Scenes and Stories from 2024
Working on your behalf is an honor and a pleasure!
The LandWatch team is proud to have realized some big accomplishments in the name of regional livability on behalf of Central Oregonians like you. Here is a brief retrospective of some of our actions and antics in the field, in the courtroom, and alongside our amazing community of supporters.
Growth to Meet the Needs of Central Oregon
To keep pace with the rapid change in our region, expand our impact, and achieve our ambitious vision for the future, LandWatch welcomed new staff and added to our board of directors in 2024. Mark Kelley and Chris Cheng joined our Board of Directors, and Fiona Noonan, Robin Hayakawa, Kristin Reidelberger, and Kelsie Greer joined our staff.
You Won’t Find Him in a Mule Deer Onesie…
But you will find Wild Lands and Water Program Director Jeremy Austin out and about along the Bend to Suttle Lake corridor, drawing attention to the need for wildlife crossings on this perilous stretch of Highway 20. (Lace, on the other hand, seen here tabling at the Juneteenth Celebration in Drake Park never shies away from some good ol’ fashioned ungulate embodiment!)
LandWatch is leading the Bend to Suttle Lake Wildlife Passage Initiative to deliver safe passage for Central Oregonian motorists and iconic wildlife alike.
Mixin’ it Up in Spring
Our 2024 Spring Mixer was a blast! LandWatch is supported by an incredible community of passionate advocates, and it was a thrill to gather over local tacos and bevvies, celebrate recent big wins for Central Oregon’s livability, and get to chat with so many of our members.
In Search of Steelhead with the Littleleaf Guides
This past June, LandWatch staff and board members spent an afternoon fly fishing with the Littleleaf Guides on the Warm Springs side of the Lower Deschutes to learn more about the cultural significance of steelhead.
Although the summer steelhead en route to the Deschutes were just beginning their return migration from the Pacific Ocean, native redband were landed all around, and we left with a newfound appreciation for their anadromous counterpart and the crucial need to support habitat restoration in the Upper Basin.
Corie & Kristin Create Complete Communities
A truly dynamic duo, Cities & Towns Program Director Corie Harlan and Cities & Towns Associate Program Manager Kristin Reidelberger are always advocating for policies and projects that help direct growth in ways that preserve livability, tackle climate change, and ensure all people have the opportunity to thrive in Central Oregon while we protect the environment around us.
Cycle Squad
Bike to work together? Yes, please! As a bunch of pro-cycling land use advocates, our team loves taking advantage of Bend’s active transportation infrastructure – and we are excited for key improvements on the horizon that our Cities & Towns Program is championing and helping to deliver! Here’s Communications Director Lace Thornberg attempting a group selfie.
Community Connections
Executive Director Ben Gordon loves spreading the good word of Oregon’s land use planning system and highlighting the exceptional benefits it affords us. Whether delivering persuasive testimony before decision makers or articulating LandWatch’s strategic vision and fostering new collaboration with like-minded community organizations, Ben is ever-ready to advocate for Central Oregon’s livable future.
Ochoco Ovation
LandWatch staff and board take time each summer to be rooted in values during our strategic retreat. This year, we camped out in the Ochoco National Forest, a landscape where we’ve helped secure meaningful safeguards for forest ecosystems and wildlife through legal action and conservation advocacy. From atop Lookout Mountain, so much of what we work tirelessly to preserve is on display — and the rewards are undoubtedly worth the effort. Our Development Director Lorraine Murray is outstanding in her field, and, in this case, meadow.
Many Faces for Skyline Forest
The LandWatch community packed the house at The Greenhouse Cabaret in the Bend Central District for a special screening of the Faces of Skyline Forest series. Many of the inspiring video participants who stepped up to highlight why a conservation-focused future is important to them joined us for a post-screening Q&A, moderated by Communications Manager Alex Hardison. We developed this video campaign to capture the strong sense of connection that local residents feel with Skyline Forest and the importance of preserving this immense landscape for future generations.
Ain’t No Party Like An Old-Growth Party!
In July, the LandWatch community threw a TreeMendous Victory Party at Worthy Brewing to celebrate a momentous legal victory that reinstated the Eastside Screens and secured protections for large, old trees across more than 7 million acres of public forestland in eastern Oregon and Washington!
