#117 In Practice JAN/FEB 2008

January / February 2006 Number 105 www.holisticmanagement.orgJANUARY / FEBRUARY 2008 Number 117 www.holisticmanagement.org

healthy land.sustainable future.

AsHMI moves into its 24th year ofoperation, the Board of Directors hasnamed a new Executive Director for HMI.Chief Operating Officer Peter Holter has

been named the new Executive Director.Shannon Horst will move to the newly createdposition, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives.

At the end of 2007, the Board and SeniorManagement team of HMI undertook a teamassessment process to realign those managementskill sets best suited to create rapid and effectivegrowth for HMI.

The result of that process is a shift withShannon Horst moving to a newly created role inthe organization that will take full advantage ofher unique knowledge of Holistic Managementand her considerable abilities in the marketplace.This move to focus Shannon on her strengthsand areas of interest is made possible by thepresence of Peter Holter—who comes with 30years of senior management experience in theprivate sector and is able to provide additionaldepth in management to HMI. Having served withHMI since 2005 in a variety of roles, includingmost recently as COO, Peter is known to theHolistic Management community, familiar withthe issues and opportunities HMI faces, and isequipped with the skills and passion to workwith Shannon and the team, to take HMI to thenext level.

Board development and growth throughout2007 has also been a key focus for HMI. NewBoard members brought on to strengthen boardcapacity in the area of leadership, finance,fundraising, and product and service developmentinclude: Christopher Peck, Roby Wallace, AndreaMalmberg, Daniela Howell, Mark Gardner, andSallie Calhoun. In 2008, additional Boardmembers will continue to strengthen these coreareas. Ben Bartlett will take the helm as BoardChair with continued assistance from the past

Chair, Ron Chapman. These Board members arededicated to serving HMI’s mission and workingwith the staff to achieve the strategic objectivesoutlined for 2008.

Strategic goals for the next year includecontinued expansion of HMI’s marketing andsales efforts in reaching stewards of largelandscapes, farmers and ranchers, developmentagencies, and pastoral communities throughcontracts and grants.

As a result of the collaborations formed fromthe 2007 International Gathering, we have manynew avenues to reach new audience sectors whoare just learning of HMI’s work. HMI will alsocontinue to improve its support of the CertifiedEducator community with additional curriculummaterials, as well as additional communications,outreach, and training oportunities. We will alsocontinue our public relations efforts to helppeople understand how Holistic Managementoffers powerful results with such issues as globalclimate change, desertification, and sustainableagriculture. Lastly, HMI will continue todevelop quality programming and data anddocumentation on our learning sites as wellas begin to develop protocols for our informallearning sites.

All of these efforts are focused on bringingHolistic Management into the mainstream,helping the general public and moreagriculturalists understand the basic principlesand practices inherent within HolisticManagement so others can achieve the on-the-ground successes that our many practitionershave achieved. As environmental issues becomemore pressing, it is time for all of us to takewhatever steps we can to get this informationout to the larger audience that is searching foranswers to these questions. We look forward toworking with our network to take HolisticManagement International to the next level.

Book Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Certified Educators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Marketplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

NEWS & NETWORK

From the Board ChairBEN BARTLETT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2HMI International GatheringMIKE EVERETT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Collaborating to Solve Big Game DepredationDOUG WARNOCK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6A Holistic Approach to Town PlanningJOEL BENSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

LAND & LIVESTOCKSurviving or Thriving in DroughtTONY MALMBERG & JIM HOWELL . . . . . . . . . 10Lite Planned Grazing—Another Approach toPlanned GrazingASPEN EDGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Simple Ideas—Loading ChuteTONY MALMBERG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Taking HMI to the Next Level

FEATURE STORIES

INSIDE THIS ISSUE2007 International

Gathering

With over 450 people attending from8 countries, HMI’s 2007 InternationalGathering was a huge success. Joel Salatinroused the crowd with his talk on “Buildinga Local Food System that Works.” He alsoexpressed his deep gratitude for Allan Savoryand all the knowledge he has shared with others.To read about this event and view the festivities,turn to page 3.

2 IN PRACTICE � January / February 2008


From the Board Chairby Ben Bartlett

Holistic Management International works to reverse thedegradation of private and communal land used foragriculture and conservation, restore its health andproductivity, and help create sustainable and viable

livelihoods for the people who depend on it.

FOUNDERSAllan Savory � Jody Butterfield

STAFFPeter Holter, Executive Director

Shannon Horst, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives

Kelly Bee, Director of Finance & Accounting

Jutta von Gontard, Director of Development

Craig Leggett, Director of Learning Sites

Ann Adams, Managing Editor, IN PRACTICE andDirector of Educational Products and Outreach

Maryann West, Executive Assistant

Donna Torrez, Customer Service Manager

Marisa Mancini, Development Assistant

BOARD OF DIRECTORSBen Bartlett, Chair

Ron Chapman, Past ChairRoby Wallace, Vice-ChairGail Hammack, SecretaryChristopher Peck, Treasurer

Ivan AguirreJody ButterfieldSallie CalhounMark GardnerDaniela Howell

Andrea MalmbergJim McMullan

Ian Mitchell InnesJim ParkerSue ProbartJim Shelton

Dennis Wobeser

ADVISORY COUNCILRobert Anderson, Corrales, NMMichael Bowman,Wray, CO

Sam Brown, Austin, TXLee Dueringer, Scottsdale, AZGretel Ehrlich, Gaviota, CA

Cynthia Harris, Albuquerque, NMEdward Jackson, San Carlos, CA

Clint Josey, Dallas, TXDoug McDaniel, Lostine, OR

Guillermo Osuna, Coahuila, MexicoSoren Peters, Santa Fe, NMYork Schueller, Ventura, CA

Africa Centre for Holistic ManagementPrivate Bag 5950, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

Tel: (263) (11) 404 979; email: [email protected] Matanga, Director

HOLISTIC MANAGEMENT IN PRACTICE(ISSN: 1098-8157) is published six times a year by

Holistic Management International, 1010 Tijeras NW,Albuquerque, NM 87102, 505/842-5252, fax: 505/843-7900;

email: [email protected].;website: www.holisticmanagement.org

Copyright © 2008.

Greetings! My name is Ben Bartlett and I am the new HMI Board of Directors Chair.I am very honored to be part of this great organization and following the super workthat past Chair Ron Chapman has accomplished. My goal in this short article is tokeep you posted on what HMI and the Board are

doing to further the practice and development of HolisticManagement. I want to make the board something morethan a list of names on the inside cover of IN PRACTICE.

Since you are reading this, you are interested in HolisticManagement, either for yourself and or for the health ofthe land around us all. One of the key steps in setting aholisticgoal is getting all the right people at the table. Bycommunicating and working together, you, others interestedin Holistic Management, the HMI staff, and the Board canmove Holistic Management forward. Doing things holisticallyis critical as good decisions for people and the planet are sorelyneeded. Good decisions require good communication—whichis a two-way street.

“You’re It” was the parting comment from radio talk showhost Thom Hartman, one of the keynote speakers at the recent, very successful Holistic

Management International Conferenceheld in Albuquerque in early November. Hechallenged people to take up the cause oftaking care of the land. . I can’t begin torecap the entire conference since it involved42 sessions with four outstanding keynotespeakers, Joel Salatin, Temple Grandin,Thom, and our own Allan Savory. Over450 people attended all or parts of thesessions. The biggest take away for me,was the new found energy around HolisticManagement, the practice, the teaching,the beyond USA borders involvement,(Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand,Southern Africa, and Europe). Thisexcitement was fueled by the realizationthat fires in California, carbon credits,

drought, and floods are just opportunities for practitioners of Holistic Management. We doseem to be the right thing in the right place at the right time.

As often occurs, growth means change. As mentioned on page one, we have a new ExecutiveDirector and a new position, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives—which will focus on sales.This change only came after long and serious deliberation on what was best for HMI andHolistic Management. We are expanding our contract work in the USA, we have more grantsand activities in Africa, and the opportunities are there if we can organize the people power tocapture them. Stay tuned for an update on what is happening on the ground around the worldwhere Holistic Management is being practiced. And don’t forget, you’re “it.” I want to hearfrom you—both your ideas and your concerns.

Ben BartlettHMI Board Chair

Ben Bartlett

“Excitement was fueledby the realization that

fires in California, carboncredits, drought, and floodsare just opportunities for

practitioners ofHolistic Management.”

Wearrived at the Hotel Albuquerque intime for the Opening Reception andthe ballroom was almost completelyfull by the time we got there. We enjoyed

the great food and conversation, partly catchingup with what all were doing and partly onHolistic Management.

Terry Gompert (Nebraska) and Neil Dennis(Canada) share a light-hearted momentduring the opening reception.

Key sponsors for the conference were: Healy Foundation, Horizon Organic,Intel, Nancy Dickenson, La Montanita Coop, Diamond Tail Ranch,Organic Valley, and Whole Foods

HMI’s Shannon Horst introducedJoel Salatin.

Friday morning there was 400 attendees from 8countries and 15 states to hear Joel Salatin’s keynoteaddress. He began by thanking Allan Savory foropening the way for so many producers and otherswith his work. Then, he started to dissect the currentstate of American agriculture and national security.He said that the American food system is vulnerablein three areas: centralized production, centralizedprocessing, and long-distance hauling andinventory. Most supermarkets currently have threedays worth of food on the shelves and there is only a45-day supply in the pipeline at any one time. Hesaid the obvious answers to these problems areexactly the ones that government and industryrefuse to take: diversified, local food producers,local food processing, and local marketing.

As the title of his new book states, EverythingI Want to Do is Illegal, he described what couldhappen if policy decisions allowed producers, smallprocessors, and consumers to meet each other ontheir own terms. His number one recommendationwas to abolish the USDA. But in concrete terms he ispushing for what he calls the Food Emancipation

The opening reception of the conference was sponsored by Horizon Organic.

HMI International Gathering—Connection & Inspirationby Mike Everett

The opening reception was a good time for folks to catch upafter many years, such as Allan Savory visiting with Kay andBill Burrows from Red Bluff, California.

Number 117 � IN PRACTICE 3

Policy, which would allow consumers to opt-outof the industrial system and deal directly with foodproducers without interference. He called it aperson’s most fundamental right: the right tochoose where to get food. He told us of a newprogram set up by the Weston Price Foundation,

continued on page 4

the Farmer Legal Defense Association, providing24-hour legal advice on farm issues for $120 peryear. He urged all producers to join.

