Hear from skilled storytellers Dr. Nalini Nadkarni and Stephen Trimble who will help guide us through the power and pitfalls of storytelling. This lively dialogue between a research scientist and a nature writer will illuminate the challenges of imparting knowledge and inciting conservation.
Scientists often communicate through lists of goals and outputs, devoid of any emotional attachment. We’ve been taught to eliminate sentiment from scientific narrative, to deliver only data and outcomes. Storytelling can emotionally engage non-scientists unfamiliar with theoretical concepts in ways that facts and figures cannot. Telling compelling stories that bring data to life transforms research into a journey of discovery that promotes deeper understanding.
Engaging the Community in Conservation Science
History
Founded by Jim Catlin in 1996 to assist the citizens’ roadless re-inventory of Bureau of Land Management lands in Southern Utah, Wild Utah Project began as a means to provide much-needed science to the conservation of wildlife and wildlands. The study area for this initial project consisted of nine million acres of wilderness, which is home to rare desert waterways, wildlife, and wildlife habitat. These efforts resulted in the proposed America’s Red Rock Wilderness Bill in Congress.
Since our inception, we have worked to conserve landscape level connectivity for vital wildlife corridors. Along with our partners at the Wildlands Network, we envision the world’s most extensive network of protected and connected lands. Achieving this grand vision requires coordinated efforts of conservation groups from Mexico’s Sierra Madre Occidental to Alaska’s Brooks Range.
We work to achieve this vision by advocating for the use of best science for wildlife and habitat management, contributing critical data for better wildlife and wildlands policy, engaging the community in conservation science, and supporting our partners in shared conservation goals.
Using Powerful Spacial Tools for Conservation
Environmental Community Services
Wild Utah Project provides a variety of services for our non-profit, state and federal agency, and academic partners. Whether teaming up on a grant, a competitively bid contract, or providing fee-for-service work, we assist our partners in meeting their conservation planning goals through our GIS Lab, eco-regional planning expertise, and designing and carrying out novel ecological studies in the field.
Mission
Wild Utah Project provides science-based strategies for wildlife and land conservation.
Goals
For over two decades, Wild Utah Project has applied the principles of conservation science to land and wildlife management. We bring together community science volunteers, wildlife and habitat studies, technical support, and computer mapping analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to conservation partners in our region. We seek to engage state and federal agencies and nonprofit partners who are in a position to make on-the-ground decisions regarding public resource management. As state and federal land and wildlife management agencies have their budgets slashed like never before, we continue to provide our partners with effective science-based strategies for conservation.