What It Is & Why It Exists
What is the High Desert Partnership Collaboration Center?
The HDP Collaboration Center is a regional hub for learning, connecting, and collaborating — a place where people learn and practice how collaboration works, so they can return to their communities, organizations, and agencies equipped to lead their own collective efforts.
Is the Collaboration Center part of HDP, or a separate organization?
The Collaboration Center is part of High Desert Partnership, not a separate organization. It is housed within HDP, aligned with HDP's mission, and governed by the HDP Board of Directors. The Collaboration Center Director reports to the HDP Executive Director.
How is the Collaboration Center different from HDP's existing collaboratives?
HDP's collaboratives do collaborative work within their focus areas. The Collaboration Center's role is different: it teaches how collaborative work is done. It complements, rather than competes with, existing collaboratives.
Funding & Location
Where did initial funding come from?
The Collaboration Center received $2.16 million in Oregon state General Fund support, directed primarily toward construction of a physical facility. Additional funding for operations and programming will need to be secured over time.
Where will the Collaboration Center be located?
The location of the Collaboration Center is under consideration.
When are the doors expected to open?
The Collaboration Center aims to be open by Summer 2028.
Who It Serves
Who can use the Collaboration Center?
The Collaboration Center is designed to serve organizations, agencies, communities, and individuals doing or wanting to do collaborative work, including local and tribal governments, federal and state agencies, nonprofits, and community groups.
Do you have to be from Eastern Oregon to participate?
No. The Collaboration Center is rooted in Harney County and serves any individuals, communities, and organizations seeking to learn the practice of working together. There are currently no specific eligibility requirements.
Is the Collaboration Center only for environmental or natural resource issues?
No. While HDP's history is heavily rooted in natural resource collaboration, the practices it has developed apply to a wide range of community challenges — ecological, economic, and social.
Is there a cost to participate?
A fee structure has not been determined yet for programs. There may be opportunities to rent office space or collaborative gathering space.
What It Does
What services or support does the Collaboration Center offer?
The Collaboration Center will offer a physical space, curricula, and practices that make collaboration more accessible, teachable, and durable, including training and capacity-building, facilitation support, and access to tools developed through HDP's collaborative work. Specific programs are still being developed.
Can the Collaboration Center help our community start a collaborative process from scratch?
Yes. Whether a community is facing a long-standing issue or simply needs help working better together, the Collaboration Center can help find a starting point. Contact Brenda Smith (director@highdesertpartnership.org) or Kellie Frank (kellie@highdesertpartnership.org).
Does the Collaboration Center provide funding?
No. The Collaboration Center is not a grant-making organization and does not provide direct financial support to communities or organizations. Its role is to build the knowledge, skills, and capacity for collaboration, not to fund specific projects.
Trust & Credibility
How does the Collaboration Center stay neutral?
The Collaboration Center's credibility depends on its independence from any single interest, agency, or funder. It is governed by the HDP Board of Directors and housed within an organization with a 20+ year track record of supporting collaboration across deep political, economic, and ecological divides. Its role is to teach and support the practice of collaboration, not to advocate for particular outcomes.
Who funds the Collaboration Center, and does that affect its independence?
HDP is committed to maintaining the Collaboration Center's independence regardless of funding source. Its governance structure—housed within HDP and governed by the HDP Board — ensures accountability without compromising neutrality.
For Partners & Funders
How can organizations partner with or support the Collaboration Center?
Organizations interested in partnering with or supporting the Collaboration Center are encouraged to contact Brenda Smith (director@highdesertpartnership.org) or Kellie Frank (kellie@highdesertpartnership.org). Opportunities to engage will grow as the Collaboration Center moves toward opening.
What makes the Collaboration Center a good investment for funders?
It is the only facility in Eastern Oregon providing dedicated collaboration services of this kind, built on HDP's 20+ year track record. It leverages public investment with private dollars, reduces costly conflict and litigation, and operates under a strong governance structure that ensures accountable stewardship of resources.
