Holistic Management® for Family and Business Success
August 16-17, 2022
James Ranch of Durango, Colorado

The James Ranch is a working example of success where their extended family, friends, and community joyfully participate in ranch activities and benefit from Holistic Management. It serves as a model and inspiration demonstrating how managing a healthy ecosystem results in thriving regenerative soils, forage, water, livestock, birds, insects and wildlife. It’s also a model for multi-enterprise success which includes grass-fed beef, artisan cheese, whey-good pork, gardens, a nursery, a grill, and a market for their wonderful products. At this 2-day workshop, the James family will share their rich history, invaluable experiences, and lessons learned.

Wayne Knight, rancher and HMI Executive Director, will introduce tools you can use to improve your grazing operations. A mix of workshop and ranch visits will allow opportunities to learn and practice aspects of monitoring, animal performance milestones, and Holistic Goal setting. This event will help you apply techniques to improve your management and realize long-term success by balancing animal density, animal performance, and reduced drought risk.
About James Ranch

James Ranch is 10 miles north of Durango, Colorado in the beautiful Animas River Valley.
Busy families, who utilize regenerative practices, bustle in the day-to-day operation of the ranch and its associated enterprises. Kay and David James raised their family of five in this rural atmosphere, enriched with the love of the land, animals, plants, and family. Twenty-seven years ago, the adult children began migrating back to the ranch seeking the joy of raising their families there and have successfully learned how to improve the land and are reaping the rewards of synergies with nature and each other. Today, seven different enterprises are flourishing at the ranch. The family’s quality-of-life goal specifies that the ranch should remain in agricultural production as a way to ensure wholesome family life and provide open space for the community.
Agenda
August 16, 2022
8:00 – 8:30 am | Registration | |
8:30 am | Welcome & Introductions | Wayne Knight |
9:00 – 9:30 am | Holistic Ranch Management Introduction | Wayne Knight |
9:30 – 10:20 am | James Ranch Journey and Lessons Learned | James Family Representatives |
10:30 am – 12:00 pm | Implementing Holistic Management on the Ground | James Family Representatives |
12:00 pm | Lunch | James Ranch Grill |
2:00 – 2:45 pm | Balancing Animal Performance with Ecosystem Function and Drought Resistance | Wayne Knight |
2:00 – 2:45 pm | Use What the Land and Cattle are Telling You for Lead Indicator Decision-Making | Wayne Knight and James Family Representatives |
2:45 – 3:00 pm | How Technology Can Assist with Management | Wayne Knight and David Lunde |
3:20 – 4:45 pm | Practicing Observation, Monitoring, and Technology in the Field | Wayne Knight |
5:00 – 5:30 pm | Wrap Up Day One | |
6:00 pm | Optional Dinner | James Ranch |
There will be live music at the James Ranch Grill in the evening.
August 17, 2022
8:30 – 9:00 am | Day One Takeaways | Wayne Knight |
9:00 – 10:00 am | Human Nourishment – It Begins in the Soil and Circles Through Joyful Living | |
10:00 – 10:30 am | Soil Health and Biodiversity | |
10:45 – 11:30 am | Steps on the Journey: Premium Products at an Affordable Price | Joe & Jenn Wheeling |
11:30 am – 12:15 pm | Next Steps & Evaluation | Wayne Knight |
12:15 pm | Lunch | James Ranch Grill |
1:15 – 4:00 pm | Range Rally & James Ranch Tour | |
4:30 – 5:00 pm | Taking It Back Home | Wayne Knight |
Registration
$350/person
Optional Dinner: $25 – August 16th, 6:00 pm
Workshop costs include learning materials & lunch both days.
Register soon, as we have limited space available.
Scholarship Deadline: Aug 2, 2022
Registration Deadline: Aug 12, 2022
Financial Assistance Available! If you are in need of financial assistance please apply for a scholarship below.
Money-Back Guarantee:
HMI stands behind our training programs. If you participate fully in this training program by attending all sessions and completing all assignments satisfactorily, and if you are not completely satisfied within 10 days of program completion, we will refund your registration fees.
COVID-19 Policy:
Please note, the format and/or requirements for event attendance may change in light of shifting CDC and state public health guidelines. HMI will make every effort to communicate these changes in a timely fashion.
Media Policy:
By registering for this event, you hereby consent and agree that HMI has the right to take photographs, videotape, or digital recordings of you and to use these in any and all media, now or hereafter known, for HMI outreach and further consent that your name and identity may be revealed therein or by descriptive text or commentary
Speakers
Joe and Jennifer Wheeling – Owners/Operators of the James Ranch Beef
Joe and Jenn Wheeling are the owners of James Ranch Beef and The Gardens at James Ranch in Durango, Colorado. As part of the James Ranch team, they have worked with Jenn’s siblings and parents to create the brand of James Ranch since their return to the ranch in 1995. Married for 36 years, they have two daughters who were raised on the ranch and have gone on to professional careers in law and accounting. Both Joe and Jenn graduated from Colorado State University, Joe got his MBA from Wharton while Jenn got her advanced degree from the University of Life. When they aren’t chasing steers and picking peas, Joe is busy trying to bring broadband to the local community and Jenn is busy in her flower garden and working on her historical fiction novel.
Wayne Knight – Rancher, Executive Director and Certified Educator, Holistic Management International
With 27 years of ranching experience using Holistic Management, Wayne has had an identity crisis. When he joined the 11,000-acre family ranching business he called himself a cattle rancher. He changed to calling himself a grass farmer. Later still, he called himself a soil-microbe farmer, though he has always marketed beef. Privileged to work with his father, Tom Knight, who was an early adopter of Holistic Management under Allan Savory – Stan Parsons consulting, Wayne enthusiastically increased and
intensified the practices HMI teaches. He became an HMI Certified Educator in 2006 and was actively involved with the Southern African Certified Educator community organization, Community Dynamics. He has spoken at numerous conferences in Southern Africa, trained and mentored farmers, hosted open days on his property, and has written about his positive results using Holistic Management. Before joining the team at HMI Wayne served as a board member of the organization for 8 years. Through his enthusiasm for Holistic Management, Wayne has traveled widely visiting farmers who practice high-density, long recovery grazing practices in Southern Africa, Australia, and the US. As a young graduate with a Science degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Natal, South Africa, he traveled across the US west working on ranches in Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, California, and New Mexico. When not involved in Holistic Management you will find him fishing, birding, hiking, or exploring wild spaces and places with his family. An enthusiastic traveler, hunter, and photographer, he loves discovering new places and making new friends.
Thank you to our Funders
Martha Records and Richard Rainaldi
Thank You to Our Collaborator
Sponsor This Event
Friend - $100 | Supporter - $250 | Sustainer - $500 |
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