2026, Mid-Year Impact Updates

 

Celebrating 30 years of restoration rooted in community! 

As we celebrate Sageland Collaborative’s 30th anniversary, we’re excited to share some of what our community has made possible so far in 2026. Together, we’re restoring habitat, growing partnerships, expanding opportunities to participate in conservation, and building momentum for the next 30 years. 

For our 30th Anniversary team photo, we’re throwing it back to the ‘90s with this shot from our film camera!

Organizational Growth and Leadership 

Strengthening our organization and investing in the people who make this work possible: 

  • Introduced four new Board members and transitioning a new Board Chair into their leadership role. 

  • Secured funding for a new Native Plant Coordinator position in partnership with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

  • Sierra Hastings (Communications Director) and Frances Ngo (Outreach Specialist) participated in leadership development programs.

  • We welcomed new team members:

    • Kelsie LaSharr, Fence Restoration Program Manager

    • Elan Powless, Riverscape Restoration Technician.

    • Abigail Tello, Communications & Outreach Intern.

    • Kort Maeda, Riverscape Restoration Intern.

  • We revitalized our website and outreach materials to celebrate our 30th anniversary and share priorities identified in our 2025–2029 Strategic Plan. 

  • We stewarded a growing base of supporters and sustaining gifts.

Riverscape Restoration 

Restoring healthy streams while expanding opportunities for people and beaver to thrive together: 

  • Planned, permitted, and installed three Living with Beaver structures, including pond-levelers and beaver deceivers, with additional projects underway in collaboration with Utah Department of Transportation, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, and private landowners. 

  • Assisted Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and the Utah State University Beaver Ecology & Relocation Collaborative in relocating a family of beavers from Cache Valley to central Utah. 

  • Continued working with Trout Unlimited and Salt Lake City Public Utilities on low-tech process-based restoration across three miles of streams. 

  • Worked with partners and landowners to explore beaver relocation in Lambs Canyon, creating a promising model for community-level beaver restoration. 

  • Continued participating in updates to Utah’s Beaver Management Plan and expanded our restoration network through the North American Beaver Knowledge Network. 

Wildlife-Friendly Fence Restoration 

Improving wildlife movement across Utah landscapes: 

  • Implemented three fence restoration events in collaboration with partners at Summit Land Conservancy, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, and the U.S. Forest Service. 

  • Continued designing wildlife-friendly fence restoration projects for implementation this fall. 

Great Salt Lake Conservation 

Building the science, partnerships, and restoration needed to support Great Salt Lake and the birds that depend on it: 

  • Completed nine large-scale shorebird surveys across Great Salt Lake and the Intermountain West over the past five years. 

  • Received funding to complete the fall 2026 shorebird survey and begin wetland restoration with native plants at Great Salt Lake. 

  • Utah State University published a thesis using our shorebird survey data, adding to the scientific impact of this long-term project. 

  • Utah’s Intermountain West Shorebird Survey will be featured in an upcoming article in Cornell’s Living Bird magazine. 

  • The International Phalarope Working Group continues to expand and strengthen coordination, with an in-person meeting planned for November. 

Native Plants & Pollinators 

Growing native pollinator habitat through community science, partnerships, and work with landowners: 

  • Engaged 14 landowners about pollinator habitat practices on working lands and received our first landowner-initiated request for assistance. 

  • Forged a new partnership with the Xerces Society around shared goals to increase native pollinator habitat and populations on working lands. 

  • Produced our first public fact sheet on Farm Bill reimbursements and incentives for pollinator habitat. 

  • Gave six presentations about pollinator habitat practices and engaged 30+ volunteers on Utah Pollinator Pursuit guided surveys. 

  • Volunteers have logged 20,900 observations on the Utah Pollinator Pursuit iNaturalist project this year.

Utah HerpSearch 

Connecting community scientists with the secret lives of Utah’s reptiles and amphibians: 

  • Engaged 30+ volunteers on two Utah HerpSearch guided surveys. 

  • Continued building community-generated data that can help inform conservation of Utah’s reptiles and amphibians. 

  • Supported two Utah Tech University research students who are using Utah HerpSearch data to assess the occurrence of herp species found dead on road (DOR) to identify areas where mitigation may be needed.

  • Volunteers have logged 7,696 observations on the Herps of Utah iNaturalist project this year.

Outreach and Community Engagement 

Finding new ways for more people to participate in conservation: 

  • Joined Salt Lake City Pride for the first time, connecting with 567 people over two days. 

  • Served as the selected local community partner for the Ecological Society of America’s 2026 Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, engaging 343+ people through a booth, field trip, and invited talk. Hosted three Bug Club events with the Natural History Museum of Utah’s Youth Teaching Youth program, immigrant youth at New Roots Urban Farm, Outdoor Afro, and Curly Me! families. 

  • Piloted our first Sci-Art Initiative with a focus on Utah’s Intermountain West Shorebird Survey, with four participating artists, three partner organizations contributing artwork, and a successful opening reception. 

  • Shared our work through PBS Contact, Avanza Radio, and KRCL’s RadioACTive. 

  • Named a finalist for Salt Lake Magazine’s Best of the Beehive in the Community Organization category. 

As our programs have continued to expand and evolve over the past 30 years, we see what is possible when science, partnerships, and community come together. Thank you to every volunteer, donor, landowner, partner, and community member helping build a more resilient future for Utah’s wildlife, lands, and people. 

With gratitude, 

The Sageland Collaborative Team 

Mid-Year Impact Report by Kim Howes
Photos by Sierra Hastings

 
Sierra Hastings