He entertained and educated the crowd withhis stories of his farm and how by serving hiscustomers and his family’s quality of life goal hisfarm keeps expanding in area and in products.Besides his famous chickens, eggs, salad-bar beef,he has opened his wood lots up to his pigs, whofeed on acorns part of the year now. He advisedus to be innovative and to invent, adapt, orconstruct what we needed to get the job done, notjust go out, and buy something we could makeourselves. It was a very inspiring talk and a goodopening for this conference of innovators fromaround the world.

Betsy Ross spoke on her experience of plantsuccession with the soil food web in Texas.

HMI International Gathering continued from page 3

After many parallel sessions during the courseof the day and a fine lunch, the day finished withyet another excellent meal (beef donated by Byron& Shelly Shelton of Landmark Harvest) andentertainment from Raphael Cristy recreatingCharlie Russell’s Yarns, a very entertaining one-man show. After the show, the evening finishedwith a Live and Silent Auction that included anumber of photo safari trips to ranches in Mexico,Texas, and HMI’s ranch next to Victoria Falls inZimbabwe. What may have been the mostinteresting item, was a fly rod that ended up at$1,100 in a duel between Allan and Roger Savory,with Roger finally outlasting Allan.

Early Saturday morning we gathered in theballroom and partook of a thought-provoking andchallenging keynote from Dr. Temple Grandin oncreating animal handling welfare audits for many

of the large restaurant chains, includingMcDonalds and Wendy’s. She urged the audienceto work as consumers or producers with localprocessors to adapt them to their own ranchesand facilities in order to match the big boys.

Addressing the largely producer audience, shesaid there should be no yelling or whistling whenworking livestock; electric prods should not becarried but placed where one had to walk to getone as a last resort for a balky animal. What most

Chuck Stocksdonated his

auctioneeringskills that

netted HMIover $12,000for projects

and services.


often is called working livestock is based on fear,and a fearful, stressed animal takes up to 30minutes to calm down. Calm animals work mucheasier than stressed animals and are less likely tohurt themselves or humans. She then gave us alist of dos and don’ts when working any animal,whether on the ranch or farm or at the processingfacility, and to watch out for transporters as well,as many of them are very aggressive in theirtreatment of animals.

She told us the reasons calm animals werebetter for everyone: easier to work, getting a bruise

Temple Grandin speaking with filmmakerAaron Lucich.

Author and radio host Thom Hartmanndrew a big local crowd for his talk andbooksigning.

Fred Provenza spoke on Behavior-BasedGrazing Management for Animal Wellbeing,Ecosystem Diversity, and EnterpriseSustainability.

can cause dark cutters as scar tissue from abruise which can last up to six months, theanimal could hurt itself or humans, manyplants now dock producers for “wild” animalsthat jump and chase, etc. She gave short listsof critical control points that she uses for bothprocessing facilities and farms. Overall, it wasa stirring and very thought-provoking addresswhich had the conference attendeesdiscussing it the rest of the conference.

After more parallel sessions, we broke foranother great lunch and conversation with akeynote speech on “The Human Relationshipto Environment” from Thom Hartmann,author, lecturer, radio show host, and

message of Holistic Management: 1) landdegradation can be reversed by using livestock, 2)decisions can be made in a better way, and 3)everyone’s quality of life can be improved. But,there is not much time left. Humans only jointogether long enough to overcome a challenge,then revert to killing each other.

On global climate change, our greatestchallenge yet and a true battle for survival, he saidthe best outcome we can hope for is major socialdisruptions, with urban areas being the worst; theworst outcome is runaway weather leading to thedestruction of all higher life forms on Earth.Nevertheless, we should be optimistic, because thisis the first time in history that we have theknowledge and technology to make the changesnecessary. We know the cause—land degradation,which has lead to biodiversity loss and globalclimate change. We have on the shelf technologyto mitigate and reverse land degradation.

A Certified EducatorBreakfast broughttogether CertifiedEducators from

around the world todiscuss issues ofrecertification.

Financial planner, investment advisor, andCertified Educator Christopher Peck spokeabout Values-Based Finances for theConscious Consumer.

Outgoing HMI Board of Director Chair RonChapman introduced Thom Hartmann.

Allan Savory gave the final keynote speech forthe conference and received a standing ovation.

George Work spoke on a number of topics at theconference including Ecotourism and EstatePlanning.


He told us that in order to survive thischallenge there is no “silver bullet.” Acombination of high tech—alternative fuels,lower emissions, etc.—and low tech – carbon

continued on page 6

psychotherapist. He described using ancient textsincluding Gilgamesh and the Bible to draw outthe warnings of civilizations as to the destructionof the environment (Gilgamesh and the ForestGod) and the dangers of tillage agriculture (Cainand Abel). He said we ignore these warning at ourperil. He described the possibly fatal myth thatAristotle and Descartes created that humans areseparate and above Nature instead of Nature, andhow that path has led us to where we are todaywith 45,000 people starving to death and 132species becoming extinct daily. He warned us thatif we did not reconnect with Nature in a veryserious and lasting way and correct our mistakes,we were doomed. He called on us to help form anew myth to make that reconnection.

Saturday’s closing reception was much awaitedas the keynote speaker was Allan Savory himself,speaking on “Healing the Land.” This is what theattendees, including myself, had waited for allweekend. He reminded us all of how importantthe work each of us were doing, but we mustexpand our reach and share with others the


Anincreasing amount of depredation onprivate property in Kittitas County,Washington concerned local citizens,leading to the formation of a volunteer

group that set about searching for solutions.Management policies and practices on publiclands, increased human activities on public lands,plus rural residential development had altered elkbehavior resulting in damage to privately ownedfarms and ranches. Elk were spending less time inthe higher elevations of the traditional habitat onpublicly held land and journeying down to thegreen pastures and fields in the valley floor.

Many areas of the West are experiencing suchincreased depredation from big game animals,because these animals are spending less time in theintended habitat, mostly public lands, and moretime on agricultural land and near humanpopulations. This depredation includes damage tocrops, pastures, rangeland, haystacks, fences andother structures. In Washington State, this hasbecome a big expense for the WashingtonDepartment of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) in termsof both processing damage claims and time spentdealing with big game complaints. But, myexperience with this issue and what we’ve beenable to accomplish through integrating HolisticManagement and consensus building suggests tome that we have a way to address these concernsboth short- and long-term.

Building TrustThe Big Game Management Roundtable

(BGMR) was formed in the spring of 2003 to addressthe problem of increasing depredation by elk in

Kittitas County, Washington. The idea to form afocus group to tackle the problem came from twopeople who had worked together on another project:Dave Duncan, local rancher, and Jeff Tayer, SouthCentral Region Director for WDFW.

“The problem continued to grow, and we hadnot been effective in dealing with it. We needed toget a group working on it, bringing together all ofthe interests that have a stake in the wildlife andthe land,” says Tayer.

Duncan brought the idea to form such a groupto Solar $, a non-profit corporation that managesholistically and promotes Holistic Management.Solar $ supported the proposal and agreed toprovide the facilitation for it. I became involvedat that point and served as primary facilitator.Our knowledge and experience in HolisticManagement and consensus building guided usthrough the organization and operation of thiscollaborative effort.

The group began meeting on a monthly basis togather and evaluate information and to develop aplan to address the problem. The Roundtable is agroup of several dozen volunteers, all of whom havean interest in solving the problem. It represents mostall of the stakeholder groups, including agriculturalproducers, sportsmen, wildlife advocates, otheroutdoor recreationists, conservationists, localuniversity faculty and WDFW personnel.

It was apparent to both WDFW personnel andthe landowners that the depredation had beenincreasing in recent years. At the same time, it hadchanged from being seasonal to being a year roundproblem and resulted in considerable economic lossto ranchers and farmers.

sequestering in soil and oceans—must be used.The greatest hope lies in soil carbon sequestrationin the near term as ocean sequestration will takelonger. If we can reverse land degradation on thelarge scale, it will

1. Stop carbon loss into the air2. Sequester carbon in the renewing soils3. Store massive amounts of water in the soil4. Allow us to deal head on with poverty andhunger

5. Offer humanity its best chance to surviveAs an example, he told us that approximately

30 million acres worldwide are being managed

increase in stocking rate and the return ofelephants, buffalo, and antelopes. They can’t keepup with the grass.

He told the audience that there must be arapid expansion of what they were doing—practicing and/or teaching Holistic Management.People at the grassroots level were needed whohad the knowledge to do the right thing, andthere must be policy changes to empower them todo what they knew to be right. He left us with aword to be optimistic, to get to work, and to spreadthe word. At the end, there was a deafeningstanding ovation.

A Collaborative Approach toSolving Big Game Depredationby Doug Warnock

Members of BGMR have found that the changein elk behavior leading to depredation stemmedfrom not just one, but several causes. The changesin grazing practices and the associated decline inforage quality and habitat suitability was a majorfactor. The changes in logging practices and theassociated effect on forest health and foragequantity has also contributed to the problem. Thereare fewer functional springs in this area, whichreduces the number of water sources for gameanimals. Moreover, there were some landownerswho unknowingly created safe havens for elk inagricultural areas, which enabled elk to raidnearby fields.

Rural residential development and the increasedhuman presence in areas that were traditional elkmigration routes contributed to the changed elkbehavior. Another cause was the increased use ofpublic lands for outdoor recreation and theexpansion of recreational use year round.

The problem didn’t appear to be too manyelk. The problem was too many elk in the wrongplace, being displaced by human activities andineffective management.

Addressing Short & Long-Term IssuesThe group met for a period of time the first year

developing a dialogue and building trust andunderstanding among its members. The firstagreement reached was recognition by all that therewas indeed a problem. Next, was the agreement thatthe members would work together to attempt tosolve the depredation problem. A two-part missionstatement was developed: (1) “To identify andremedy big game damage to private property,” and(2) “work collaboratively to improve overall healthof wildlife and public lands.”

The BGMR’s strategies were to encourage elkuse of public lands, to discourage the elk use ofprivate property and to inform citizens of the countyabout the problem and enlist their support and

HMI International Gathering continued from page 5

holistically at present. The organic matter onthose acres has, on average, increased by onepercent. That one percent increase in organicmatter leads to an increased sequestration of 3.6gigatons of carbon in the soil. Because the fate ofwater and carbon are tied to organic matter,increased water infiltration has also been noted.

