MOSCOW, ID — The University of Idaho will host the 2025 Rangeland Fall Forum on October 2-3 at the Nancy M. Cummings Research, Extension and Education Center in Salmon. The event will bring together ranchers, researchers, policymakers, and community members to examine how Idaho’s working rangelands can adapt to changing technologies, resource demands, and new leadership.

This year’s forum, organized by the U of I Rangeland Center and the James A. and Louise McClure Center for Public Policy Research, will feature interactive panels and hands-on sessions focused on the future of rangeland management. Topics include the integration of new tools such as drones and AI-assisted technologies alongside traditional methods like fencing.

“Some tools for managing rangelands are thousands of years old, like rock or wood fences, but as we enter an age of AI-assisted technologies and drones, rangeland stewards are going to have access to a wide variety of new tools,” said Eric Winford, associate director of the Rangeland Center.

Speakers include Tip Hudson, Washington State University Extension specialist and host of The Art of Range podcast; rancher Tori O’Neil; and Paul Wolf and Colby McAdams of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Open to the public, the annual forum draws operators, managers,

nonprofits, government agencies, and students from across Idaho. Organizers emphasize the event’s role in fostering collaboration. “This year’s fall forum is an opportunity to share the latest tools and explore emerging policy approaches with a community of practitioners from across Idaho,” said Katherine Himes, director of the McClure Center.

The Rangeland Center, established in 2011 by the Idaho Legislature, addresses challenges facing Idaho rangelands and the communities that depend on them. The McClure Center, founded in 2007, supports evidence-based research and public dialogue.

Registration for the 2025 Rangeland Fall Forum is available online at tinyurl.com/ycvfrb4p.