Oregon’s sagebrush ecosystem has declined by about 50% over the past 150 years due to invasive annual grasses, increased wildfire activity and encroaching conifers. This large-scale habitat loss has contributed to declines in important wildlife species like the sage-grouse and placed heavy pressure on land managers to protect what remains. Addressing these threats requires working across large landscapes with coordinated, strategic efforts.
In response, Oregon State University created the Sagebrush Habitat Team in 2016 to support research and outreach on sagebrush conservation. Based at the Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center in Burns, the team works directly with landowners and managers to assess threats like fire, weeds and juniper expansion, and to develop clear strategies for protecting and restoring sagebrush lands.
These efforts offer a practical and hopeful path forward for safeguarding one of Oregon’s most iconic landscapes.
Through partnerships with federal agencies and nonprofit organizations, the team helped develop the Threat-Based Land Management framework — a simple yet scientifically robust approach that guides users through setting goals, assessing threats, mapping ecological conditions and prioritizing actions.
An illustrated guide based on this framework has been distributed to over 2,000 users, and remotely sensed “ecostate” maps built on this approach now cover more than 175 million acres across 13 western states. These tools have supported the implementation of invasive grass treatments, conifer removal, improved grazing practices, and wildlife conservation across private, state, and federal lands.
The Sagebrush Habitat Team also supports education through a series of publications and hands-on learning opportunities. These include guides for bunchgrass grazing, grass identification and sagebrush stewardship, along with outreach events for high school and college students to build the next generation of land stewards.
Building on this foundation, OSU Extension, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service and the Institute for Natural Resources, launched the Threat-Based Strategic Conservation (TBSC) program. TBSC brings together ranchers, conservation groups and government agencies to create large-scale, proactive conservation strategies. Through workshops that use asset-based mapping and strategic planning, participants link broad conservation goals to specific, coordinated projects.
Since the first TBSC workshop in 2022, six multi-stakeholder groups have adopted the approach, covering more than 23 million acres across Eastern Oregon and northwestern Nevada. In Malheur County, for example, a new partnership formed in 2023 to prioritize invasive grass treatments and post-fire recovery projects. The Prineville Sage-Grouse Local Implementation Team successfully leveraged TBSC planning to secure $3.5 million for landscape-scale conservation work.
This work is critical for the future of Oregon’s rangelands, particularly in Eastern Oregon, where sagebrush ecosystems support both wildlife and the ranching economy. By helping communities protect these lands, OSU Extension is supporting local livelihoods, preserving ecological health and enhancing the resilience of rural economies across the region.
The team’s efforts have gained regional and national recognition, including invitations to present at major conservation workshops and contribute to scientific publications focused on sagebrush ecosystem management.
Together, these efforts offer a practical and hopeful path forward for safeguarding one of Oregon’s most iconic landscapes.