On one holistically managed ranch, waterinfiltration has increased 775 percent. Withincreasing organic matter, carbon, and water,rangelands are again being covered with grassesand forbs. On HMI’s ranch in Africa, even after twoyears of drought, there has been a 500 percent


participation in addressing it.Through the efforts of Jim Huckabay, Central

Washington University professor of Geography anda BGMR Steering committee member, severalstudents including a graduate student, assistedBGMR. They contributed greatly by keepingminutes, distributing meeting notices, doingresearch and providing other valuable services.

An immediate need was to put some programsin place to provide relief to those landowners whoexperienced losses from concentrated elk groupsmoving onto and across their land. Elk damagedfences were repaired and pressure was applied to themarauding elk through selected hunters that wereguided by a hunt coordinator.

The longer term objective was to encourageprojects that would change management practiceson public land and allow selective livestock grazingto restore biological health to the rangeland. Forageplants on much of the state and federal land hadbecome old and coarse, making them unattractiveto big game animals. Elk were coming down out ofthe hills to eat on the green plants growing in thepastures and fields in the valley floor.

Successes RealizedIn the four years since the beginning of the

project, a number of successes have been achieved.• A diverse group was brought together to addressthe problem resulting in hundreds of volunteerhours focused on combating elk depredation.• The hunting coordinator was able to guide effortsof volunteer “Master Hunters,” which greatly helpedin pressuring elk away from problem areas.• Over twenty miles of elk-damaged fences wererepaired.• Relations between private landowners and WDFWwere vastly improved and landowners opened upadditional land to hunting.• The public relation efforts included printing aquarterly newsletter, publishing and distributing a

brochure on “Living With Wildlife in KittitasCounty” and conducting several public meetingsto discuss pertinent topics, such as the implicationsof individuals feeding big game animals. Thefeeding of big game animals and the availabilityof safe havens were greatly reduced as a result ofthese efforts.

A major accomplishment of BGMR was theformation of the Wild Horse CoordinatedManagement Planning Program. BGMR requestedand sponsored the Wild Horse CRMP, which broughttogether the owners of 60,000 acres of rangelandthat are an important part of the elk habitat.

The CRMP group formed a holisticgoal,developed a grazing plan for the area, andestablished a baseline monitoring system on theproperty. The group was able to convince the statelegislature of the importance of its efforts to restorehealth to the land and received a $490,000

appropriation for the development of water sourcesto improve big game habitat on the project.

The establishment of the CRMP Program isa long-term effort to address one of the maincauses of the problem, the decreased health ofthe ecosystem.

Dr. Huckabay, who is writing a book entitledCollaborative Management of Local ResourceConflicts, summed it up well, “The Big GameManagement Roundtable has had remarkablesuccess in finding and instituting solutions towildlife depredation on private property. Throughits efforts, levels of damage have dropped offdramatically. The BGMR model remains anexcellent model for those who wish to manageresource issues in a collaborative manner.”

Doug Warnock can be reached at:509/525-3389 or [email protected].

Couldn’t make it to the conference?Order your conference CD’s and DVD’s of all the

events by printing out an order form and sending toBackcountry Productions today!To receive an order form, contact us at505/842-5252or [email protected] go to:www.holisticmanagement.org/n7/Internat_Gath/orderform.pdf.

Tips On Organizing & Maintaining EffectiveCollaborative GroupsOrganizing• Engage all stakeholders – continue to recruit• Mutual ownership of the objectives and the goal• Take the time necessary to have everyone onboard

Maintaining• Keep people engaged• Continue to recruit new members• Inform new recruits and integrate them into thegroup• Manage dissent – keep the group focused• Be accountable – both the group and themembers• Be creative – use all the groups’ resources

• Community support•• Awareness of the problem•• Ways they can help

Keys to Success• Open discussion & interaction among theparticipants• Trust & acceptance among members• Non-threatening forum• Good & effective communications within thegroup & between the group & the community• Experienced, effective facilitators • Break problems down into attainable parts•• Shorter term•• Longer term

Conference participants enjoyed learning from 30 exhibitorswho filled the exhibit hall and lined the hallways.

Three years ago I officially started mypolitical life in our small community inthe Rocky Mountain West when Ibecame involved with a few committees,

the Planning and Zoning Commission, and laterour town’s Board of Trustees. Over the years, Ihave struggled with the nebulous direction ofthe community, the process by which electedofficials make a decision, and the visioningpotential that characterizes currently acceptedurban and community planning. While theprocess has been frustrating at times, I believewe are now beginning to take some steps toimprove that process.

Historic TurmoilThe town is Buena Vista,

Colorado, located at 8,000 feet(2,667 m) in the heart of theRockies. Mining, agriculture, and the railroad contributed tofounding the town in the late1880’s. Now, mining and therailroad are virtually gone, andagriculture is sporadic. We havevery difficult growing conditions,with only eight inches (200 mm)of precipitation seasonallydistributed, virtually no topsoil,and, as some ranchers areexperiencing, up to a 700-dayrecovery period. Approximately2,400 voting citizens live in town with seasonal influxes forrecreational biking, rafting,fishing, hunting, skiing, and even quilting. We are absolutelydependent upon tourism, whichsupports small businesses in thewinter season through strong sales in the summer.We are always looking to grow the annual salestax base, balancing development, and subsequentfuture water demand with a very limited supply.

We have some new energetic staff, manyseasoned staff members, several consistentadvisory board members and a transitioningmake-up of the Board of Trustees. In general, the town is blessed with many visionary peopleworking and volunteering their time to help createa community that is welcoming and prosperous.However, our colorful political history has made itdifficult to maintain consistency of action by theelected decision-makers.

Given the historic turmoil of the Board andstaff, planning for change in a community

cannot effectively take place if there is nounderstanding of the direction of town from the community members and elected decision-makers. Furthermore, the particular documentsthat town uses as guiding tools have beendisjointed and self-contradictory, especially when held up to each other.

Expanding the VisionWhen I joined the fray three years ago, we

were faced with several major and minorsubdivisions. The minor ones tended to be infill projects, while the major involved 200 ormore homes. We also had a potential annexationdevelopment that would bring an additional

500-plus homes into town, and a 100-plus unit industrial complex. All of these wouldsignificantly affect the look and feel of our community.

One application came in two years agorequesting a zone change from R-1 (lightresidential) to R-3 (high-density residential). Theproperty in question lies at the edge of town, awayfrom any commercial district and on a dangerousintersection. The zone change would permitunregulated condominiums and town homes,place additional demands on the water systemand water supply, and increase traffic by upwardsof 1,000 vehicle trips per day while discouragingany pedestrian traffic.

I asked staff about the fit with the

Comprehensive Plan. “Clearly it fits,” was theresponse. “The plan states that we will encourageaffordable housing in town.” Yes, it also says thatwe will encourage infill, pedestrian safety andwalkability, adequate water supplies, and adowntown corridor and community feel, none ofwhich would be supported by this subdivision. Iasked our former Town Administrator what thevision of town was. He hemmed and hawed a bit,but gave no answer. I asked a few former Trusteesand was met with the same response. Grasping atthe affordable housing issue, and unable to viewthe situation through non-linear eyes, theyrejected my desire to deny and the application was approved.

Need for ContextAs fortune has it, we recently

contracted with professionalplanners to rewrite the TownComprehensive Plan. Thecharette process used was fairlyeffective at eliciting public inputon how people wanted the town to look thirty years fromnow, highlighting someenvironmentally sensitive areas,steep slopes, proximity to schoolsand emergency services, etc.Citizen participants mapped outthe future of the town usingcolor-coded chits to indicatedesired density for residential andcommercial zones. We came upwith a town-wide Euclidianzoning prescriptive for the year2035. The professionals thendrafted 277 policies and goals to create this map, which the

Planning and Zoning, followed by Board ofTrustees, were to pore over and edit to be sure it fit the desired direction of town.

Every member of the Board received the draftdocument with a score sheet that we were to use to classify each policy and goal, with “keep,”“delete,” or “amend.” For example Goal 1E2_Astates, “The Town will work to provide a commonparking area for the East Main Street commercialcore area.” The decision at hand: should we keepthis or delete this? And Goal 1E2_B states, “TheTown itself will play a lead role in sponsoring andsupporting at least two additional annual eventsto be held on or near East Main Street. This mayrequire the addition of an events coordinator staff position and will definitely require the


A Holistic Approach to Town Planningby Joel Benson

Having a vision to use along with questions to filter policies, objectives, andplans will help Buena Vista keep the attributes the citizens want.

continuation and expansion of volunteerassistance.” Again, keep or delete this? We are tolook at the sentence and make an informed,unified decision on the best course of action.

I posed my question again, “What is the visionof the Town? What direction are we headed?” I seea map, but do not know how we want our town tofeel. What does someone experience when theyspend a night or stop by the park for a break fromdriving? How do people experience their daily livesmaking a living here? The sincere input of ourcitizens, input they have provided in countlessplanning meetings over the past decade, was notfound anywhere in the plan. Without identifyingwhat the citizens want and using this descriptionwhen we discuss policies and goals, we could notisolate a sentence and say whether it fits or not.There was no context.

After we were given the plan, Itold the consultants and our staff thatI could not make a judgment oneven one of the 277 statements. I canlook at any particular policy or goaland make an argument to keep it ordelete it when I isolate it from thewhole of town.

The new task at hand becamehow to effectively make a decisionabout the future of town within acontextual framework that citizenssupport, and how do we insert aprocess into the statutory frameworkdictated by the state. The frameworkdiscourages true dialogue with thepublic, creates fear among electedofficials for litigious backlash, andhas historically been driven solely by disjointed codes and erraticallocation of resources.

Testing Towards the Collective Vision Statement

Now, at the front end of the ComprehensivePlan, we have what is being called a CollectiveVision Statement. This statement was created fromnotes recorded during the charette as well as otherplanning meetings with citizens about the desiredstate of town. It describes the life people want here.We also have a description of what we need tocreate to produce that life. These statements havebecome the “Policy” statements embedded withinthe plan. Any action item or goal contributes tothe policies from the Collective Vision Statement.Also, we are working on a description of how ourresources should be well into the future to sustainthat life that people want. We will also include adescription of how we, as a town, need to behave.

While some of this may not be directlyreferenced later in the Comprehensive Plan, wehave it all in one place, and we can mentally

check to see that any isolated item fits within the whole direction of town. The score sheet that asks us to “delete” or “keep” takes on adifferent meaning since we have context for eachpiece of the plan. We can look at the CollectiveVision Statement and make an informed, directed judgment.

