The project sought to increase the profitability and sustainability of Navajo ranchers by reducing their production, marketing, financial, legal and human risks through a series of workshops, webinars, "how to" videos, and technical assistance.
In the first year of the project (April 2019 – March 2020), 10 workshops were held with 242 ranchers participating, exceeding the targeted number of 175 participants by 67 (38.3%). One hundred seventy four ranchers (71.9%) participated in the workshops’ retrospective evaluations. Participants expressing complete understanding of the workshop topics following the workshop increased to 80.5% from 21.3% prior to the workshop.
During the last six months of the project (April – September 2020) the project team delivered 7 webinars focused on developing rangeland management plans, farm and ranch plans, and accessing USDA and Navajo Nation resources, with 71 participants and 821 views on Facebook. A "how to" sheep shearing video was a huge success with over 11,000 views on Facebook.
Unfortunately the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the project team from getting into the field to assist the ranchers’ implement the recommended production, marketing, finance, legal, and human risk management practices they received in the workshops and webinars.