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Friends of Cedar Mesa is changing its name and is now the Bears Ears Partnership.
Since 2012, you’ve known Friends of Cedar Mesa as a local, on-the-ground friend and leader for cultural site conservation, tribal partnership, education, advocacy, and the work of our incredible ambassadors – and all of that remains the same.
Our name change came about through a year-long process with support from Board Members, staff, Tribal representatives, donors and community partners, we believe the Bears Ears Partnership not only reflects the geographic scope of where we do our work, but also how we serve the full breadth and impact of our mission and programs – through the power of partnership.
Lyle Balenquah, Hopi archaeologist, guide, and Bears Ears Partnership’s Heritage Coordinator, shared his thoughts on the transition at this historic time for Bears Ears National Monument:
“As collaborative planning for Bears Ears moves forward, it’s essential to support Indigenous-led initiatives, researching and applying traditional land stewardship values and practices, within the monument and beyond. This work requires the collaborative efforts of many groups.
As the newly named Bears Ears Partnership, the organization will serve a key role in facilitating these interactions and conversations through its cultural site conservation and Visit With Respect programs, as well as through expanded field-based outreach with Indigenous communities.
The name change acknowledges the evolving landscape of this issue, recognizes the benefit of current partnerships, and creates space for future collaborations.”
Starting next month, you will begin to see the Bears Ears Partnership name and logo in our communications, along with the launch of a new organization website. In this transition, we know many of you will miss Friends of Cedar Mesa – and we will too. That’s why we’re committed to honoring the legacy of the people, programs and local community that founded and grew this small and mighty organization over the past decade.
Founding Board Member, Vaughn Hadenfeldt reflected on the change:
“Even though I’m a founding member of Friends of Cedar Mesa, I am no longer attached to that name. I believe the Bears Ears Partnership better reflects our current and future work of protecting the region well beyond the Cedar Mesa landscape.
I’m excited that our name change creates awareness of our commitment to collaborate with private, Indigenous, and governmental partners. This helps assure greater success as we work together for Bears Ears and beyond.”
While our name and logo are changing, much remains the same. Our mission and programs are unchanged and our commitment to protecting and building respect for the greater Bears Ears Cultural Landscape is stronger than ever.
Finally, I want to share three important thank yous. First, we owe enormous gratitude to former Executive Director, Josh Ewing, who helped facilitate the process that led us to announcing our new name today.
Josh shared his thoughts on the transition:
“As the lifetime project of protecting Bears Ears moves forward, I’m gratified to see the evolution of the organization on so many levels. Changing the name is just a small sign of the growth, maturity, and leadership the team brings to this crucial work. May many new and old partnerships flourish under the Bears Ears Partnership banner in the years to come!”
We also want to thank Third Sun Productions in Salt Lake City for providing pro-bono logo, brand and web design for this project through their Design for Good grant program.
Finally, we thank YOU. As an important member of the Bears Ears Partnership community, we are grateful for your steadfast support.
With gratitude for your partnership,
Joe Neuhof, Executive Director