One additional piece is the litmus test that wehave introduced—a series of filtering questions.Hopefully, with practice, the filter questions willbecome more ingrained in the minds of the townstaff, the Planning and Zoning Commission, andthe Trustees. The Holistic Management® TestingQuestions have been used as the model, andadapted for the town. Staff has worked to adjustsome of the questions so that they were moreeasily understood for this application. Trustees

have commented that they can be used forfiltering elements of the Comprehensive Plan, butalso for any decision that comes before us duringour regular meetings.

The hope is that staff will have passed theirplanning recommendations through these filtersand present an analysis of them at our regularmeetings. If they generally pass these questions,we could approve a policy/application/decisionwith a fair degree of certainty, acknowledging thatwe cannot account for every possible variable. The following is the list of filtering questions:

1. Is the proposed action/strategy/policy inreaction to something? If so, what? Does itaddress the root cause of whatever we arereacting to?

2. Will this enhance, or degrade the overallnatural, social and economic resourcesthat we need in the future to sustain our

Collective Vision Statement?

3. Will this negatively affect the quality of life of others? Will this so offendneighbors, the County, our constituency, etc that we will stop progress toward ourCollective Vision?

4. If you have to chose between variousoptions, which will take you toward theCollective Vision most effectively?

5. What is the source and use of energyneeded for this action, if any? Is it the bestfit for our Collective Vision?

6. What is the source and use of moneyneeded for this action? Is it the best fit forour Collective Vision?

7. Will this contribute to our sales tax? (or:Will this enhance our local economy?)

8. If we plan to spend money, will we bechanneling our resources in the mostappropriate way, according to what wepresently need most as a town:Capitalizing on/enhancing staff’scapabilities and/or our currentresources, enhancing our “brand” as atown, or actually marketing ourselvesto potential tourists, new residentsand/or businesses?

9. If this is a new enterprise, what is itspotential gross profit and how does thatcompare with other enterprises theTown has?

10. Now that you’ve answered the other questions, will this particularaction/strategy/policy take us towardour Collective Vision?

We still have some work ahead of us.But, we have taken some steps to adjusting theprocess within town. The town staff has been verycooperative with this different approach to thecomprehensive planning process, and supports the idea of the Collective Vision. Next trusteemeeting, I will work with the filtering questions as we decide where to contribute limited financialresources for this year’s upcoming budget, andanalyze an annexation petition, two minorsubdivisions, and a street closure request for aparade. But with upcoming elections, there will be two new trustees by the end of the month, and with them a change of perspective. Theintroduction of the Collective Vision and thefiltering questions is one hurdle; their integrateduse through generations of trustees is our next challenge.

Joel Benson can be reached at: 719/395-6119 or [email protected].


Without a context for decisions, community planners like Joel arebeing asked to pass judgment on housing that may indeed beaffordable but also causes a host of other problems because they are not being considered within the larger whole of Buena Vista’smany other needs and issues.

change of less than 10 percent), we can get to the heart of the matter.The two big positives, increased Litter Contact and reduced Plant

Pedestaling, might be explained due to greater stock density and regularherding practices. Charlie Orchard suspects the forbs dried up early andbefore the transects were read, explaining a portion of the Species Diversitydecline. Many of the negative trends, such as declines in ProductionPotential, Plant Vigor and Total Canopy, can be at least partially explained bydrought and little precipitation. If it rains less, less forage is going to grow, nomatter how good the state of the ecosystem processes.

To us, the primary concerns are the changes in Bare Ground and PlantDistribution. The significant drops in these indicators mean that we arestruggling to retain what little moisture we have received (due primarily toevaporation off of the bare surface), and that plants are dying. Is ourmanagement causing this, or can we blame it all on the drought? Could ourmanagement adjustments have been more appropriate from the point ofview of the effectiveness of the ecosystem processes?

Playing with DroughtTo begin to answer these questions, and to help put these trends in the

proper context, let’s review our history of Holistic Planned Grazing on TwinCreek. In the chart titled Stocking Rate vs. Rainfall, we can get a quick senseof how our stocking rate has varied relative to our annual changes inprecipitation. The stocking rate is shown as a percentage of the baselinestocking rate (which is based on our ten-year average ending in 1990 beforewe started to plan our grazing, and which is represented by the heavyhorizontal line in the chart). The precipitation is shown as a percentage ofthe long-term average (LTA) precipitation, which is 8.51 inches (216 mm).

Informal step transects revealed greater than 50 percent bare ground in1990, the year we began to plan our grazing holistically. As we concentratedour cattle into one herd, the increased stock density immediately beganknocking overrested plants onto the ground and created litter cover. We werebenefiting from the abundant standing dead plant material, typical of season

We established four permanent trend and condition transects in1999, so we have solid data on the health of our upland rangeprior to the drought. Since then, our monitoring hasprimarily been through close daily observation and informal

step transects. But, this past summer, we hired Charlie Orchard of LandEKG (www.landekg.com) to come re-read our permanent biologicalmonitoring transects. We felt it was time for a more objective reading ofhow our drought-induced management adjustments have enabled us tomaintain the integrity of the ecosystem processes.

In the chart titled 1999 vs. 2007 Monitoring Data, we get a quick senseof how our measured indicators have changed over the course of the eight-yeardrought. This chart averages the change in all four transects. At first glance, wesee that we had about the same number of indicators change for the positive asfor the negative. But, if we look at the major changes (and disregard any

Surviving or Thriving in Drought by Tony Malmberg & Jim Howell

&&

10 � January / February 2008Land & Livestock

Tony, Andrea, and KD Malmberg own and manage Twin CreekRanch, just a little southeast of Lander, Wyoming. At Twin Creek, anormal year sees a scant 8.5 inches (213 mm) of precipitation,erratically spread throughout the year, and temperature extremesfrom 105 to -25 F(41 to -32C). In the process of managing their livestock and trying to make a

living, they’ve also been scrambling to adjust to the worst eight-yeardrought in recorded history. Here is their story of how they arrived at thisdrought, how they’ve negotiated the drought, and how their ranch’secological base has “weathered” the drought. Most importantly, it’s thestory of lessons learned throughout this tough period, and how thoselessons will help all of us negotiate more tough times down the road.

Number 117 � 11Land & Livestock

long grazing at low livestock densities. Our increased densities laid thismaterial on the ground and improved the water cycle. In only a couple ofyears, our step transects showed our bare ground had been cut in half, andwas down to 25 percent. Following a very dry year in 1994, a wildlife biologist told me that elk from all over the country were wintering on ourranch. We coasted through that year without cutting our stocking rate, whichby that time was 30 percent more than before we started planning grazingfive years earlier.

I felt like I was bulletproof and went back to whipping and spurringstocking rates, eventually building up to 165 percent of where we started. Wecoasted through another dry year in 1996 without dropping stocking rates,but then we began to struggle. Bare ground started increasing. In 1998, Ishortened recovery periods in an attempt to get regrowth trampled into theground and reduce the bare ground. In other words, I started grazing this lowproduction country twice within the same growing season, thinking that thesecond time around with the cattle would get the little bit of new regrowthback onto the soil surface.

It wasn’t working. The absence of litter supply started slapping me in theface by 1999. Our monitoring that year showed we were back up to 33 percentbare ground. In 2000, our production fell off significantly and bare groundincreased even more. We cut our stocking rates, and I was frustrated because Icouldn’t figure out the problem. Looking back, I believe that, by 1996, we had"used" all of the standing litter that had built up from lower stock densities.By that point there was no longer any older material to serve as a source oflitter, and bare ground started increasing because most of the plants were nowvegetative and pliable. No matter how hard I pounded it with animal impact,the plants would not lie down as litter. This is characteristic of low productionbrittle environments. Once overrested plants are cleaned up, those plants arehighly nutritious and palatable, even after they cure. So, I felt I knew why thelitter was decreasing, but I wasn’t sure what to do about it.

The Road to “Recovery”Then I heard Jim Howell discuss his hypothesis that low production,

brittle environments most likely evolved under grazing patterns thatincorporated longer recovery periods than high production, brittleenvironments (such as tropical savanna grasslands). Both brittleenvironments have large herds, but low production areas, like our sagebrushsteppe, necessarily support much lower natural stocking rates, and the

animals that are present tend to be highly migratory. It stands to reason thatthese large migratory herds in the low production environments would havemost likely frequented a place less often.

He said if we look at the migratory patterns of herbivores in fairly lowproduction environments (that have survived into modern times along withtheir associated predators—wildebeest of the southern Serengeti, Mongoliangazelle, Tibetan antelope, saiga antelope, caribou)—this is what we actuallyfind. Multiple year intervals between grazing events tend to be the norm.Jim’s presentation was an “Ah Ha” moment, and our history suddenly mademore sense. I went home and began planning longer recovery periods.

Now, instead of twice per season grazing, I was determined to only grazeeach pasture one time per year, at the most. Gradually, we began to extendfrequency between grazing periods out to 400+ days so a pasture grazed inspring wouldn’t be grazed until the following summer. Then, it wouldn’t begrazed until the following fall, and then not until the following spring a yearand half later (with one whole growing season off in between).

Then in 2002 we had the worst drought anyone in our neighborhoodcould remember, and definitely the worst on record. But the longer recoveryperiods began paying off and our stocking rates stopped their free fall. In2002 our stocking rates were 70 percent of our baseline, while mostsurrounding grazing allotments were 50 percent. I could see more litter inthe areas that went longer than one year between grazings. I was hopeful.

The years 2003 to 2005 were still dry, but reasonable compared to 2002.We actually began to increase stocking rates once again. It was dry, but dueto longer recovery periods, more litter on the ground, and a better water cycle,we were growing more grass again. In the fall of 2005, with good fallmoisture in the soil profile, and believing the longer recovery periods weremagic, I planned for a hefty stocking rate in 2006. And then, in the spring of2006, for the first time in recorded history, we had no measurableprecipitation in April or May (which typically are our “wet” months). I hungon until our last chance for rain at the end of May. When it didn’t come, Icalled the trucks and shipped 30 percent of the cattle. We got the rest of thecattle through, but it cost in reduced litter cover. When Charlie read ourtransects in 2007, bare ground had shot back up to 56 percent—ouch!

Fine-tuning Stocking RateAnytime we get into a bad situation it's urgent that we survive. Aggressive

stocking rates are necessary to keep profits high, and in the midst of lots offinancial pressures, we needed to make money. But, could we have managedour situation differently—to result in both healthy profits and increasingecological resilience, even during this tough string of dry years? This is wherehindsight is good.

