Matt Moorhead and Galen Guerrero-Murphy are conservationists who work for The Nature Conservancy on its Southern Highs Plains Initiative (SHPI), a collaboration between five states with the shared goal of protecting the nation’s grasslands. The Southern High Plains encompasses approximately 71 million acres across Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The region is home to some of the country’s most important grasslands, as well as the people and wildlife who depend on the invaluable shortgrass prairie ecosystem.

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Officially, Matt is TNC’s Conservation Business & Partnership Development Advisor and Galen is TNC’s Land Conservation Program Manager– but at their core, they are both relationship builders. As you’ll hear in this conversation, both Matt and Galen work tirelessly to build long-term, rock-solid partnerships with landowners and conservation partners with the goal of finding win-win solutions that can be mutually beneficial for all parties.  Through genuine curiosity, creative thinking, and a deep respect for landowners and their legacy, Matt and Galen have helped to implement lasting conservation outcomes in the Southern High Plains.

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The three of us connected virtually and had a fascinating conversation about grasslands, ranching, buidling relationships, and purpose-driven work. We start out by defining exactly what constitutes the Southern High Plains and why this is such an important region for conservation. We then discuss why the large percentage of private ownership creates such a compelling case for conservation, the need for balancing conservation with various forms of energy development, the current markets around grasslands carbon sequestration, and the all-important role of TNC’s partners. We also discuss Matt and Galen’s mentors, how they measure conservation success, and some of their favorite books.

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I’ve considered Matt and Galen to be friends and mentors for many years now, so I was grateful for the opportunity to talk with them on the podcast. Hope you enjoy.

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• More Information: Southern High Plains Initiative
• Full episode notes & links: https://mountainandprairie.com/southern-high-plains/

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This episode is brought to you in partnership with the Colorado chapter of The Nature Conservancy. Guided by science and grounded by decades of collaborative partnerships, The Nature Conservancy has a long-standing legacy of achieving lasting results to create a world where nature and people thrive.

On the fourth Tuesday of every month throughout 2023, Mountain & Prairie will be delving into conversations with a wide range of The Nature Conservancy’s leaders, partners, collaborators, and stakeholders, highlighting the myriad of conservation challenges, opportunities, and solutions here in the American West.

To learn more about The Nature Conservancy’s impactful work in Colorado and around the world, visit www.nature.org/colorado

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TOPICS DISCUSSED:

• 3:10 - Introductions
• 6:25 - What are the Southern High Plains 
• 9:55 - Why the Southern High Plains are so critical in conservation
• 16:10 - How the patchwork of private lands in the Southern High Plains allows Matt and Galen to be effective in their conservation work
• 20:55 - The process of building relationships in private lands conservation work
• 29:10 - Balancing the potential for landowners to earn revenue through energy development with the interest in conserving landscapes
• 35:10 - Where things stand on grassland carbon sequestration as a method of generating both landowner revenue as well as conservation outcomes
• 39:10 - The importance and skills of TNC’s partners
• 43:10 - Matt and Galen’s mentors
• 50:10 - What progress on the Southern High Plains Initiative would make Matt and Galen happy in 10-15 years
• 53:40 - Matt and Galen’s book recommendations

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