Challenges & Opportunities

Western state-land managers face many challenges. Unprecedented growth is increasing demands on public-education funding, including revenues generated by state trust lands. The region's economy is changing, relying less on farming, ranching and logging and more on service and professional industries, plus retirement and investment income, requiring a more diverse approach to generate revenue for trust beneficiaries.

To broaden the range of land-use information, tools, and policy options available to state-trust managers and diverse stakeholders for the long-term sustainable management of trust lands, the State Trust Lands Project conducts research and policy analyses on key issues related to growth and development in the West; engages in model projects - developing, implementing, and highlighting innovative approaches to state trust land planning, development and conservation use; provides information and tools to state trust land managers and key stakeholders; and engages in policy efforts to inform discussions on state trust land laws and regulations in key western states.

Informed by a broad research and policy analysis agenda established by the first State Trust Lands Research and Policy Analysis Roundtable (October 2004), our Project's work focuses on strategies and approaches that

• engage in deliberate internal and external planning activities, including
• establishing comprehensive asset management frameworks that balance short-term revenue generation with longer-term value maintenance and enhancement; and
• incorporating collaborative planning approaches with external stakeholders to achieve better trust land management;
• encourage real estate development activities that employ sustainable land disposition tools and large-scale planning processes, especially in fast-growing areas;
• support conservation projects that enhance revenue potential, offer ecosystem services, and allow multiple uses of trust lands.