First, look at the dark line which is our actual stocking rates in "StockingRate vs. Rainfall" chart. To recap, we were doing great increasing stocking

continued on page 12


rates and covering the soil surface through 1996. Then our bare groundstarted increasing just before we went into the long term drought beginningin 1999. Our free fall in stocking rates stabilized in 2003 after increasing ourrecovery periods. It was really dry in 2006, and there was insufficient growthfor both litter supply and livestock feed. Our bare ground increased again,and now we’re trying to sort out what indicators, or decision makingbenchmarks, we could have used to have responded more quickly andprevented the deteriorating conditions.

Determining stocking rate is always tricky in our cold steppe environment.In year round grazing environments (hot and mild steppes, tropical and sub-tropical savannas, mild temperate prairies), stocking rates are alwayscontrolled by the amount of standing vegetation going into the dry (or non-growing, or dormant) season. If, after the growing season (when overstockingis seldom an issue), your assessments of forage on hand indicate that there isinsufficient quantity to make it to the next likely precipitation and newgrowth, then you’ve got to destock. The decision is fairly straightforward.

In seasonal grazing environments like ours, where it is only feasible tograze during the growing season due to winter snow cover, this determinationof stocking is less straightforward. Here, we aren’t attempting to build a bankof forage to take into the dry season. If we want to graze it, we have to graze itbefore the snow flies. But, at the beginning of the season, it’s really hard toknow how much grass we’ll have, since none (or least very little) of it hasgrown yet. We typically have predictable early growth thanks to stored soilmoisture which has accumulated through the cold winter, but the amount ofgrowth we actually end up having is hugely impacted by the amount ofmoisture that arrives through the spring and early summer. By that time,we’ve already got all our cattle on hand.

So, is there a benchmark we can use to help us make these stocking ratedecisions? In the past, our stocking rate decisions were largely based on“hope”, as in “let’s hope it rains.” With bare ground back up to 56 percent,we realize we have to do better than that.

our stocking rates would have looked like if we had adjusted them for themoving average (MA) of the actual precipitation for four years precedingthat year’s turnout. Charlie Orchard suggested this as a benchmark that wethink might lend more rationality to our stocking rate decision making.

This is how it’s calculated. First, we determine what our baselinestocking rate is from the historical long term average stocking rate basedon traditional set stocking and average precipitation. From this stockingrate (expressed as total number of Stock Days harvested in the year), we can divide by the average precipitation, which gives us an Average StockDays per Inch of Precipitation (ASDIP). Yearly adjustments to stocking ratecan then be made by taking the average precipitation of the previous fouryears, and multiplying that by ASDIP.

We selected four years in an attempt to mimic Nature. When a droughthits, Nature doesn't destock immediately, rather gradually with lowerconception rates initially. If the drought persists, stocking rate furtherreduces with higher rates of winter (or dry season) starvation of the old and weak. When Nature comes out of the drought, it takes a few years to get the stocking rates up again as reproductive success increases. In otherwords, when it starts raining again, it takes the herbivore populations awhile to catch up to the new forage abundance, and in the meantime,nature “stock piles” a supply of litter for herding animals to lay on the soil surface.

For this reason, a four-year average gives us a guideline to mimic thisprocess on our ranch (and it might even need to be longer than that). Thismethodology isn’t as precise as it could be, since timing of precipitation,not just total precipitation, has a big impact on the amount of grass wegrow, but it’s a good place to start. If we had planned our stocking rate this way, the result would have been the gray line on our chart.

But our actual stocking rate was much more after we started planningour grazing in 1990. Of course, we minimized overgrazing after webunched our herds and covered bare ground because our increased stockdensity trampled the large supply of overrested plants to cover the soilsurface with litter. In effect, we had created a more effective water cycle. As a result, we coasted through the 1994 drought, even with 30 percent higherstocking rates than our baseline stocking rate and had grass left for wildlife.So let's use that as the stocking rate baseline (with the understanding thatwe must come back to our pre-grazing planning stocking rate baseline ifwe lose improvement in the ecosystem processes that allowed for theincreased production), and adjust our average stock days per inch ofprecipitation (ASDIP) up by 20 percent to arrive at the third line on thegraph, titled Target SR (stocking rate), the white line.

Benchmarks & ProjectionsBased on hindsight, these two lines are what I propose to assist us in

the future as our benchmark for determining stocking rate. When ourecosystem processes are performing well, with a covered soil surface, we will use the Target SR. When we make mistakes, create bare ground andneed to replan, we can start with the Baseline Adj. / In. guideline. Both ofthese are based on a four year average of actual precipitation (the previousfour years). For example, the 1993 stocking rate would have beendetermined at 132 percent of the baseline because the previous four years of precipitation was 9.34 inches (234 mm). So the formula is:

9.34 inches (precipitation average) X 17,675 stock days per inch (ASDIP) =165,085 total stock days, which is 132 percent of the baseline stocking rate.

While we started increasing bare ground in 1997, if we would have had this methodology in place, the chart shows how we wouldn’t haveincreased our stocking rates from 1995-1999 as aggressively as we actually

Surviving or Thriving in Droughtcontinued from page 11

Mimicking NatureIn the graph above the gray line titled "Baseline Adj. / Inch MA," which is

the baseline stocking rate adjusted for precipitation, gives us an idea what


did. They would have increased more gradually. And if we had beenplanning longer recovery periods during this time, we likely wouldn’t havepicked up an increase in bare ground in our monitoring.

Based on this methodology, our stocking rates still would have peakedout in 1999, close to where they actually were, but with a covered soilsurface, and we could have coasted down to 2003, with higher stockingrates than we actually had (as modeled in the chart). Then, rather thanresponding so exuberantly to improvements made due to longer recoveryperiods in 2004, we would have continued to use the four-year precipitationaverage as our guide, which would have kept our stocking rates lower,which would have had a positive impact on litter supply. And that brings us to the pivotal year of 2006.

We went into 2006 planning to graze 25 percent more than we actuallydid. We planned this stocking rate based on a four year upward trend instocking rates and improving ground cover (due to longer recoveryperiods). Adequate moisture in the fall of 2005 combined with euphoricanticipation of a better year kept me leaning towards a higher stockingrate. If we would have had the four-year average precipitation benchmark,we would not have even been considering increasing stocking rates (due toa good stretch of moisture in the fall). As we got into the bad spring, withno moisture for the first time in recorded history during April and May, wecould have begun destocking from a lower level. Who knows—if we hadplanned our stocking rates this way through this whole time period,destocking in the spring of 2006 may not have even been necessary, because our soil cover and drought-resilience would have been greater.

But, that’s not what we did. With no spring moisture in 2006, we startedshipping cattle, but not early enough or fast enough. We ended up with very high utilization, and we increased bare ground considerably. In 2007,despite reasonable moisture, our water cycle was much less effective. Wedidn't have a cushion, and had to make a drastic reduction in stockingrate. Stocking rates can coast through a dry year or two, if we have deeprooted plants and a covered soil surface. When faced with long termdrought, we simply have to adjust stocking rates down so we can keep thesoil surface covered. Once we let the ground go bare, decreases in stockingrate become exponential, which really stinks from the point of view of ourbank account.

If we can stick to this new methodology, we should steer clear of gettingourselves into this situation again. This won’t be enough—we alwaysassume we’re wrong when making land-based management decisions. To make sure we’re staying on track with maintaining ground cover, ouron-the-ground biological monitoring will have to continue. But, if we can make initial stocking rate decisions based on a rational methodology(as opposed to “hope”), chances of getting into a bare ground wreck are much less.

Drought InsuranceIn looking at our 2007 monitoring data, our environment is still intact

for the most part. We have more bare ground and fewer plants, but evidenceof erosion hasn’t worsened (so we aren’t losing soil), the litter we do have is contacting the soil better, germination sites have slightly increased, ourmost desired plants have increased, etc. We still have our basic ecologicalresource base to support our forms of production. And with the changes inpre-season planning, combined with continued careful monitoring (and alittle help from Nature to get some rainfall), we are poised to heal quicklyand continue generating solar dollars.

Another bright side of this story has been the resilience of our riparianareas. Healthy riparian areas and grassy creek banks catch sediment duringhigh flows and narrow the creek channel. Eventually the bed elevation ofthe creek rises. Like pinching off a water hose, the water table rises to the

flood plain. Two good things happen with high water tables. Spring thawsand summer cloudbursts run out and across the flood plain, carryingsediments, nutrients, and an effective dose of irrigation. Water seeps into the creek bank and sub-irrigates plants far away. Sub-irrigated groundgrows many times more grass than the uplands. In fact, 35 percent of ourtotal production grows on these narrow ribbons of riparian corridorscomprising only 2.5 percent of our ranch.

And, during the last eight years of drought, that 2.5 percent of ourranch has produced 100 percent of its long-term average. With higher watertables and lateral bank storage, there was no drought! Healthy creekchannels are the best drought insurance we have. In terms of increasingthe drought resistance and ecological resilience of our ranches, improvingcreek channels is our best marginal reaction for the time and moneyspent.

By-products of healthy riparian areas are better fisheries, waterfowlhabitat, and vertical vegetation diversity. Increased willows provide food anddam building material for beavers. Beaver dams raise the water table andslow flows for even more production. Moose have year-around habitat, andmigratory songbird populations increase (we’ve measured a 40 percentincrease on Twin Creek). In addition to cleaner water, fish benefit fromthermal refuge sites, where water that’s cooled from lateral bank storagereturns to the creek system.

So how do we improve creek channels? The same way we do everywhereelse—by controlling time and keeping stock density as high as possiblewith grazing periods of less than 21 days using temporary electric fences tokeep cattle moving up and down creek corridors. It takes about 30 minutesto put up a mile of temporary fence and one-hour to roll it up. The key ishaving our cattle trained to the electric fence and daily checks of the cattle.It’s the best marginal reaction we have.

We hope this eight-year drought is a historical anomaly and not thetrend of the future. But, given the vagaries of climate change consequences,we can only guess what awaits us. Most information suggests that thetrends that certain environments and regions are currently experiencing arethe trends that are likely to continue under global warming. If that’s thecase, the last eight years have taught us some important survival lessons.Keep those water tables high in the creek beds, keep the soil covered in the uplands, and always look to Nature’s model for guidance.

In Low-Production Brittle Environments

• Pause after initial success—increased stock density willresult in immediate gains in production that will not continue toincrease. Don’t take success seriously.

• Observe litter supply—after a few years most of your plants will be vegetative. You may need longer recovery to stock pile.

