Grand Staircase Escalante Partners

Honor the past and safeguard the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument through science, conservation, and education.

Resource Management Plan

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published a Notice of Availability in August 2023 and opened a 90-day public comment period for the Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Click here for more information

A Living Landscape: the future of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

This film seeks to tell a more complete story of the ecological and cultural importance of Grand Staircase-Escalante — that the entire landscape is an object worthy of protection, as set aside in the original 1996 Presidential Proclamation and affirmed in the 2021 Proclamation. “A Living Landscape” strives to give voice to the land itself, through the people engaged in working on its behalf:  tribal members, scientists, guides, educators, business owners, local citizens, and volunteers, each with a unique perspective that comprises a richness rivaled only by the ecology and cultural significance of the Monument itself. Click here to watch.

 

What we Do

Our Focus

Grand Staircase Escalante Partners is a nonprofit 501 (c)(3) founded in 2004 to protect and preserve Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

We are committed to:

  • Promoting science, conservation, and education on the Monument.
  • Increasing public awareness and understanding of the Monument.
  • Providing resources to support the Monument’s scientific, interpretive and educational programs.
  • Expanding our membership so we represent a diverse constituency that supports the Monument.
Grand Staircase Escalante Partners Line Art Colors 3

For Science

This natural area remains a frontier, a quality that greatly enhances Grand Staircase’s value for scientific study and presents unique opportunities for geologists, paleontologists, archaeologists, historians, and biologists.

For History

The Monument is home to countless Native American cultural sites, western pioneer history, and the greatest diversity of dinosaur fossils found anywhere on Earth. Since time immemorial, Native American people have inhabited, crossed, lived on, and been stewards of the lands that make up what we now know as Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

To learn about the Tribes that have deep connections to the Grand Staircase-Escalante region, click here

Science Icon GSEP

Science

Expanding knowledge and understanding of the natural wonders, biodiversity, and unique ecosystems with which this landscape is endowed by participating in scientific inquiry and historical investigation, as well as advocating for the inclusion of Indigenous knowledge in land management decision-making.

Conservation Corps Photo on the Escalante River

Conservation

Ensuring Grand Staircase-Escalante’s culture, ecology, history, recreation, and science are recognized, sustained, and enhanced. Work on the ground with organizations, government agencies, and volunteers to repair and restore the Escalante River watershed, as well as prevent and mitigate damage at cultural and ecological sites.

Summer Science Camp with Grand Staircase Escalante Partners

Education

Providing in-person and virtual learning environments in which people can engage with Monument topics, and practice critical thinking, as well as exchange ideas, and learn from one another, thereby fostering the connection and understanding needed to support the Monument’s long term well-being and respect ancestral lands.

For All

Grand Staircase Escalante Partners is committed to fostering an equitable and inclusive environment in our workplace and across the Monument. We recognize the complex and difficult histories that have shaped American public lands, from dispossession of Native lands and forced removal of indigenous communities to create public lands and parks, to the ongoing exclusion of people of color from conservation and preservation movements.

We acknowledge that the area known as Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and its surrounding areas are the ancestral land and historical territory of the Hopi, Zuni, Dine/Navajo, San Juan Southern Paiute, Kaibab Paiute, Ute, Ute Mountain Ute, Jemez Pueblo, and Acoma nations.

We are on a journey to transform our work–to foster diversity through equitable actions that create a just and inclusive environment, within and beyond our organization. Learn more about how we are integrating justice, equity, and inclusion into our work.

Latest News

The Only Constant is Change

The Only Constant is Change

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Will the tug-of-war over Utah’s canyon country ever end?

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GSEP Letter to Secretary Deb Haaland

GSEP Letter to Secretary Deb Haaland

November 9, 2023 Dear Secretary Deb Haaland and the U.S. Department of the Interior Staff: On October 8, 2021, the new Proclamation for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument restored its boundaries to nearly 1.9 million acres. It established that the entire...

GSEP Announces its New Executive Director

GSEP Announces its New Executive Director

A Letter from Board President, Scott Berry On behalf of the Grand Staircase Escalante Partners (GSEP) Board of Directors, I am thrilled to announce that Jacqualine Grant has accepted our offer to become GSEP's next Executive Director. As GSEP prepares to enter its...

The future of pinyon-juniper woodlands

The future of pinyon-juniper woodlands

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