Acres U.S.A. is committed to advancing the understanding and implementation of eco-agriculture practices to manage soil health and crop protection naturally, regenerate ecosystems, and grow more nutrient-dense food. Their founder, Charles Walters, said it best when they started in 1971: “To be economical, a farm must be ecological.”

To learn more and explore the selected titles, visit NACD's website.

Following the enactment of the Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) federal spending bill and the release of the President’s proposed FY23 budget in March, Congress has begun to develop appropriations bills to fund the federal government in FY23. Each year, at the beginning of the appropriations process, Congress holds hearings with federal agency leaders to assesses the administration’s budget proposal. Throughout the past two months, leaders from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the Department of the Interior (DOI), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), have testified before congressional appropriations committees to discuss their agencies objectives and requests in FY23.

On April 27, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies held a hearing to review the USFS’ FY23 budget request. The Chief of the USFS, Randy Moore, joined the Subcommittee to discuss ongoing agency projects to sustain healthy forests and bolster resiliency in the face of increasing droughts and wildfires. Chief Moore described how USFS programs and partnerships have benefitted economic development, landscape resilience, outdoor recreation, and water quality in communities across the nation. On April 28, the Subcommittee held a hearing on the DOI’s FY23 budget request and heard testimony from Secretary Deb Haaland and DOI’s Budget Director, Denise Flannagan. Secretary Haaland’s testimony focused on the need to expand staffing to support DOI programs and build on the strong funding provided by the FY22 spending bill. The following day, the Subcommittee held a hearing to review EPA’s budget with Administrator Michael Regan and EPA’s Chief Financial Officer, Faisal Amin. Both witnesses emphasized that Congress must continue to provide strong funding for the EPA to address flooding, water quality, and other environmental concerns.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies also held a hearing that week on USDA’s budget request for the upcoming fiscal year. Throughout the hearing, Subcommittee members and the Secretary discussed the importance of supporting food security, rural development, and addressing water quality issues.

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies also welcomed USFS Chief, Randy Moore to testify in May. Chief Moore and Subcommittee members emphasized the need to provide funding for USFS programs to continue serving communities across the nation. This month, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies held a hearing to review USDA’s FY23 budget request with USDA Secretary, Tom Vilsack. Secretary Vilsack discussed USDA’s needs and future opportunities to expand existing programs, including USDA conservation programs. In his testimony, Secretary Vilsack also highlighted that investments in staffing capacity are required for USDA to scale existing programs. Secretary Vilsack also emphasized the importance of investing in agricultural research and detailed the distribution of funding provided by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This included funding for watershed rehabilitation, wildfire prevention, and other important efforts.

The Indiana Black Loam Conference is a series of workshops held throughout Indiana in Evansville, Bloomington, Fort Wayne, Gary, and Indianapolis that began in February 2022. The program was designed to assist and inform BIPOC (Black, Indigenous People of Color) producers and growers with resources available across the state and in their communities from urban gardeners to commercial growers, and all levels of farmers.

The conference is run by the Legacy Taste of the Garden in partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), Purdue University, Farm Credit, Indiana Small Business Development Center, Indiana Department of Health, Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (IASWCD), Center for Africana Studies & Culture Indiana University-Purdue University of Indianapolis (IUPUI), Lawrence Community Gardens, and Moore Heritage Project.

NACD North Central Region Representative Beth Mason attended the last workshop in the series, held in Indianapolis at the Madam Walker Legacy Center on May 14. The event started on the evening of May 13 with a networking reception opportunity for BIPOC producers, followed by a full day of workshops on Saturday, May 14 and ending with five local agricultural self-guided tours. USDA and partners were featured as community resources with Indiana NRCS State Conservationist Jerry Raynor opening the conference and NRCS Regional Conservationist Xavier Montoya as the luncheon keynote speaker. Breakout sessions throughout the day focused on programs and funding, business plans, different growing techniques, soil health, financing, panel discussions, round table discussions with industry leaders, and hands-on learning experiences.

BIPOC farmers have historically faced barriers to the resources they need to access the agriculture industry. The inaugural Black Loam Conferences is considered to be an important step to increasing the BIPOC presence in agriculture across Indiana.

Hunter Wolkinowski, a.k.a. HunterGirl, daughter of Chris Wolkinowski, Assistant State Conservationist for Field Operations for USDA-NRCS in Tennessee and long time supporter of conservation districts, is in the spotlight as a Top 3 finalist on this season of American Idol!

NACD President Michael Crowder was able to speak with Chris recently about the exciting experience.

"This has been just an unbelievable experience for our family and of course for Hunter," said Chris. "We have always felt that she had the talent to go very far in the music industry for both her vocal ability and songwriting skills. We’re just so happy now that the rest of the world gets to see her on this stage and that she gets the exposure she truly deserves. She has just worked so hard to get to this point in her career."

According to Chris, his family has always had a strong understanding of the outdoors and natural resource management. He expects Hunter to be an ally to conservation efforts within her newfound fame, wherever that path may take her. He says they have been overwhelmed by the support from the conservation district community, especially the employees in Tennessee, who realize Hunter is not only talented, but a kind-hearted person as well.

"Our friends through NACD can vote for her in 3 different ways as well," said Chris. "They can vote through the American Idol website, download the American Idol app to their smartphone, or they can also text her contestant number to 21523 during the show. Each method of voting allows someone to vote up to 10 times for a total of 30 votes. I know she would greatly appreciate any support the conservation districts could give her!"

Watch her in the upcoming season finale next Sunday night on ABC at 7 p.m. Central.

Soil health programs and educational materials from large-scale agroecosystems can often be challenging to translate to the smaller scale activities associated with urban agriculture. However, many conservation districts have unique soil health programs directly targeted to urban or developed locations.

Join Erin Kilcullen from the Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District (DSWCD) and Elli Blaine, from the Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (IASWCD) in this upcoming webinar to learn about their urban soil health programs.

As your district plans its activities for 2022, make sure to check NACD's archive of past webinars for great project ideas and funding opportunities. If you have a project you would like to share, please submit a webinar proposal online. We're always looking for great projects to share in the urban and community conservation spaces!

NACD President Michael Crowder will host his next "Coffee with Crowder" tomorrow, May 18 at 5pm ET.

Click here to join!

• Chris Hughes, President of the North Carolina Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts

• Mark Kuechel, NACD board member from Arizona

• Tim Riley, Executive Director of the National Conservation District Employees Association (NCDEA)

• Samuel “Grant” Victor, Jr. 2022 Next Generation Leadership Institute (NGLI) Cohort Member and Soil Health Champion from Oklahoma

Friends of NACD are individuals who support conservation districts across the country with cash donations that fund the Friends of NACD District Grants Program.

To become a Friend of NACD, visit this page.

• Columbia River Basin Water Transactions Program; due May 18 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Learn more.

• Long Island Sound Future Fund; due May 19 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Learn more.

• America the Beautiful Challenge; due July 21 at 11:59 p.m. ET. There will be an informational webinar on this request on May 19 at 2 p.m. ET. Learn more and register.

• ConocoPhillips SPIRIT of Conservation; pre-proposals due May 25 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Learn more.

See the full library of upcoming grant opportunities from NFWF on their website.

Promote your conservation district or state association's tree sale, annual meeting, webinar, field day, or other events on NACD's Calendar of Events!