Western Landowners Alliance

Activities and Advocacy

According to its website, the Western Landowners Alliance claims to maintain a “stewardship” program that oversees local initiatives including conserving “grazing” land in the Western United States, prairie chicken and cattle habitats in New Mexico, local river and lake maintenance, improving relations between wildlife managers and “working lands stewards,” and protecting animal migration corridors. The site also includes an online guide and resources on practicing stewardship efforts. ²

The group has also released several media pieces and publications including an On Land, podcast, documentary features on conservation efforts, and a jobs board featuring employment opportunities on Western ranches and farms. ^{3 4 5}

In 2026, the Western Landowners Alliance released a “Restoring America” report on its advocacy towards wildlife and environmental conservative efforts. This included promoting federal policy such as the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Farm Bill, supporting rural communities, providing assistance to landowners and federal conservation programs, supporting wildlife habitats and working lands, addressing water resources and drought management, and increasing the development of weather-based energy sources on private land such as solar,  ⁶

Funding

According to its website, listed funding partners to the Western Landowners Alliance include the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, the Gates Family Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Liz Claiborne Art Ortenberg Foundation, the New Land Foundation, the Mighty Arrow Family Foundation, the TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation, the Santa Fe Community Foundation, the Thornburg Foundation, the Wolf Creek Charitable Foundation, the Turner Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation. ⁷

Leadership

Lesli Allison is the founder and CEO of the Western Landowners Alliance as of 2026. Allison is also listed as a founder of the Chama Peak Land Alliance. Prior to this, she was the manager of a ranch in the southern San Juan Mountains region of Colorado. ⁸

Wendy Millet is the board chair for the Western Landowners Alliance. Millet is also listed as the director of TomKat Ranch, the TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation, and LeftCoast Grassfed. Millet was previously a member of the California Council of Land Trust’s board of directors, the Peninsula Open Space Trust’s Farmland Advisory Committee, and Save the Redwoods League’s Board of Councilor. They were a co-founder of Gallop Ventures LLC and previously worked for the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. ⁹