Harney

Using science to inform policy for a wildfire-adapted Oregon

In response to longer and more severe wildfire seasons, a growing population living in the wildland-urban interface and the extensive impacts of the 2020 Labor Day fires, the Oregon Legislature passed Senate Bill 762 in 2021, ...

Sep 2024 | Impact Story

OSU Extension Fire Program fosters place-based partnerships

As a land grant university, Oregon State University takes research and innovation out of the labs and puts them into practice in the communities and landscapes around the state through Extension programs. While OSU’s influence ...

Aug 2024 | Impact Story

Extension collaboration helps develop first-of-its-kind stream assessment tool

Riparian areas – which are associated with streams, rivers, creeks and wetlands – support 80% of wildlife in arid rangelands but comprise only about 2% of sagebrush landscapes. In recent years natural resource professionals who...

Apr 2024 | Impact Story

Stinging nettle publication uplifts importance of Indigenous ‘superfood’

Stinging nettle is a plant that can sting and cause welts, but when the sting is removed a traditional “superfood” emerges. Native Indigenous peoples have gathered stinging nettles since time immemorial. They can be used ...

Mar 2024 | Impact Story

OSU Extension provides leadership for statewide Outdoor School

Outdoor School is a transformative, immersive experience that instills environmental literacy and positive learning behaviors in students. It also encourages a belief that Oregon is a special place, with ecosystems they can enjoy and...

Mar 2024 | Impact Story

New ‘Library of Things’ food preservation collections benefit Eastern Oregonians

In Eastern Oregon, a dearth of grocery stores, a challenging climate for food production and the high costs of transporting food create a food security issue for the region’s residents. Additionally, the equipment needed to ...

Mar 2024 | Impact Story

School IPM Program protects health and safety of Oregon children

Asthma is the top cause of absenteeism in U.S. public K-12 schools. Mice urine is an asthma trigger, and mice are one of the top pests in Oregon schools. Mice and other pests can carry numerous life-threatening diseases. ...

Jan 2024 | Impact Story

Eastern Oregon landowners equipped to better manage their forests through OSU Extension outreach

Eastern Oregon landowners have a wide range of needs that make managing the region’s diverse forests challenging. Getting individualized information on topics such as timber production, grazing, wildlife habitat, forest health ...

Feb 2023 | Impact Story

OSU Extension Fire Program shares benefits of prescribed burning

For thousands of years, fire supported environmental health in many parts of Oregon through both natural occurrences and cultural practices of Indigenous peoples. But after more than a century of fires being suppressed, Oregon’s ...

May 2022 | Impact Story

OSU Sagebrush Habitat Team responds to threats to vast ecosystem

The invasion of annual grasses, an unprecedented rise in wildfire, and encroachment by conifers have substantially contributed to a 50% reduction in Oregon’s sagebrush ecosystem over the past 150 years. Such extensive habitat ...

Jun 2021 | Impact Story