One in a small group of wild horses on the run from a distant helicopter during a 2017 roundup on the Salt Wells Herd Management Area in Wyoming. RTF file photo by Steve Paige.

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking nominations to fill three seats on the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board. Nominations are due by March 30.

The nine-member Advisory Board typically meets twice per year. It provides recommendations to BLM and the U.S. Forest Service on the management of wild horses and burros from the perspective of different interest groups.

The board can only provide advice to the agencies — it does not control their operations.

The three open positions are for humane advocacy, livestock management and wildlife management. Those seats are currently held by Ginger Kathrens (humane advocacy), Steve Yardley (livestock management) and Ben Masters (wildlife management), all of whom are completing their first three-year terms on the board.

For most of her term, Kathrens, executive director of The Cloud Foundation, was the lone, consistent voice for wild horses on the Advisory Board. Last summer, she was joined by Celeste Carlisle, Return to Freedom’s conservation science coordinator, who was appointed to represent wild horse and burro advocates.

At the Advisory Board’s last meeting, in October 2018, Kathrens and Carlisle were the only two members who opposed supporting a BLM plan to reach its population target for wild horses and burros within eight years by killing healthy animals and unlimited sales – including international sales and adoptions.

Individuals are selected to serve on the Advisory Board by the Secretary of the Interior or Secretary of Agriculture based on education, training or experience that would enable them to represent a particular interest group.

Board members are reimbursed for travel and expenses. They do not receive a salary.

Submitting a nomination

Any person or organization may nominate one or more people to serve on the board. They may also nominate themselves. Federal and state government employees are not eligible to serve on the board.

Nomination packets should include a nomination letter and resume. The BLM requests that the following information is included in the packet:

• The nominee’s first, middle, and last name.
• Position(s) for which the nominee wants to be considered.
• Business and home addresses and phone numbers.
• E-mail address.
• Present occupation/title and employer.
• Education (colleges, degrees, major field(s) of study).
• Career highlights (significant related experience, civic and professional activities, elected offices, including prior advisory committee experience or career achievements related to the interest to be represented).
• Relevant education, training, and experience.
• Experience or knowledge of wild horse and burro management.
• Experience or knowledge of horses or burros (equine health, training, and management).
• Experience in working with disparate groups to achieve collaborative solutions.
• Identification of any BLM permits, leases, or licenses held by nominee or employer.
• Indication of whether the nominee is a federally registered lobbyist.
• Explanation of interest in serving on the Board.
• Reference letter(s) from special interests or organizations the nominee desires to represent.

References may include, but are not limited to: business associates, friends, co-workers, and local, state and/or federal government representatives or elected officials. All nominations must include at least one letter of reference.

Nomination may be submitted by email to: Dorothea Boothe, acting Wild Horse and Burro Program Coordinator, at dboothe@blm.gov or by U.S. mail to: National Wild Horse and Burro Program, Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, 1849 C Street, N.W., Room 2134 LM, Attn: Dorothea Boothe, WO-260, Washington, DC 20240.

More information

For more information about the Advisory Board, including its charter and current members, click here.