Ricketts Conservation Foundation and Bondurant Art & Agriculture Market to Host Engaging Conservation Field Day in Bondurant
Conservation Field Day to celebrate conservation and stewardship of natural resources in the Hoback Basin
Bondurant, Wyo. – The Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) and the Bondurant Art and Ag Market (BAAM) are partnering to connect conservation organizations with the community through a Conservation Field Day in the Hoback Basin.
The Conservation Field Day will be hosted in conjunction with BAAM at the Branding Iron Café in Bondurant, Wyoming, on June 13, 2026, from 10 am to 2 pm. The community event will celebrate conservation and stewardship of natural resources in the Hoback Basin through topical discussions and conservation project tours.
Part of the Yellowstone Ecosystem, Hoback Basin hosts diverse wildlife, migratory species, and the headwaters of the Hoback River. Over the past decade, the basin has faced impacts from fire, drought, and expanded development, which impacts the overall function of the natural systems. Landowners and community members play a vital role in easing pressure on this ecosystem, but often lack the resources needed to help steward the surrounding environment.
“We live in an extraordinary landscape and to ensure its long-term viability, we all must do our best to steward every acre. Conservation Field Day is intended to provide landowners with tools and programs they can utilize, helping everyone achieve optimum natural resource stewardship on every acre,” says Shari Meeks, Project Manager of RCF.
A series of brief informational presentations will cover topics such as Sublette County Weed & Pest programs, bees, gardens, native plants, the history of Bondurant, forest planning, and grant opportunities. These talks will be followed by an opportunity to visit ongoing conservation projects, including the Hoback River Restoration project.
Participating organizations include Sublette County Weed & Pest, Green River Valley Program of the Jackson Hole Land Trust, Friends of the Bridger-Teton, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Trout Unlimited, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Wyoming Outdoor Council, Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation, Teton Conservation District, Museum of the Mountain Man, Wyoming Wilderness Association, Snake River Fund, and Sage and Snow Garden Club.
About Bondurant Art & Ag Market: Established in 2023, the Bondurant Art and Ag Market (BAAM) was created as an opportunity to gather the community, providing Bondurant residents with an opportunity to showcase the many talented artists in the area. While it initially focused on art and agricultural products – such as locally grown beef, lamb and dairy – it has since expanded to include fruits, vegetables and baked goods. The market continues to grow and attract a wide variety of vendors.
About Ricketts Conservation Foundation: The Ricketts Conservation Foundation exists to study, protect and enhance populations of at-risk species through partnering with non-government and government organizations, educational institutions and public agencies to understand the natural processes and human management decisions affecting the Yellowstone Ecosystem.
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For more information or to schedule an interview with an event representative, please contact Shari Meeks (RCF) at [email protected].
Ricketts Conservation Foundation and PERC are investing $600,000 to deploy transformative technology across one of North America's most iconic ecosystems
Bondurant, Wyo. – Two leading conservation organizations are joining forces to accelerate one of the most promising innovations in modern land stewardship. The Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) and the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) today announced the $600,000 Yellowstone Ecosystem Virtual Fence Collaborative, a bold effort to deploy GPS-collar livestock management technology across working ranches throughout the Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Virtual fencing is an emerging technology that replaces miles of traditional fencing, commonly barbed wire, with GPS-enabled collars that guide livestock using audio and mild physical stimulus cues. Managed from a smartphone or laptop, ranchers can create and adjust grazing boundaries almost instantaneously, improving flexibility and adaptability, and reducing infrastructure costs. The technology allows ranchers to remove physical barriers from the landscape, helping wildlife migration. With it, ranchers can also keep cattle out of ecologically sensitive areas and producers can respond quickly to livestock losses, reducing conflict while supporting working ranches.
Located amidst one of the largest and most intact ecosystems in North America, the new initiative will support eight ranches that collectively span more than 366,000 acres with over 5,300 head of cattle across Wyoming and Idaho.
"The Yellowstone region is home to remarkable wildlife and working lands that support both local communities and global biodiversity," said Shari Meeks, project manager with the Ricketts Conservation Foundation. "Partnering with livestock producers who are willing to try innovative approaches like virtual fencing is a practical way to advance conservation while sustaining the landscapes that make this region extraordinary."
RCF is investing $400,000 toward the initiative, with an additional $200,000 in funding from PERC. The Ricketts Conservation Foundation has long focused its work on studying, protecting and enhancing at-risk species populations throughout the Yellowstone Ecosystem. RCF appreciates the value of working private ranching lands and acknowledges the significant ecosystem services they provide. Together with private and public partners, RCF seeks to encourage sustainable grazing management through tools like virtual fencing technology.