• Coast through a dry year or two. Good ground cover and deep-rooted plants will carry your stocking rates for a year or two.

• Replan if you lose your ground cover. Go back to pre-plannedgrazing stocking rates, or less. Building litter is slow in low production environments.

• Protect and improve your riparian areas. They are great drought insurance.

Back to the BasicsThe key missing factor was farmers were not looking at total grazing

area and were managing just for current rotation, and not for the whole year andfor years to come even thought they followed Intensive Grazing practices. Benalso felt it was difficult and discouraging for graziers in non-brittle areas to tryand chart every move. So the concept of ‘lite’ holistic planned grazing was born.

Ben went back to basics. He knew the focus of holistic planned grazingwas for a person to control the harvesting of solar energy (grazing of plants)to ensure indefinite profitability and sustainability—having the livestock atthe right place at the right time for the right reasons. He also saw he neededto be in certain paddocks at certain times of the year and that certainpaddocks should not be grazed at particular times and so on.

He began with the idea that if people did no more than note those specialsituations, it did not really matter where they were in between thoseparticular circumstances as long as they had enough feed. From those twostarting points, he did a rough projection of how many acres/paddocks hewould need for the “average” year.

A plan would give him the acres that he knew he would graze and theacres he would mechanically harvest, and would help identify those acresthat would be flexible depending upon the weather. He also needed to knowearly in the season if his growth was on track or if he was running short ofpasture or stored feed in the winter. This would enable him to makeappropriate decisions, such as shift some land planned for late mechanicalharvest to pasture or simply to know that the pasture season would be shorterand he would require more stored feed. Despite the fact that there are no“average” years, it is possible to shift fields from mechanical harvest tograzing and vice versa. Now the principles needed to be put into practice

Putting Principles Into PracticeThe summer of 2007 was to be the first time “lite” grazing was put into

practice, on Ben and Denise’s operation. Unfortunately, they had the worstdrought in about 20 years and ended up feeding stored feed for 30 days. Thiswas the first time they had to feed during the grazing season in 30 years!Despite the challenge, they were able to keep in mind they needed certainpaddocks for certain activities such as weaning lambs or late autumn grazing of weaned lambs or newly purchased calves.

Even with 30 years of experience, Ben still found it valuable to have his‘lite’ grazing plan to look at. By referring to his paddock inventory this


Lite Planned Grazing—Another Approach to Planned Grazing by Aspen Edge

With a degree in animal husbandry and a doctorate inveterinary medicine, Ben Bartlett is no stranger to livestock—he’s been raising them for almost 50 years in the upper Midwestof the United States. He has also put his knowledge to work for

operations in Japan and Korea, and has worked as an educator with theMichigan State University Extension system for over 30 years. Theseexperiences have given him extensive insights into how animals can be mosteffectively managed to maintain both pasture and livestock performance innon-brittle environments. But at the end of the day, Ben simply likeslivestock, which is why they have always been part of his life in Michigan.

Use It or Lose ItBen, and his wife Denise, live in Traunik in the north most part of

Michigan, where they experience a very short growing season, cool summers,and very snowy winters. Here they have been managing their 988 acres (400ha) of owned and rented land for the last 30 years. Operating under thename of Log Cabin Livestock, they currently have 150 head of stocker cattle,purchased in the autumn and sold 12 months later as large feedersfor the feedlot, and a 500-head ewe flock producing about 750lambs for replacements and feeder lambs, sold to feedlots.

They manage their land in a way which emphasizes theutilization of their high quality grazing forage which uses the excessspring growth for wintering the ewe flock and small steers. They get50 percent of their forage growth in the first 60 days of the growingseason, the other 50 percent of their forage in the next 120 days,and then no forage growth for about 180 days with an average of150 inches (375 cm) of annual snow fall.

They have lots of sunshine during the peak growth periodbecause they are so far north, about the 47th parallel, whichgenerates a very fast growth rate. The forage that grows in the first60 days has to be used, or it’s lost due to the non-brittle conditions.It was these conditions, which posed particular challenges whenusing holistic planned grazing protocols.

New ToolsAs they harvest at least twice a year and sometimes up to five, they found

that the current holistic grazing planning procedure did not really suit theircircumstances. They found it very challenging to be grazing a group ofsheep, a group of cattle and mechanically harvesting the spring excess, andtrying to plot this out on the grazing plan—particularly when rainfall wouldrequire re-planning. They needed to intensively harvest/capture the flush ofearly growth while working towards finding the right balance of grazing andmechanical harvest. They felt they really needed another process to helpthem in their planned grazing.

For example, if they put stock in a paddock for two days, there was notenough feed left to leave them in that paddock for another day. If the grassgrowth slowed, it was not simply a matter of slowing down rotation: morepaddocks had to be found.

In addition, Ben and his farming clients, found the existing holisticgrazing plan worksheet intimidating, and this resulted in lack ofcommitment to following the plan once created. The result was that somevery important “grazing scheduling” issues were being missed, simplybecause the cure was considered to be worse than the condition!

Ben and Denise with their grandchildren. Good grazing planning meansimproved quality of life.

winter, for instance, he could see what modifications hecould make in case they experienced a severe feedshortage again. The “lite” grazing plan also provided ahistory of cattle moves so they could avoid turning up atthe same paddock at the same time each year.

With this experience to draw upon Ben created theform and the process to introduce “lite” holistic plannedgrazing to other graziers in Michigan. He thought it would encourage farming clients to do a field inventory,and begin to see what their operation would look like onpaper. This would enable them to see what fields mightneed improvement or modification.

Through this “lite” grazing process, graziers wereintroduced to the concept of balancingthe relationship between people, animalsand plants in a planned way. They werealso exposed to the trade off betweenholistic planned grazing, which can beperceived as management intensive, andcapital inputs, such as barns, tractors andso on. And, they were encouraged to takea long-term view and consistently movetowards the outcomes they wanted.

Ben believes that adapting the holisticgrazing plan, to meet situations that areparticular to non-brittle environmentsand to lighten the content, has made thewhole process more relevant, accessible,and quick to complete. As a result, it ismore likely to be created, maintained,and consulted by farmers. Although stilla “work-in-progress,” he sees “lite”holistic grazing planning gives a quickerreturn on investment, which probablysuits the non-brittle farming psyche,where the landscape and the peopleare more hasty!

Ben Bartlett can be reached at:[email protected] or 906/439-5880.

Holstein cattle and Polypay cross sheep must beconsidered along with haying operations as part of Log Cabin Livestock operations.

Lite Grazing Plan1) Outline objectives for both the grazing livestock and the grazing land. Aholisticgoal is the best option for determining objectives. For example, husband and wife unit with 40 beef cows for recreation and some income, requiring simplicity ofmanagement, wanting to decrease costs, sell weaned calves in autumn, and make winter feed.

2) Determine grazing and stored feed parameters and potential yield. For example,the acreage of the areas to be grazed or mechanically harvested, the expected yield interms of tons of mechanical harvest or the number of times each area could be grazed.

3) Identify feed needs for grazing and non-grazing periods. For example, 40 cows(including replacements and bulls)

Assume 1,200 lbs (545 kg) of feed harvested per acre per grazing. Assume 1 cow grazes 45 lbs (20.45 kg) grass per day.So, 40 cows graze 1,800 lbs (818 kg) per day. So, number of acres needed per day = 1,800 divided by 1,200 = 1.5 acres per day Stored feed 35 lbs (16 kg) feed per cow/day x 40 head = 1,400 lbs (636 kg) x 180

days = 126 tons.

4) Make note on grazing plan of special considerations. For example, shelteredcalving area, paddock used for hunting, area too wet for grazing during damp autumnseason, weaning paddocks.

5) Schedule in the number of days grazing. For example, number of days grazing (D)by area and by month or the tonnage of mechanical harvest (T) by area and by month.This was completed by working backwards from the previously identified specialconsiderations and considering necessary recovery periods for grasses.

6) Review plan. Review for appropriate recovery times, identify flexible use of acreage(hay or graze), double check for considerations, and identify animal production goalsthat determine successful grazing practices.

Pg. 4 Grazing & Stored Feed Plan For Non-Brittle Areas

Name SampleYear 2007

Farm Size 160 Acres

Grazing Stored StoredField Acres Yield Considerations May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov- Dec Jan- Apr

Homestead 10 --

A 20 2T/3G Early Calving Area 12 D 12 D 12 D

B 30 2T/3G Graze Only 18 D 18 D 20 D 18 D *

C 30 2T/3G Graze Only 18 D 10 D 10 D

D 20 2.5 T Hay or Graze 30 T 12 D 12 D

E 20 2.5 T Hay or Graze 30 T 20 T

F 10 2.5 T Hay or Graze 15 T 7 D 7 D

G 20 2.5 T Hay or Graze 30 T 13 D 12 D

H

I

J

K

L

Signifcant Time Events Calving Vacation Wean

Yields 30 D 105T / 30D30 D 20T /30D30 D 31 D 30 DAnimal Performance Factors

Cow Condition Scores 3.5 On April 1st * Depending on snow coverReproductive RatesWeight Gains/ Weaning W ts. Weaning W ts - 550 # avg.Milk Production LevelsOther

Notes T = Tons G= Grazings

Hay Yield 2.5 T = 1.5 T 1st cut / 1.0 T 2nd Cut

_________________________________________

Totals Requirements Net Spring Summer FallHay Yields 125 Ton 126 T - 1 Ton 20D 30D 45DGrazing Days 210 Days 180 Days + 30 Days

Recovery Periods



Iam amazed at how many simple ideas from around the world havemade my life so much easier. The Zimbabwean and South Africapractice of hooking temporary electric fence on brush so they don’tneed as many posts makes putting up a fence so much easier and

faster. The Argentinean idea of holding up a single electric wire with a PVCpipe so livestock can pass under is simple brilliance. I’m sure there aremany more simple ideas out there that will make all of our lives easier.

When we are home, we might not recognize the elegance of simplicitythat we have taken for granted. However, when we are at our neighbors, ortraveling, we do notice elegant simplicity. When you see something, pleasesend it to me at [email protected]. I’ll write it up for IN PRACTICE, andwe can all benefit.

LoadingChute-Wyoming, USA

Due to a seriesof circumstances, I have worked onranches across aneight-state region.Years ago I neededto build a loadingchute so I sat downand thought aboutall the chutes Iused to load cattle.Many loadingchutes had one ortwo characteristicsthat made them

better. Some were total misery. After identifying five characteristics commonto the best, I built a loading chute incorporating all five. I can honestly say,this loading chute loads cattle and goats better than any loading chute I’veever used.

