Clark County Cultural Site Stewardship Program: Final Project Report

Cooperative Conservation: Increasing Capacity through Community Partnerships – Cultural Site Stewardship Program is a Round 4 Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA)- funded project implemented by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Public Lands Institute on behalf of and in cooperation with four Federal agencies. This project resulted in the design, development, and implementation of an Interagency Cultural Site Stewardship Program. The program: Was recognized with Department of the Interior Cooperative Conservation Service Award (2007). Was modeled after the successful Arizona Site Steward Program developed and implemented with the following components: ─ recruitment activities ─ required classroom and field training and optional courses ─ recognition events ─ volunteer service totaling 10,929 hours by 288 Cultural Site Stewards and seven regional coordinators who identified, documented, and reported 94 significant impacts and 200 lesser impacts Developed Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) describing recruitment, training, recognition, and retention of volunteers, site steward operations, relevant laws, and a protocol for interfacing with law enforcement personnel. Conducted research on the viability of establishing a certificate program for cultural site stewards. Developed, distributed, and analyzed training program effectiveness survey. Designed, developed and implemented a hybrid relational database for the Cultural Site Stewardship Program. Built and maintained relationships with the public through: ─ outreach activities at community events ─ membership and participation in professional societies ─ multiple formal and informal presentations ─ timely response to inquiries through telephone, electronic, and mail correspondenc