Ben Johnson purchased his first farm in northeast Iowa with his brother Andy when he was a sophomore at Iowa State University and has been farming his own land for 20 years. Conservation saves him one of his most valued resources on the farm: time.
Sean McMahon is the Executive Director for the Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance. With 20+ years of experience in conservation and agriculture, Sean works with key partners to champion farmer engagement and adoption of practices that improve water quality.
Clare Lindahl was recently selected as the chief executive officer for the Soil and Water Conservation Society—the first woman ever to lead this national organization. Prior to this, Clare was the Executive Director for Conservation Districts of Iowa.
Chris Foss and his daughter Kristi Heffelmeier farm together in Northeast Iowa. The family is dedicated to improving the soil health of their land and putting in practices that will improve the local creek.
Shane Wulf and Joshua Balk chat about their creative approaches to watershed improvement projects in their jobs as watershed coordinators for Black Hawk County Soil and Water Conservation District in northeast Iowa.
Eileen Kladivko is a professor of agronomy at Purdue University in Indiana and a founding member of the Midwest Cover Crops Council. Her specific research areas have included tile drainage, cover crops and earthworms.
Dr. Bob Hartzler is an ISU agronomy professor and an extension weed specialist. After years of removing milkweed from agricultural fields, he is encouraging its re-establishment in strategic locations to help stop monarch butterfly decline as a part of the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium.
Sharon Krause is the owner and operator of Dalla Terra Ranch, a grass fed organic lamb operation in Madison County, Iowa. A native Iowan, Sharon is passionate about lambs, healthy lands and her local community.
In this episode, I chat with Dr. Adam Janke, Assistant Professor and Extension Wildlife Specialist at Iowa State University. His focus is on strengthening wildlife conservation in working landscapes in Iowa.
This episode features a chat with Nathan Anderson, a young Iowa farmer who is passionate about minimizing the off-farm ecological impact of his farming practices so that future generations of his family can continue to farm.