Congratulations to Lava Lake Land & Livestock

The Nature Conservancy extends its congratulations to our conservation partner, Lava Lake Land & Livestock, for recently being awarded the Cecil D. Andrus Leadership Award for Sustainability and Conservation by Sustainable Northwest, as well as national awards from the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.

Mike Stevens, president of Lava Lake, summed up Lava Lake's philosophy this way: “The sheep and wildlife that use our lands have the same basic needs. They both require traveling long ranges to find forage. Why not preserve long-term viability for all?”

Lava Lake has been an important partner of The Nature Conservancy for the past nine years.

The ranch began its work by commmissioning a Conservancy ecologist to survey and create conservation and grazing management plans for the entire ranch, which were completed in 2004.

Lava Lake also donated a 7500-acre conservation easement to the Conservancy, the largest conservation easement to date in Idaho.

As its stated purpose is for its ranching operation to contribute to its conservation goals, Lava Lake remains actively engaged with Conservancy research and conservation efforts.

Lava Lake also has its own non-profit institute dedicated to rangeland research.

This year, wool from Lava Lake sheep was used in a blanket commissioned by the Design for a Living World exhibit, sponsored by the Conservancy.

This exhibit, shown at the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum in New York, showcased artwork from sustainably produced materials around the world.

Dutch artist Christien Miendertsma believes that embedded in the wool are stories from the land.

The story of Lava Lake has been one of ranching working to the benefit of conservation.

Three prestigious national awards in one year is a remarkable achievement--and a strong testament to the success of Lava Lake's conservation work. We extend our congratulations to our partners at Lava Lake--and look forward to continuing our work that benefits the land, wildlife and ranching.

Photograph of wool blanket copyright Roel Van Tour; all other photographs copyright Ami Vitale.