Big tent conservation

September 20, 2024 3:00 PM

I’ve recently started saying that conservation is a contact sport. We need friends and neighbors talking to friends and neighbors about the ways in which they’re helping water and wildlife and why it matters to them. And we need progress in every community and in every corner of our state. That’s why conservation also needs a big tent.

“Conservation” includes everything from choosing the right implement in a crop field to designing a rain garden near an urban downspout. It’s about protecting endangered ecosystems like fens or deciding which farm margins can be spared for better uses. Progress can be made on all fronts. Today, I want to share more about the work we’re doing across the state to engage community members in conversation about conservation through the Master Conservationist Program....

Read the rest of the article on the Iowa Learning Farm's blog.

Author(s): 

Adam Janke Associate Professor

Adam Janke is the statewide Wildlife Extension Specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. Adam is a trained wildlife biologist, having received a B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in wildlife conservation and ecology from three land-grant schools in the Midwest.  He is also certified ...