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Hosted in partnership with the California Association of Resource Conservation Districts (CARCD), NACD's 2024 Annual Meeting will take place in San Diego, California from February 10-14, 2024. Join us for great networking opportunities, speakers, and tours exploring the theme "Operation Conservation!"
The agenda for the meeting is now live! Explore available sessions, meetings, and events that will be happening throughout the week. See details about tours to sign up for, specifics on sessions, speakers, and more. With our event app, powered by Sched, attendees can create their own personalized schedules - available directly on smart phones and laptops.
Register now to reserve your space on a tour and save up to $130 with early bird registration, now through December 22, 2023. Find everything you need to know on NACD's website.
After registering, don't forget to make your hotel reservations! The meeting will be held at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina. Discounted room rates in NACD's reserved block start at $259/night plus tax. You can make a reservation online or call 1-888-236-2427 and identify yourself as a guest with the National Association of Conservation Districts. The last day to reserve available rooms in the room block is January 19, 2024.
| FSH SEEKING FARMERS FOR COVER CROP ASSISTANCE | |
Farmers for Soil Health (FSH) is on a mission to improve soil health and farm profitability. Working with farmers to expand their adoption of cover crops, FSH aims to have 30 million U.S. acres in cover crops by 2030.
A partner, NACD is excited to share that FSH is currently accepting enrollments from farmers seeking assistance planting cover crops in 20 states: Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
If you are a farmer interested in this opportunity visit FSH’s enrollment page. Funding for technical and financial assistance is made possible by the USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative.
More information, including an extensive Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) is available on FSH’s enrollment page. The online initial enrollment step is relatively short, with a follow up step to provide more farm information later in the process. Each of the states also has a designated Technical Assistance organization to provide help to producers.
Please help spread the word and share this opportunity with farmers in eligible states!
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2024 FRIENDS OF NACD
DISTRICT GRANT PROGRAM
APPLICATIONS LAUNCH
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NACD recently announced the launch of its application period for the 2024 Friends of NACD District Grants Program!
Now in its fifth round of funding, the Friends of NACD District Grants Program is an initiative of NACD’s volunteer board members, who dedicate time to creating and advocating for new opportunities for conservation districts to grow their programs and capacity. The 2024 program will award top ranking applicants up to $2,500 each to conduct new activities or test novel approaches to their operations.
Districts are encouraged to think creatively about how they can use the funds to conduct new activities or test novel approaches to their operations. Applications will be accepted through November 30, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific.
Past grantees have implemented projects that have helped to enhance their visibility within their communities, reach new clients, and grow their partnerships. Examples include: a climate resilience focused educational demonstration forest project created by Oxford County SWCD, Maine; an educational outreach program to increase invasive species awareness led by the Clark County SWCD, Indiana; the Start Farming Mentorship Program started by the Duval SWCD, Florida; and a recycling bin for agricultural chemical containers constructed by the Butte SWCD, Idaho.
Hear from a few past grantees about their district projects in NACD's latest Conservation Coffee session, available to rewatch here. Learn more about Friends of NACD, the District Grants Program, and find the application and Request for Proposals (RFP) on NACD’s website.
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WHAT'S UP IN WASHINGTON:
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS UPDATE
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After several failed attempts, House Republicans are meeting again today to consider new candidates for Speaker of the House. The House must elect a speaker before the chamber can pass legislation. Congress must pass an additional continuing resolution or full appropriations bills before November 17 to avert a government shutdown.
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service will host a webinar on Wednesday, October 25 at 2 p.m. ET to discuss the newly expanded list of Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Mitigation Activities available for Inflation Reduction Act funding. Efforts to streamline and improve conservation programs will also be discussed. Attendees may submit questions before the webinar. To register and submit questions, please visit here.
| OPPORTUNITIES TO RECOGNIZE CONSERVATION EXCELLENCE WITH NACD | |
District Officials State Training Recognition Program: Applications for NACD’s District Officials State Training Recognition Program are now being accepted through December 8, 2023. The program recognizes states and territories that have developed and implemented a district officials training program. To qualify, a district officials training program must include 50 percent or more of the elements in all 15 categories identified by NACD and the National Association of State Conservation Agencies (NASCA).
For states that have been recognized previously, you are required to re-submit a checklist every two years for recognition. To apply, visit here and fill out the online checklist. Recognition will take place during the 2024 NACD Annual Meeting.
Apply
NACD Hall of Distinction: NACD is currently seeking nominations for its Hall of Distinction! Through NACD’s Hall of Distinction, state and territory associations can recognize current and past conservation leaders for their extraordinary work to advance conservation at the national level.
States and territories may induct one person to the Hall of Distinction every year. To make an induction, state and territory associations are asked to send NACD information via this form by December 8, 2023.
Learn more about the Hall of Distinction, including eligibility criteria, here.
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NACD Announces Forestry Program Manager | |
NACD is excited to announce Annica McGuirk as the Forestry Program Manager.
McGuirk has been with NACD since 2021 as the Northeast Region Representative. In her new role as Forestry Program Manager, Annica will serve as staff lead on the recently approved Landscape Scale Restoration grant with the US Forest Service which is an interagency, multi-partner collaboration that will advance science-based restoration of priority forest landscapes and protects water in 13 states from West Virginia to Maine. She will also continue to support other forestry related activities such as NACD’s Forestry Subcommittee and the Joint Forestry Team.
Annica is based in Lisbon Falls, Maine and can be reached at annica-mcguirk@nacdnet.org.
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Economics of Soil Health Systems Farmer Focus:
Alex Johnson
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NACD, the Soil Health Institute, and NRCS recently released economic findings from 30 farmers who adopted soil health management systems. Each week, we will be highlighting one farm from this study.
The Alex Johnson farm in the Beech River Watershed of Tennessee decreased production costs and increased yield with a soil health management system of no-till production and cover crops. This is another example of the economic benefits that producers can enjoy through the adoption of Farm Bill conservation programs, alongside increased sustainability.
Check out a video, producer narrative, and fact sheet about this farm, and all other farms in the study, here.
| USDA Releases Assessment on Agriculture and Forestry in Carbon Markets | |
The U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released A General Assessment of the Role of Agriculture and Forestry in the U.S. Carbon Markets, a comprehensive look at current market activity, barriers to participation, and opportunities to improve access to carbon markets for farmers and forest landowners. The report is the first of USDA’s deliverables under the Growing Climate Solutions Act.
Read more here.
| SWCS Hosts Webinar on Leveraging Carbon Markets for Conservation | |
The Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS) is hosting a webinar Conservation Matters: Leveraging Carbon Markets to Encourage Conservation Adoption on October 26 at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Carbon markets have the potential to encourage conservation adoption in new, innovative ways. Dr. Adam Chambers of the NRCS West National Technology Support Center will discuss the connections between carbon markets as a tool for conservation adoption, the economic considerations of producers interested in carbon markets, and tips for understanding the risk involved.
Learn more and register for the webinar here.
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Promote your conservation district or state association's tree sale, annual meeting, webinar, field day, or other events on NACD's Calendar of Events!
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