AoR 9: Lynn Huntsinger, Ranching as a Conservation Strategy

Dr. Lynn Huntsinger has written persuasively about the importance of private land ranching and public lands grazing as a means of conserving, even protecting, open space, wildlife habitat, and clean water. This runs counter to the preservationist paradigm that dominated for several decades, but it is gaining traction as it also gains scientific validity. Dr. Huntsinger is a Rustici endowed professor in Environmental Science, Policy, & Management at University of California at Berkeley. She and Tip discuss risks of land conversion, benefits of intact ranches, and opportunities for ranchers to capitalize on the less tangible benefits that society receives from their private lands, when managed well. SURVEY Please take 60 seconds to complete this quick 5-question survey and to access continuing education credits (CPRM only): wsu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4GHpHVHlsouSorr TRANSCRIPT The full transcript of this episode is available at: https://bit.ly/2XvUUP6 Dr. Huntsinger’s website: https://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/people/lynn-huntsinger Article on ranching in the Bay area http://news.aag.org/2016/01/bay-area-open-space-is-not-open-space/ Articles mentioned in our discussion (most are not open access but Tip can provide a PDF upon request): Barry, Sheila J. 2014. Using Social Media to Discover Public Values, Interests, and Perceptions about Cattle Grazing on Park Lands. Environmental Management 53:454–464 Marty, Jaymee T. 2005. Effects of cattle grazing on diversity in ephemeral wetlands. Conservation Biology 19 (5):1626-1632. Historical progression of articles related to our podcast: Huntsinger, L. and J. Oviedo. 2014. Ecosystem services may be better termed social ecological services in a traditional pastoral system: The case of California Mediterranean rangelands at multiple scales. Ecology and Society 19 (1): 8[http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol19/iss1/art8/] Huntsinger, L., Johnson, M., Stafford, M. and J. Fried. 2010. California Hardwood Rangeland Landowners 1985 to 2004: Ecosystem services, production, and permanence. Rangeland Ecology and Management 63:325-334 Brunson, M. and L. Huntsinger. 2008. Can old ranchers save the new west? Synthesis paper, Journal of Range Ecology and Management 61:137-147. Sulak, A. and Huntsinger, L. 2007. Public lands grazing in California: untapped conservation potential for private lands? Rangelands 23(3):9-13. Liffman, R., L. Huntsinger, and L. Forero. 2000. To ranch or not to ranch: home on the urban range? J. Range Management53(4)362-370. Huntsinger, L. and P. Hopkinson. 1996. Sustaining rangeland landscapes: a social and ecological process. Journal of Range Management 49:167-173.