What They Can’t See Won’t Hurt Them.Principle One: Make the sides of the chute solid so the animals can’t

see out.Principle Two: Make the chute turn before it gets to the truck. If the

animals in the crowding area can only see animals disappearing around acorner, they are in a hurry to follow.

Make What You Want Them To Do Easy.Principle Three: Put the “climb” in the first section BEFORE the chute

turns. This section is 10 feet ( 3 meters) on our chute. Level the chute at theturn and put a flat section in before they get to the truck, so they don’t haveto climb up into the truck. This section is also 10 feet on our chute. Theimportant aspect is to have it longer than one animal so animals behind can always see an animal ahead.

Principle Four: Build the chute with solid sides all of the way to theground and fill it with dirt so the animals are walking on dirt with no hollowsound. I filled the bottom ¾ with rock for two reasons. First, it allowsmoisture to drain out and away. Second, we have a lot of rock and it fillsquickly and settles little.

Think Ahead.Principle Five: Just a

few pounds ofshrink adds up toa lot of money onshipping day if the cattle aren’tweighed beforethey are loaded, asis our case. Eachshipping day weneed to thinkabout our crewand who will bewhere. When weare building ourchute we need tothink about where the sun will be for the majority of our paydays. Theloading that affects our payday happens between September 15 and October 31. We built our loading chute so the sun would be behind andshining directly into the truck from 8:00 to 9:00 AM in the fall.

String ‘Em On!So how does it work? Three of us loaded 800 head of yearling heifers on

14 trucks in less than one and a half hours. They simply file on following the animals disappearing around the corner in front of them.

Improvements NeededThe first change to make on our design is where the trucker stands as the

cattle load. The animals come up the ramp and turn to the right, where itlevels off before they gointo the chute. We builtthe walkway for truckerson the left side of theanimals as they go tothe truck. It shouldhave been on the otherside so the animalswould not see peoplestanding above them atthe turn. As the animalstarts up the ramp theyare looking directly atanyone standing on thewalkway. If the walkwaywere on the other sidethey would not see them.

The second change ison the ramp. The floor isdirt so to keep the dirt from working down and out the back of the chute, weput “cleats,” or boards nailed from each side every two feet going up theramp. Several of these pulled lose. To prevent this, notch the planks so the“cleat” can slide into the notch on both sides so a nail doesn’t have tohold the entire weight.

Simple Ideasby Tony Malmberg

Here’s the chute in action. The only problem is thecows can see the trucker. If the perch was on the otherside, the cows wouldn’t see him until they hadrounded the curve.

The curve in the chute means the cow behinddoesn’t see the truck and just sees the back endof the cow in front moving out of view—encouraging the cow behind to move forwardinstead of balk.

With solid sides and a solid floor, this chute removespotential concerns for the cattle as they board thetruck—resulting in less stress and weight loss forthe animals.


Book Review by Rob Rutherford

Leadership and the New Science: Discovering Order in a Chaotic Worldby Margaret Wheatley218 pages Berrett-Koehler Publishers; 3rd ed.

Leadership and the New Science wasoriginally published in 1992, but it iscurrently out in its third edition, whichincludes an appended chapter dealing

with the "real world." This book wasrecommended to me by George Work, one of theearly adopters of Holistic Management. He wasintroduced to the book as a part of hisparticipation in the Roots of Changeorganization here in California.

In a nutshell, the book is “where quantumphysics meets organizational structure,” and it has exceptional relevance to HolisticManagement. There are certainly no references tothings like decision tests, or tools, or planningguidelines—but every chapter gets more andmore at the very core of holism and theparadigms that keep it from the mainstream.

Deeply held paradigms prove to be difficult to “break through.” I have found that thesebreakthroughs are at least partially due to avariety of experiences from a variety of sources—the power of diversity. So too, this book provides adifferent look from a different direction for me—which helps me to further absorb the reality ofholism and articulate to others. As is suggested inHolistic Management: A New Framework forDecision Making, until one can really make theseparadigm shifts, managing holistically is notlikely to happen. We need to consider how ourlanguage and our structures get in the way ofthose paradigm shifts.

A continuing notion throughout the book isthat life is about patterns and relationships—not things. Wheatley notes our Western societyoperates on Newtonian science—17th centuryphysics—“We manage by separating things intoparts, we believe that influence occurs as a directresult of force exerted from one person to another,we engage in complex planning for a world thatwe keep expecting to be predictable, and searchcontinually for better methods of objectivelymeasuring and perceiving the world.”

But, "Life is relentlessly non-linear…There

are no recipes or formulas, no checklists or expertadvice that describe ‘reality’.” In fact, I perceivethat one of the difficulties with the adoption ofHolistic Management is that the “framework” isperceived as a recipe – and used as such – so it isnot likely to produce the desired understanding orresults because the paradigm shift to a holisticperspective still has not taken place.

The new science holds that simply performingthe exercise of observation changes therelationship of that being observed—and that“what we are will determine what we observe.” In other words, we must make a paradigm shiftbefore we can observe in a way that we can take in all the information, not only the “linear”

information. This book has helped me to explainhow the monitoring we do with HolisticManagement is different from, yet complimentarywith, traditional monitoring done withconventional Western science because we arelooking at all the information to continue toadjust our plans or actions to create the desiredoutcome, the big picture, rather than focusingspecifically on certain objectives.

In Leadership there is repeated reference to life being about relationships and patterns and shapes—not facts. There are a lot ofcomparisons of soft and natural systems to hardsystems, although they are not presented withthose labels. Likewise, Wheatley discusses theconcept of self-organizing tendencies, of networksthat change constantly as relationships changewithin, and the ease with which we fall intoreferring to soft and natural systems with hardsystem terminology such as describing anorganization that “works like a clock” and othersuch phraseology. Such terms indicate we havenot yet made the paradigm shift to working

effectively within those organizations, engaging in networks that are fluid and adapting to thefeedback loop, moving toward the desiredoutcome with less resistance.

In her final, and newly added chapter,Wheatley answers those critics who challenge herapproach with “but what about the real world?”The two examples she chooses to discuss todemonstrate the differences between Newtonianapproaches and the new science of quantumphysics are responses to natural disasters(specifically Hurricane Katrina) and terrorism.Wheatley’s analysis is very similar to AllanSavory’s analysis in his essay written following theevents of September 11, 2001. Wheatley notes thenew science recognizes terrorist organizations asnetworks without hierarchy. “New science explainsthe behavior of networks in great detail becausethis is the only form of organization used by theplanet…We [the U.S. Military leadership] usefactors that apply to our world but not to theirs, tothe behavior of hierarchical organizations, not tonetworks…We must understand that we losecapacity and in fact create more chaos when weinsist on hierarchy, roles, and command andcontrol leadership.”

Because a Holistic Management approach isnecessarily humble (recognizing the uniquenessof each whole), because it embraces complexity,because it strives for a more desirable state ofbeing rather than setting benchmarks, I believe itrepresents the mirror image of command andcontrol—and, therefore, holds much greater hopeof reducing catastrophic relationships.

In reading this chapter I was left with the sensethat Wheatley’s analysis of the national approachto terrorism is not that much different than thenational approach to sustaining our society. Evenas I write this, various plans are being created toreduce emissions, capture carbon, change thefarm bill, redesign college curricula, and the listgoes on. All these approaches are coming from thevery same hierarchal, command and controlapproaches that were used to cause the currentconditions. The current leadership does notperceive that which is to be sustained as a series ofrelationships, rather as a magnificent engine thatneeds some parts adjusted—best done by expertsunder the watchful eyes of those in control.

I know I will read this book again, and now Iknow it won't be the same book that I read before.My relationships to everything will have changedand this non-linear world will continue todemand a fresh approach.

The book is “wherequantum physics meets

organizational structure,”and it has exceptionalrelevance to Holistic

Management.


CALIFORNIA

Bill Burrows12250 Colyear Springs RoadRed Bluff, CA 96080530/529-1535 • 530/200-2419 (c)[email protected]

Richard King1675 Adobe Rd.Petaluma, CA 94954707/769-1490707/794-8692(w)[email protected]

Christopher Peck6364 Starr Rd.Windsor, CA 95492707/[email protected]

* Rob RutherfordCA Polytechnic State UniversitySan Luis Obispo, CA 93407805/[email protected]

COLORADO

Joel BensonP.O. Box 4924Buena Vista, CO 81211719/[email protected]

Cindy Dvergsten17702 County Rd. 23Dolores, CO 81323970/[email protected]

Daniela and Jim HowellP.O. Box 67Cimarron, CO 81220-0067970/[email protected]

Craig Leggett2078 County Rd. 234Durango, CO 81301970/[email protected]

Byron Shelton33900 Surrey LaneBuena Vista, CO 81211719/[email protected]

Tom WaltherP.O. Box 1158Longmont, CO 80502-1158510/[email protected]

GEORGIA

Constance Neely1160 Twelve Oaks CircleWatkinsville, GA 30677706/[email protected] (Italy)

IOWA

* Margaret SmithIowa State University,CES Sustainable Agriculture972 110th St., Hampton, IA 50441-7578515/294-0887 • [email protected]

LOUISIANA

Tina PilioneP.O. 923, Eunice, LA 70535phone: 337/[email protected]

MAINE

Vivianne Holmes239 E. Buckfield Rd.Buckfield, ME 04220-4209207/[email protected]

Tobey Williamson52 Center St., Portland, ME 04101207/774-2458 [email protected]

MICHIGAN

Ben BartlettN4632 ET Road, Traunik, MI 49891906/439-5210 (h) • 906/439-5880 (w)[email protected]

MINNESOTA

Gretchen Blank4625 Cottonwood Lane NPlymouth, MN 55442-2902612/[email protected]

MONTANA

Wayne Burleson322 N. Stillwater Rd., Absarokee, MT 59001406/328-6808 • [email protected]

Roland Kroos 4926 Itana Circle, Bozeman, MT 59715406/522-3862 • [email protected]

* Cliff MontagneP.O. Box 173120Montana State University Department of Land Resources &Environmental ScienceBozeman, MT 59717406/994-5079 • [email protected]

NEBRASKA

Terry GompertP.O. Box 45Center, NE 68724-0045402/288-5611 (w)[email protected]

NEW HAMPSHIRE

* Seth Wilner24 Main Street, Newport, NH 03773603/863-4497 (h) • 603/863-9200 (w)[email protected]

NEW MEXICO

* Ann AdamsHolistic Management International1010 Tijeras NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102505/[email protected]