Development Coordinator Kelsie Greer was stoked to see so many smiling faces and entertained with TREE-via questions and cut-and-paste poeTREE. Delicious beer and live music made the abundance of puns all the more bearable.
Riverside Revelry on the Deschutes
When we’re not writing briefs, delivering testimony, or crafting legislative concepts, our team loves finding time to enjoy the fruits of our efforts across Central Oregon with all of you who sustain our work. In September, LandWatch staff, board, and supporters gathered along the shimmering bank of the Deschutes at Tumalo State Park for live music, local food and wine, and the inevitable merriment that results.
Livable Future Forum Firsts
This autumn, LandWatch debuted our Livable Future Forum speaker series! Hundreds of passionate community members participated in these engaging discussions and learn about solutions to pressing environmental challenges here in Central Oregon. We’re excited for LFF 2.0 in 2025 and look forward to more conversation with all of you who are motivated by a shared love for this special part of the world.
Mule Deer, Carrots, & Climate – Oh My!
Our inaugural Livable Future Forum brought some of the most inspiring local leaders and brightest thinkers in the region together. Wildlife expert Jon Nelson covered the life and times of our iconic mule deer. Farmers and ranchers shared the challenges and rewards of agricultural production in the high desert. Community leaders in housing, parks, the arts, local business, and local government shared informed perspectives on how to create Complete Community. Ensuring regional livability takes a village, and we’re grateful to work alongside a diverse cadre of dedicated changemakers!
Team Tour of an Innovative Irrigation District
Addressing water waste in the Deschutes Basin, where wildlife species are blinking out and commercial farmers in Jefferson County are being forced to leave fields fallow, is a top priority for LandWatch. In November, the LandWatch team was invited to tour some of the North Unit Irrigation District system. NUID General Manager Josh Bailey guided us from the Crooked River to Haystack Reservoir, detailing various steps the district has taken to improve their water management efficiency. A few daring LandWatchers even got to explore a recently-piped canal that is conserving water or productive agriculture!
Fleet of Foot Fiona
The Deschutes River Trail is a quintessential Central Oregon experience that traverses nearly 20 miles through pine forests, lava flows, rapids, and Bend’s riverfront neighborhoods. It’s also a good place to consider our impact on the environment and observe how humans have altered the flow and function of the Deschutes River over the past 150 years. Join Wild Lands and Water Program Manager Fiona Noonan for a run along the DRT by exploring our new Seasonal Guide at colw.org! Also, be sure to keep an eye out for monthly pieces from LandWatch in the Bend Bulletin throughout 2025 as we explore iconic Central Oregon locales and highlight their connection to sound land use planning.
Rory, Carol, & Robin for Rural Lands
Whether hitting the road to appear in person before the court, or tuning in virutally from the LandWatch offices, our dedicated Rural Lands Program attorneys Rory Isbell, Carol Macbeth, and Robin Hayakawa, uphold Oregon’s visionary land use planning system wherever it’s needed!
Preserving open space, protecting irreplaceable agricultural land, upholding rural livelihoods and preventing new large-scale, luxury destination resorts in Central Oregon is LandWatch’s bread and butter, and we realized many wins in service of that vision throughout 2024.
Stylish Sustainability
Fiona, Kristin, and Robin sport the latest functional and fashionable pieces of LandWatch swag.
Mountain print Arcade adventure belt? ✅
LandWatch dad cap in Volcanic Rust? ✅
Free Range Equipment pack featuring an original Sheila Dunn painting of Skyline Forest? ✅
Don’t worry, you can get your hands on these high desert wardrobe staples by becoming a Sustaining Member and taking advantage of opportunities to support LandWatch throughout 2025!
Warmest (and Weirdest!) Winter Wishes!
As we wrap up 2024 look toward the new year, we’re more motivated than ever to ensure our work amounts to nothing less than the preservation of regional livability and opportunity for all Central Oregonians to thrive for generations to come. Central Oregon is defined not only by its abundant farmland, open space, accessible public land, and amazing waterways — but perhaps most of all by the passionate people who choose to live here and care for this special place. Securing this shared vision for a healthy, equitable, and livable future is what LandWatch works to achieve day in, day out, year after year since 1986.
Our warmest winter wishes,
Central Oregon LandWatch
If You’re Inspired to Get Involved
With the support of this community, we are ready to tackle the work in front of us in 2025. When you make a gift before December 31, during our Winter Challenge Match, your gift will be matched!