Environmental Policy Commons^™

Strengthening Your Community By Tackling Challenges Together: Lessons From The High Desert Partnership, Jennifer H. Allen, Connie P. Ozawa, Julia Babcock

National Policy Consensus Center Publications and Reports

The people of Harney County, Oregon, have a story to tell about healing decades of conflict and coming together to ensure their community survives and thrives. Harney County, located in the southeast corner of the state, is the largest and one of the least populated of Oregon’s counties. It is a place of wide open spaces, with sagebrush deserts, rich wetlands, expansive alkali flats, stark mountains, and stately ponderosa pine forests. The economy relies heavily on the land for farming, ranching, and forestry. Yet the majority of Harney’s land is publicly owned. Historically, that was a recipe for heated disagreements …