the great habitat that exists in the Northern Great Plains, and the wonderful producers and landowners who steward this land.
While we all get excited about jumping in and putting projects on the ground, it is crucial to spend time with partners brainstorming, swapping stories, and discussing how we can work together to be effective going forward. While this time spent in conversation may seem tedious to some, collaborating with partners is the only way we can affect change and make a difference at a landscape scale. To me, it is also one of the most rewarding parts of the job. I always try to remember that we need to walk before we can run—and it’s even better if you can do it all with a partner.
Grace Hershberg is the IRA Restoration Landscape Coordinator with Ranchers Stewardship Alliance and the IWJV's Partnering to Conserve Sagebrush Rangelands. In her role, Grace administers and coordinates conservation projects across private and public boundaries with a wide variety of partners within the Montana Grassland Partnership. Grace grew up in Southeast Wisconsin where she gained her love and appreciation for the outdoors, agriculture, and wildlife alike. Working to conserve land and wildlife populations while keeping working lands working has always been something that has driven Grace in her career.