People Who Collaborate

You'll find Vanessa Schroeder working at the Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center as a Senior Faculty Research Assistant 1. Harney County became home for Vanessa in 2013 when she began working with The Nature Conservancy. Three years later, in 2016, Oregon State University Extension Service became her employer. "I work at the intersection of rangeland issues and wildlife to support ranching communities. I do a lot of extension and outreach but I also do a lot of research and all of it is to serve and meet the needs of a variety of stakeholders. Broadly my stakeholders are anyone who works in or are interested in rangeland management wildlife populations: public, state, federal land management agencies, ranchers, nonprofit organizations, and conservation groups. I work in service to everyone interested in managing or supporting Eastern Oregon rangelands, but part of my position is to focus on supporting rural ranching communities." With a master’s of science degree in wildlife science through OSU’s fisheries and wildlife department Vanessa was hired because of concerns for wildlife on public and private lands namely sage grouse and other sagebrush associated species that can include: pronghorn, pygmy rabbit, sagebrush vole, sagebrush sparrow, Brewer’s sparrow, and sage thrasher. READ MORE.

The Entrepreneurial Spirit is Alive and Well in Harney County

Every business in Harney County is essential. Unlike urban areas with multiple competing businesses, Harney County relies on every individual small business that serves the communities. The good news, interest in building successful small businesses is alive and well in Harney County and there's a program, CO.STARTERS, that this spring helped 10 entrepreneurs develop skills and build their confidence as small business owners. READ MORE.

Pictured: 9 of the 10 entrepreneurs from the spring 2022 CO.STARTERS program.

Taking To The Skies

Sunrise invasive annual grass aerial spraying with Miles Morris of Morris Ag Air taking to the skies. As part of the Harney County Wildfire Collaborative's Southeast Oregon Wildfire Resiliency project multiple partners including the Bureau of Land Management, Harney County Cooperative Weed Management Area, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon Department of State Lands, Burns Paiute Tribe and Pheasants Forever are treating thousands of acres of invasive annual grasses to reduce this wildfire fuel on the vast rangelands of southeast Oregon. Aerial spraying is one tactic along with roadside treatments that are happening now and into this fall. Thanks to Kevin Raichl with Visual Thinking Northwest for the stunning footage and Brandon McMullen for the incredible images.

Youth Find Meaningful Summer Work in Remote Corners of Harney County

Though they’re small in number, the members of High Desert Partnership's Summer Monitoring Crew have played a crucial role in forwarding the important work the Harney County Wildfire Collaborative continues to do in southeast Oregon's sagebrush steppe. READ MORE.

Pictured: Carter Lardy, Hunter Kemper, Amanda Sutcliffe and Kaylee Littlefield giving a presentation about their summer monitoring work during a Harney County Wildfire Collaborative Stinkingwater Mountains field tour in July.

Come Celebrate Harney County Youth

Join us for community and conversation as we celebrate Harney County youth. Check out the schedule below for dates and details about this family friendly event and register to attend using the QR code you'll find as you scroll down.

"The High Desert Partnership’s origin story is like something out of a Marvel superhero movie. Out of conflict and strife, an idea was born, one that was different and untested at first, but one that gained strength, confidence and support until it became a fixture in the community. Now the High Desert Partnership facilitates collaboration that brings positive change in Harney County to achieve outcomes that benefit the greater good." ~Lauren Brown

This excerpt is from HDP's origin story and how it all began 15 years. The vision by the founders and the opportunity seized was based around a host of collaboration tools developed over the years by HDP collaborative participants, the board and staff:

Forge relationships and build trust
Pay attention, listen and understand
Be inclusive, balance power and use skilled facilitation
Voice perspectives and show respect
Practice patience, make commitments and follow-through
Value and listen to science
Track progress, keep people informed and practice storytelling

2022 Upcoming Events

Wednesday, September 7 - Sunday, September 11 | Harney County Fair & Rodeo

Tuesday, September 20 | Harney County Wildfire Collaborative Meeting

Wednesday, September 21 | High Desert Partnership Board Meeting

Tuesday, September 27 | Biz Harney Opportunity Collaborative Meeting

Thursday, September 29 & Friday, September 30 | Youth Changing The Community Collaborative, Community Event

Wednesday, October 19 | High Desert Partnership Board Meeting

Tuesday, October 25 | Biz Harney Opportunity Collaborative Meeting

Check out High Desert Partnership's event calendar.

Harney Basin Wetlands Collaborative and

Reviving Malheur Lake

Harney County Wildfire Collaborative and
Megafire Prevention

Harney Basin Wetlands Collaborative and
Wild Flood Irrigation

Six Collaboratives Supported By

High Desert Partnership

HDP Website

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Burns, OR | 97720 US

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