Many of our associates and each of our principals are also employees of Utah State University, and/or Eco Logical Research. While the different roles we play in different institutions and companies gives us experience and perspective that we think is helpful for our clients, it can also lead to some potential confusion. This dual employment presents the potential for a conflict of interest, and/or the potential for perception of a conflict of interest. At Anabranch, we take mitigating these potential conflicts of interest seriously and have instituted policies and procedures to ensure that actual conflicts of interest are not realized. For example, all of our Anabranch employees that are also Utah State University employees declare their potential conflicts of interest annually to the University (see USU Code §307). USU "recognizes  that faculty and exempt employees make broad and significant contributions by providing professional expertise to local, state, national, and international communities on a consulting basis. Such activity contributes not only to the needs and understanding of others, but increases the competence of the consultants in their professional roles and brings recognition to the University."  (see USU §377). For example, USU places value in how our 'real-world' experiences in restoration and consulting help make us better educators, and improve the application of our research.

Any employees who work both for Anabranch and USU work with their managers to prepare a personalized Conflict of Interest Mitigation Plan.  These plans cover everything from simple matters like making sure that Utah State University facilities and equipment are never used for Anabranch purposes, to more complicated matters like defining how we mitigate perception issues.  One of the procedures we have implemented is to have clear and differentiated roles for employees on a project-by-project basis, and make sure the boundaries on an Anabranch versus USU role are clearly demarcated. We also make sure that if for any client, or any given project we have roles in different companies or institution, that we very clearly declare what role we are fulfilling, what hat we are wearing, and try to be clear in our communications not to blur those boundaries.  In general, we try to avoid having the same personnel having a project role in multiple institutions, but in some cases this is not avoidable and/or it can be desirable or specifically requested by the client. In such instances, we make sure our clients understand what roles we are playing and we adapt and adhere to our Conflict of Interest Management Plans carefully. 

One of the most common questions we get from curious or concerned colleagues is where is the boundary between Anabranch projects and USU projects (as all of the principals are on the Faculty @ USU).  It is important to understand that among the reasons Anabranch was created was actually to avoid conflicts of interest as we each got more involved in implementing actual restoration projects. USU is not and should not be in the 'restoration implementation business'. USU does not carry construction liability insurance, nor should it be in a position where it may be actually or perceived as competing with private-sector design and construction companies. Thus, as we moved away from just implementing experimental restoration projects and demonstration projects through USU, into the providing design/build restoration services for real restoration projects, we were encouraged by USU Administrators to pursue these endeavors through an independent, outside organization or company.  We also make sure that Anabranch does not directly compete for grants and contracts, that USU would be eligible to compete for. In addition we do not duplicate services that Joe Wheaton's Ecogeomorhpoly and Topographic Analysis Lab provide to their sponsors through USU.  As any entity could choose to do, Anabranch will sometimes  contract USU to do field survey , monitoring, GIS, modeling and/or analytical work. Through Anabranch's own research & development efforts, we sometime sponsor research at USU (or other institutions) that we feel is important to invest in. Such awards, are vetted through USU's Sponsored Programs Office. 

If you have a concern or question about any of these issues, please feel free to contact us. We strive for transparency.