At TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation (TKREF), our mission is to grow healthy food on working lands in a way that regenerates the planet and inspires others to action.
Regenerative Ranching 101: Growing Knowledge and Inspiring Action
Dakota Glueck describes our grazing management approach to a class attending the Regenerative Ranching 101 class at TomKat Ranch.
06/23/2025
By: Kevin Watt, Bookcliff Consulting
At TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation (TKREF), our mission is to grow healthy food on working lands in a way that regenerates the planet and inspires others to action. That vision came to life through our recent participation in Regenerative Ranching 101, an 8-month workshop series designed to bring practical, place-based education on regenerative grazing practices to ranchers, technical service providers, and landowners across the Bay Area.
This innovative learning series was led by the incredible folks at the San Mateo Resource Conversation District through a grant by the USDA’s Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative. The program was developed in partnership with the San Mateo Resource Conservation District, Point Blue Conservation Science, California Farmlink, and a network of inspiring local producers and educators from Morris Grassfed, Stemple Creek Ranch, Sonoma Mountain Institute, and Open Field Farm.
The TKREF team contributed to lesson planning across the whole series and hosted 3 workshops at TomKat Ranch to give students the opportunity to observe regenerative practices in action.
During the 8 months, the course covered:
- Principles and Practices of Regenerative Ranching
- Adaptive Grazing Planning
- Water and Fencing
- Wildlife and Livestock
- Monitoring and Evaluation
- Managing Land in a Changing Climate
- Designing Trials to Expand Understanding
- Writing Regenerative Grazing Leases
Mark Biaggi describes rangeland diversity in the context of soil types and conditions and grazing strategies on TomKat Ranch.
What set Regenerative Ranching 101 apart was its alignment with our core belief that healthy food, healthy ecosystems, and healthy communities are all connected. The program emphasized soil health, biodiversity, water stewardship, and climate resilience, not just as ideals, but as daily management goals that are achievable. Importantly, participants left with not just practical tools, but a network of fellow students and instructors to support them as they deepen their learning and implement new practices.
The overwhelmingly positive feedback from course participants affirmed our belief that transforming the way we manage rangelands is possible when land stewards are empowered with knowledge, supported by community, and grounded in holistic thinking and curiosity. 95% of participants rated the course as “excellent” or “very good,” with many noting that the peer-to-peer learning and ranch site visits were deeply impactful. One participant shared:
“It was such a rich and dynamic group, both the participants and the instructors. It gave me so much hope to see how much knowledge and dedication there is in this community.”
In alignment with our mission, the course didn’t just share knowledge, it fostered confidence and shared inspiration. 100% of respondents said they would recommend the course to others, 98% felt more connected to a community of like-minded practitioners, and 96% reported gaining tools they could apply directly to their own work.
Class gathering at the end of a long day.
Another participant reflected.
“I left feeling more empowered, connected, and inspired to keep working toward regeneration—not just on my land, but in my community.”
Time and time again we’ve seen that the future of land stewardship depends on collaborative, practical, and on-the-ground education that helps people see what’s possible and gives them the educational and social support they need to thrive. We are proud to have been part of this pilot and are so grateful to all our partners for making it a success. We look forward to repeating the course and even creating a Regenerative Ranching 201 course in the near future.
