Agenda Set for UW Ruckelshaus Institute’s State Trust Land Forum; Registration Closes April 7

Registration for the University of Wyoming Ruckelshaus Institute's Emerging Issue Forum on State Trust Land will close Monday, April 7.

The Ruckelshaus Institute -- in collaboration with Wyoming's Office of State Lands and Investments -- will host the forum at UW's Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center Tuesday and Wednesday, April 22-23. To register for the event and to view the agenda, visit the Emerging Issue Forum on State Trust Land website.

The forum aims to build a shared understanding of the unique nature of state trust lands and some of the challenges and opportunities of managing them. It also will explore the potential of emerging uses to integrate with existing uses to provide more money for the state's public schools.

"Stakeholder feedback is critical," says Stacia Berry, the new Office of State Lands and Investments director. "I look forward to an open and productive dialogue regarding management of state lands."

Conflicts and misunderstandings over the management of state trust lands have peaked in recent years, says Jim Magagna, executive vice president of the Wyoming Stockgrowers Association, also a member of the forum's steering committee and a Wednesday panelist.

"This upcoming Emerging Issue Forum provides a needed vehicle for diverse interests to increase their understanding while exploring a path forward that balances the commitment to the beneficiaries of these trust lands with the opportunities for the lands to contribute to the broader economy and culture of Wyoming," Magagna adds.

The event's first day includes presentations by Wyoming State Treasurer Curt Meier; Brian Farmer, executive director of the Wyoming School Boards Association; and Wyoming Attorney General Bridget Hill. Afternoon sessions feature a discussion of public engagement; a panel with state trust land managers from Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana and New Mexico; and an update on the $100 million sale of the Kelly parcel next to Grand Teton National Park.

The second day features workshop discussions of five new and emerging uses of state trust lands and how they can be integrated with existing uses: recreation; renewable energy development; residential and commercial development; conservation; and carbon capture and sequestration. A final panel will include Berry.

"I am excited for the opportunity to discuss the unique and vital role state trust lands play as both economic drivers and ecosystem sustainers," says Marcus Strange, state policy manager for the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC). "I am hopeful the forum will allow us the opportunity to envision how conservation can both support and engage with long-standing uses of state trust lands."

For more information or to become a forum sponsor, email Birch Malotky, Emerging Issues Initiative coordinator, at bmalotky@uwyo.edu.

About the Ruckelshaus Institute

The Ruckelshaus Institute, a division of UW's Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, supports community-driven approaches to environmental challenges by advancing collaborative decision-making, convening discussions about emergent policy and management questions, and communicating insights and practical approaches to critical natural resource issues.