PERC brings expertise and experience in funding virtual fencing to the partnership. The Bozeman, Montana-based conservation organization convened the first national gathering of ranchers, technology developers, conservationists and researchers to explore the conservation potential of virtual fencing. In 2024, PERC launched America's first Virtual Fence Conservation Fund, awarding more than $400,000 in grant funding to ranches across six states. Earlier this year, PERC released “Virtual Fencing for Conservation,” a comprehensive roadmap detailing how conservationists can use the technology to create conservation outcomes and support agricultural viability.
"PERC has worked with ranchers, researchers and technology leaders to leverage the conservation potential of virtual fencing," said Travis Brammer, PERC's director of conservation. "This partnership helps turn that vision into action on the ground in one of the most important ecosystems in the world."
Leaders of the initiative designed the cost-share structure to attract additional collaborators and investments to accelerate and scale virtual fencing across the Yellowstone Ecosystem. Several producers have already engaged additional conservation organizations and wildlife agencies to secure further investment and voluntary support, creating a “web of partnerships” to support the effort.
Funding is being awarded now, with implementation beginning later this spring. The initiative will provide continuous monitoring and support over the next four years to quantify outcomes for conservation and working lands.
Projects Across the Yellowstone Ecosystem
The initiative will deploy virtual fencing technology across a diverse set of ranching operations, each targeting conservation outcomes specific to their landscape:
NL Land and Livestock (Riverton, Wyoming): Spanning one of the initiative's largest footprints, this project will use virtual fencing to help elk, deer and other wildlife to move freely across the landscape while protecting waterways and giving the ranch greater flexibility to rest and rotate pastures.
Crapo Cattle Enterprises (St. Anthony, Idaho): Nestled along waterways that support native trout, this project will reduce livestock impact to streams, open pathways for migrating wildlife and reduce costs of managing the ranch.
3D Ranch (Cokeville, Wyoming): This project will halt the construction of new physical fencing, preserve wildlife migration pathways and improve vegetation production through rotational grazing.
XX Ranch (Auburn, Wyoming): Focused on ecological restoration, this operation will use targeted grazing to address invasive weed pressure, improve soil health and remove barriers that impede wildlife movement.
Lucky 7 Angus (Boulder, Wyoming): The ranch will improve range condition, enhance forage quality and protect water quality, while reducing its overall carbon footprint.
Ladder Ranch (Savery, Wyoming): This project will advance rotational grazing, improve wildlife and reduce the operational expenses associated with managing a large, complex ranch landscape.
D Milliron and Slim Ranch (Afton, Wyoming): Partnering with Trout Unlimited and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, this project will protect critical fish and wildlife habitat while improving overall grazing management.
The Goat Guy (Ashton, Idaho): A distinctive project using targeted goat grazing guided by virtual fencing to control invasive plants and reduce fine fuel loads, demonstrating the technology's versatility beyond traditional cattle operations.
About PERC: The Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) is the national leader in market solutions for conservation, with over 40 years of research and a network of respected scholars and practitioners. Through research, law and policy, and innovative applied conservation programs, PERC explores how aligning incentives for environmental stewardship produces sustainable outcomes for land, water, and wildlife. Founded in 1980, PERC is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and proudly based in Bozeman, Montana.
About Ricketts Conservation Foundation: The Ricketts Conservation Foundation exists to study, protect and enhance populations of at-risk species through partnering with non-government and government organizations, educational institutions and public agencies to understand the natural processes and human management decisions affecting the Yellowstone Ecosystem.
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For more information or to schedule an interview with a representative from PERC or RCF, please contact Kat Dwyer (PERC) at [email protected] or Shari Meeks (RCF) at [email protected].
Virtual Fence Conservation Partnership
Press Release – 9/15/25
Over the last two decades, agriculture technology has made its impact across the globe, with some of the greatest potential being in ranch technology. Various applications and innovations give ranchers the ability to monitor everything from the grass in their pastures to the grazing attributes of their herd. Virtual fencing is one of these technologies, which allows the rancher to not only observe livestock location, but also to manage that herd resulting in significant conservation benefits (Figure 1).
Despite the benefits, many ranch operations interested in this technology find that startup costs can be prohibitive. The Ricketts Conservation Foundation (RCF) is excited to release the Virtual Fence Conservation Partnership Program, where RCF partners with ranches to initiate virtual fencing and monitor for conservation benefit.
RCF is offering 100% cost share for base stations (up to $50,000) and 50% cost share for collars and neckbands (up to $100,000) over a four-year period. Ranchers enter into a four-year agreement with RCF, where both parties collaboratively develop anticipated outcomes, conservation goals, and a monitoring plan.
Interested ranching operations are encouraged to submit applications via https://form.jotform.com/252084643989067. The application period opens September 15 and closes November 15.
