None The Nature Conservancy in Wyoming Press Releases Search All Press Releases Kerry Brophy-Lloyd phone: 307-335-2135 email: kbrophy@tnc.org

Open House Launches The Nature Conservancy's New Program in Southwest Wyoming

EVANSTON, WY— April 28, 2008— Longtime wildlife biologist Steve Jester has joined The Nature Conservancy to lead the nonprofit’s new Southwest Wyoming Program based in Evanston. The program will emphasize collaborative work with ranchers, industry, and government agencies to build a network of partnerships that focus on southwest Wyoming’s high desert country, where two-thirds of Wyoming’s plants and animals live.

Southwest Wyoming’s unique desert landscape faces many conservation challenges, from increasing energy development to invasive species, and the loss of historic ranches to subdivision. The Conservancy welcomes the public to learn about this new program at its open house Friday, May 9 from 3-7 p.m. in Evanston.

While Jester and his family moved to Evanston a little more than a year ago, his program was brought to a halt when his 3-year-old daughter, Shae, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a cancer of nerve tissue. “That was a rough way to begin our life in Wyoming,” Jester says. “But Shae’s been a real trooper and is now recovering well. We’re now ready to introduce ourselves to the community and get rolling.”

After more than sixteen years in the field of wildlife conservation, including many years as a biologist with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Jester has already seen some parallels between Wyoming and Texas. “Both states have a long tradition of private land stewardship and private property rights,” he says. “And both have a vigorous energy industry.”

He’s also noted things that make this part of Wyoming stand out. “Southwest Wyoming has a culture and economy with long-standing ties to hunting, fishing and natural resources,” he says. “There’s still a strong attachment to the land and its wildlife. That makes my job a lot easier.”

The fact that southwest Wyoming’s landscape remains relatively intact compared to other parts of the country means there’s still a chance to achieve lasting conservation here, Jester says. “Wyoming is one of the last places in lower 48 where large landscapes are still intact and functioning pretty much as they have for centuries. There’s a small population and a lot of interest by multiple sectors to help Wyoming hold onto what makes it special.”

This is an important time to join efforts already underway to safeguard the southwest part of the state, says Andrea Erickson Quiroz, the Conservancy’s director in Wyoming. The new program will continue a recent Conservancy-led project that uses science-based mapping techniques to safeguard wildlife habitat impacted by energy development.

The Conservancy also announced last year a partnership with the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust to provide $250,000 in matching funds for private lands conservation projects that preserve habitat for the Shiras Moose in the Upper Green River Valley.

“Whether it’s with the energy industry or family ranchers who’ve worked on this land for generations, I strongly believe we can strike a balance while caring for this arid landscape,” says Jester. “I’m excited to roll up my sleeves and get to work.”

The Nature Conservancy’s Southwest Wyoming Program Open House is Friday, May 9 from 3-7 p.m. at 913 Center Street, Suite 2 (downstairs) in Evanston, Wyoming. For directions or more information, contact Steve Jester at 307.789.0264 or sjester@tnc.org.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.