JACKSON, Wyo. — Cate Watsabaugh is serving her first term on the Teton Conservation District (TCD) Board, and she is ready for another.
Watsabaugh, who was born and raised in Jackson Hole, told Buckrail that she had no previous conservation experience, but she wound up on the ballot in 2022 through her desire to stay civically engaged. At the time, a former TCD board member and Watsabaugh’s friend Nate Fuller reached out to gauge her interest in the seat. Watsabaugh was also halfway through a term on the START Board and ended up serving on both boards concurrently for two years.
“I think [Fuller] just helped reassure me that my time growing up in this valley and seeing it grow and change in real time had value on a board like that,” Watsabaugh said. She later juxtaposed her time on both boards, saying: “[TCD] was a really different board experience from START. And I think that’s what I was attracted to. Not because I was unhappy on the START board. I think I was craving something where the work felt a little more immediate and a little more tangible. And that’s how it feels on the Conservation District board.”
During her first term on the board, Watsabaugh has enjoyed seeing the role that conservation easements play and how protected spaces help maintain the ecosystem. A major topic that TCD has taken on recently is the proposed expansion of Grand Targhee Resort. She said that TCD is not trying to hold the ski area to a different standard than other local ski hills that have expanded — it’s about learning from past decisions.
“I think some of our take on that Targhee expansion has been informed by seeing what has not gone well or what the impacts have been from these other expansions,” she said.
Watsabaugh said the current mill levy is critical to funding TCD’s staff and the programs carried out by the agency. She said that tangible programs used by community members, like free well-water testing and wildfire risk overviews, could be at risk if the mill levy ballot initiative is not passed. Many conservation districts focus solely on agriculture, but TCD’s purview includes much more due to the unique geographic setting.
Top conservation priorities for Watsabaugh include water quality, wildfire preparedness and mitigation, and local food systems. She believes that local food and agriculture is going to start having a broader impact on the national and global scale. She hopes the local and regional system can buffer against food instability and maintain those industries here.
She remains optimistic about the future of conservation in the valley. “I think it’s nice to see how the valley hasn’t changed in some ways,” she said.
Watsabaugh is running for one of three open seats on the TCD Board. She is running against incumbents David Adams and Bob Lucas, and newcomer Lee Bauknight. Election day is Nov. 3, and early voting is now open.
