The New Ranch implements land management practices that improve ecological and economic resilience across diverse working landscapes. It is based on the concept of land health, which is defined by the National Research Council as “the degree to which the integrity of the soil and ecological processes are sustained.” In other words, before land can sustainably support a value, such as livestock grazing, hunting, recreation, or wildlife protection, it must be functioning properly at a basic ecological level. If land is not healthy, then the value will be jeopardized sooner or later. As a grassroots movement, the New Ranch includes scientific documentation, public education, economic diversification, and ecological restoration.
The New Ranch
The New Ranch: a Definition
A brief definition of a term that I coined back in 1997.
Originally published in The Quivira Coalition Newsletter (vol.7, no.4) April 2006
Prologue to Revolution on the Range: the Rise of the New Ranch in the American West
“In 1996, I had an anguished question on my mind: why didn’t environmentalists and ranchers get along better? In theory they shared many of the same hopes and fears – a love of wildlife, a deep respect for nature, an appreciation for a life lived outdoors, and a common concern for healthy water, food, fiber, and liberty. That was the theory anyway…”
Originally published by Island Press in May 2008
The Working Wilderness: a call for a Land Health Movement
Rethinking the conservation movement from the ground up.
Originally published by Wendell Berry in his collection of essays The Way of Ignorance, in November 2005
The Gift
Originally published as Chapter Ten of Revolution on the Range, this excerpt appeared in the journal Ecological Restoration, June 2009.
Mugido: Rethinking the Federal Commons
This essay explores a new vision for public lands based on collaboration and land health.
Originally published in The Quivira Coalition Newsletter (vol.7, no.4) April 2006
Grassbank 2.0
Building on what we have learned from the Valle Grande Grassbank.
By Courtney White and Craig Conley
Originally published in Rangelands, June 2007
A Corner Turned: The Chico Basin Ranch
An example of why the so-called ‘grazing wars’ faded away, thanks to ranchers like Duke Phillips.
Originally published in The Quivira Coalition’s Journal no. 29, October 2006
The Quivira Coalition’s first newsletter
In which we explain the purpose of The Quivira Coalition, the idea of the New Ranch, and debut my column “The Far Horizon”.
Originally published in by The Quivira Coalition in June 1997