Kirk GadziaP.O. Box 1100, Bernalillo, NM 87004505/867-4685 • (f) 505/[email protected]

David Trew369 Montezuma Ave. #243Santa Fe, NM 87501505/988-1508 • [email protected]

Vicki Turpen03 El Nido Amado SWAlbuquerque, NM 87121505/873-0473 • [email protected]

Kelly WhiteNo. 4 El Nido Amado SWAlbuquerque, NM 87121-7300505/873-1324 (h) • 505/379-1866 (c)[email protected]

NEW YORK

Erica Frenay454 Old 76 RoadBrooktondale, NY 14817607/539-3246 (h) • 607/279-7978 (c)[email protected]

Phil Metzger99 N. Broad St.Norwich, NY 13815607/334-3231 x4 (w) • 607/334-2407 (h)[email protected]

John Thurgood17 Spruce St., Oneonta, NY 13820607/[email protected]

NORTH DAKOTA

* Wayne Berry Williston State College, P.O. Box 1326Williston, ND 58802701/[email protected]

UN I T E D S TAT E S


OHIO

Larry DyerOlney Friends School61830 Sandy Ridge RoadBarnesville, OH 47313740/425-3655 (w) • 740/425-2775 (h)[email protected]

PENNSYLVANIA

Jim Weaver428 Copp Hollow Rd.Wellsboro, PA 16901-8976570/724-7788 • [email protected]

TEXAS

Christina Allday-Bondy2703 Grennock Dr.Austin, TX 78745512/[email protected]

Guy Glosson6717 Hwy 380, Snyder, TX 79549806/[email protected]

Peggy MaddoxP.O. Box 694, Ozona, TX 76943-0694325/[email protected]

* R. H. (Dick) RichardsonUniversity of Texas at AustinSection of Integrative BiologySchool of Biological SciencesAustin, TX 78712512/[email protected]

Peggy Sechrist106 Thunderbird Rd., Fredericksburg, TX 78624830/[email protected]

Elizabeth Williams4106 Avenue BAustin, TX 78751-4220512/323-2858 [email protected]

WASHINGTON

Craig MadsenP.O. Box 107, Edwall, WA 99008509/[email protected]

Sandra Matheson228 E. Smith Rd., Bellingham, WA 98226360/[email protected]

Doug Warnock1880 SE Larch Ave.College Place, WA 99324509/525-3389 (w)509/525-3295 (h)509/856-7101 (c)[email protected]

WEST VIRGINIA

Fred Hays P.O. Box 241, Elkview, WV 25071304/[email protected]

To our knowledge, Certified Educators are the best qualified indivi duals to help others learn to practice Holistic Management and to provide them with technical as sis tance when necessary. On a yearly basis, Cer ti fi ed Educators renew their agree ment to be affiliated with HMI. This agreement requires their com mitment to practice Holistic Management in their own lives, to seek out opportunities for staying current with the latest developments in Holistic Man age ment and to maintain a high stan dard of ethical conduct in their work.

For more information about or application forms for the HMI’s Certified Educator Training Programs, contact Ann Adams or visit our website at: www.holisticmanagement.org.

* THESE EDUCATORS PROVIDE HOLISTIC MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTION ON BEHALF OF THE INSTITUTIONS THEY REPRESENT.

Certified Educators

Certified Educators


AUSTRALIA

Judi Earl73 Harding E, Guyra, NSW [email protected]

Mark GardnerP.O. Box 1395, Dubbo, NSW [email protected]

Paul GriffithsP.O. Box 3045, North Turramura, NSW 2074, Sydney, [email protected]

George Gundry Willeroo, Tarago, NSW [email protected]

Graeme Hand 150 Caroona Lane, Branxholme, VIC 330261-3-5578-6272 (h); 61-4-0996-4466 (c)[email protected]

Helen LewisP.O. Box 1263, Warwick, QLD 437061-7-4661739361-7-46670835 [email protected]

Brian MarshallP.O. Box 300, Guyra NSW 236561-2-6779-1927fax: [email protected]

AUSTRALIA

Jason VirtueMary River Park1588 Bruce Highway South, Gympie, QLD [email protected]

Bruce WardP.O. Box 103, Milsons Pt., NSW 156561-2-9929-5568fax: [email protected]

Brian Wehlburgc/o “Sunnyholt”, Injune, QLD [email protected]

CANADA

Don CampbellBox 817 Meadow Lake, SK S9X 1Y6306/[email protected]

Len PigottBox 222, Dysart, SK, SOH 1HO 306/[email protected]

Kelly SidorykP.O. Box 374, Lloydminster, AB S9V 0Y4780/875-9806 (h) • 780/875-4418 (c) [email protected]

KENYA

Christine C. JostInternational Livestock Research Institute

Box 30709, Nairobi 00100254-20-422-3000254-736-715-417 (c)[email protected]

MEXICO

Ivan A. Aguirre IbarraP.O. Box 304Hermosillo, Sonora 8300052-1-662-289-0900 (from U.S.)[email protected]

Arturo Mora BenitezSan Juan Bosco 169Fracc., La MisiónCelaya, Guanajuato [email protected]

Elco Blanco-MadridHacienda de la Luz 1803Fracc. Haciendas del Valle II, Chihuahua Chih., 3123852-614-423-4413 (h)52-614-107-8960 (c)[email protected]

MEXICO

Miguel Aguirre CamachoSAGARPA Delegación Estatal en Tlaxcala

Libramiento Poniente Número 2Colonia Unitlax, San Diego MetepecTlaxcala, Tlaxcala 9011052-246-465-0700 [email protected]

Adrian Vega LopezCalle Norte 80 #5913Col. Gertrudis Sanchez, 2a. SecciónDelegación Gustavo A. Madero, México, D.F. [email protected]

Jorge Efrain Morales MartinezCalle Primero de Mayo #578-ACol. Centro Histórico, Morelia, Michoacán, 5800052-443-317-4389

Jose Angel Montaño MoralesCalle Samuel Arias #111Fraccionamiento Forjadores de PachucaMineral de la Reforma, Hidalgo 42083

Alejandro Miranda SanchezCalle Cerro Macuiltepec No 23Col. Campestre Churubusco, Delegación CoyoacánMéxico, D.F. 04200

Jose Ramon “Moncho” VillarAv. Las Americas #1178Fracc. CumbresSaltillo, Coahuila [email protected]

Silverio Rojas VillegasSAGARPAAvenida Irrigación s/n, Col. Monte de CamargoCelaya, Guanajuato, 3803052-461-612-0305

NAMIBIA

Gero DiekmannEcoso Dynamics CCP.O. Box 363, Okahandja264-62-518-091 (h) • 264-612-51861 (w)264-812-440-501 (c)[email protected]

Colin Nott P.O. Box 11977, [email protected]

Wiebke VolkmannP.O. Box 182, Otavi264-67-234-557 or [email protected]

NEW ZEALAND

John KingP.O. Box 12011, Beckenham, Christchurch 824264-3-338-5506 • [email protected]

I N T E RNAT IONA L

SOUTH AFRICA

Jozua LambrechtsP.O. Box 5070, Helderberg,Somerset West, Western Cape 713527-21-851-5669; 27-21-851-2430 (w)[email protected]

Ian Mitchell-InnesP.O. Box 52,Elandslaagte [email protected]

Dick RichardsonP.O. Box 1853, Vryburg 8600tel/fax: [email protected]

Colleen ToddP.O. Box 20,Bergbron 171227-82-335-3901 (cell)[email protected]

SPAIN

Aspen EdgeApartado de Correos 19, 18420 Lanjaron, Granada(0034)-958-347-053 [email protected]

UNITED KINGDOM

Philip Bubb32 Dart Close, St. Ives, Cambridge, PE27 [email protected]

ZIMBABWE

Amanda Atwood27 Rowland Square, Milton Park, [email protected]

Huggins MatangaAfrica Centre for Holistic ManagementP. Bag 5950, Victoria Falls263-13-42199 (w)263-11-404-979 (c)[email protected]

Elias NcubeAfrica Centre for Holistic ManagementP. Bag 5950, Victoria Falls263-13-42199 (w)263-11-214-584 (c)[email protected]


WISCONSIN

Heather Flashinski16294 250th St., Cadott, WI 54727715/[email protected]

Andy Hager W. 3597 Pine Ave., Stetsonville, WI 54480-9559715/678-2465 • [email protected]

* Laura PaineWisconsin DATCP N893 Kranz Rd., Columbus, WI 53925608/224-5120 (w) • 920/623-4407 (h)[email protected]

WYOMING

Andrea & Tony Malmberg768 Twin Creek Road, Lander, WY 82520307/335-7485 (w) • 307/332-5073 (h)307/349-1144 (c) • [email protected]@LifeEnergy.us

I N T E RNAT IONA L

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Planning and Monitoring Manuals

_ Introduction to Holistic ManagementAugust 2007, 128 pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$25

_ Financial PlanningAugust 2007, 58 pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$17

_ Grazing PlanningAugust 2007, 63 pages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$17

_ Early Warning Biological Monitoring— CroplandsApril 2000, 26 pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$14

_ Early Warning Biological Monitoring—Rangelands and GrasslandsAugust 2007, 59 pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$17

_ Land Planning—For The Rancher or Farmer Running LivestockAugust 2007, 31 pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$17

Planning Forms (All forms are padded - 25 sheets per pad)

_Annual Income & Expense Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$17

_Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$ 7

_Livestock Production Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$17

_Control Sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$ 5

_Grazing Plan & Control Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$15

MAKE A TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATION

Amount $_____________ Please designate program you would like us

to apply contribution toward _________________________________________

up to $15: add $ 5$16 to $35: add $ 6$36 to $50: add $ 8$51 to $70: add $ 9$71 to $90: add $10

over $91: add $12

SHIPPING AND HANDLINGTo rates at left, for:Canada & Mexico add $10 Other countries add $20

All shipping is surface or media mail.

Contact HMI for shipping rates for priority,

express or air mail.

HOLISTIC MANAGEMENT MAIL ORDER EMPORIUMHOLISTIC MANAGEMENT MAIL ORDER EMPORIUM

Questions? 505/842-5252 or [email protected]

SoftwareHolistic Management® Financial Planning (single-user license) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $249 Please specify PC Office ‘95 or ‘97, 2000, XP, or 2003 and version of Excel you are using

Pocket CardsHolistic Management® Framework & testing questions, March 2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$4

Documents

#117 In Practice JAN/FEB 2008