The 2008 Joint Meeting of the Society for Range Management and the America Forage and Grassland Council.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008 - 3:40 PM

Montana Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative (GLCI) Education Awareness Campaign: "Cowboy up with Conservation-it can save your grass"

Carla M. Lawrence, NRCS, USDA, 10 East Babcock, Federal Building, Room 443, Bozeman, MT 59715

In an effort to “brand” recognize the Montana Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative (GLCI)  and establish a niche and credibility among the general public, and to re-energize the organization, the steering committee worked with Ron Nichols, public affairs specialist, NRCS in Washington state to develop an education campaign.  The steering committee met with Ron in November 2003 and provided critical insight and information to Ron in order to develop a desired outcome.

-         to get more people to voluntarily implement sound conservation practices on grazinglands

-         to work with landowners to determine their needs and how to get help to address those needs

-         to educate the general public about conservation practices that are environmentally sound and innovative

-         to increase the awareness of the importance of grazinglands, Montana’s largest natural resource

-         to get Montana GLCI demonstration projects into the public eye

In December of 2004, the “Cowboy up with Conservation – it can save your grass” education campaign was rolled out during the Montana Stockgrowers annual convention in Billings, MT.  Public Service Announcements were sent out to the radio and TV media in an effort to spread the word. Now four years later, the campaign continues to move forward, encouraging farmers and ranchers to do as the tagline suggests. 

Carla Lawrence will provide attendees with an overview of the Montana GLCI education campaign, explaining the background, the process and the results of “Cowboy up with Conservation- it can save your grass”.


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