The Malpai Group was organized and led by area ranchers who saw that the land—and their way of life—were threatened by deteriorating rangeland and by the spread of development and subdivisions from nearby towns. Also, the lack of natural wildfires to rejuvenate the landscape and the hit-or-miss rainfall so typical of Southwestern grazing lands contributed to the land’s deteriorating condition.

The group originated as a series of informal discussions among ranching neighbors and was formally organized as a non-profit organization in 1994. Since then, the group has pursued activities to protect and restore the ecological diversity and productivity of the land, including rangeland restoration, reintroduction of fire, wildlife conservation, and endangered species recovery.  

Arizona and New Mexico Ranchers, USDA Forest Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Hidalgo & Whitewater Draw Natural Resource Conservation Districts, USDI Bureau of Land Management, USDI Fish and Wildlife Service, Arizona State Land Department; Universities in New Mexico and Arizona, Arizona & New Mexico Game and Fish Departments, the Animas Foundation, The Nature Conservancy.