On May 12, 2021, the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry held a hearing on climate-smart practices in agriculture. Entitled “Exploring Climate Smart Practices,” this hearing was the first hearing of the current Congress for the Subcommittee and the second hearing of the House Agriculture Committee to focus on the topic after February’s full Committee hearing entitled “Climate Change and the U.S. Agriculture and Forestry Sectors.”

Throughout the hearing, five witnesses testified that for current farm bill programs to work they must be locally-led and flexible to ensure these programs can address the unique cropping systems, soil types and resource concerns across the country, and that capacity is needed at the local level to achieve success.

In Chairwoman Abigail Spanberger’s (D-VA) opening statement, she stated, “As we look to scale the adoption of conservation practices, there is perhaps no greater tool available than the farm bill’s conservation programs. Title II programs provide much needed technical and financial assistance to encourage the adoption of cover crops, reduced and no-till management systems and prescribed grazing systems — among many other climate-smart practices.”

Ranking Member Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) continued to emphasize the need for locally-led flexibility rather than a top-down approach during his opening statement.

“No singular solution will be appropriate to each crop, cropping system or region,” he said. “What works for corn in Iowa will not necessarily work for wheat out west or rice in the Mississippi Delta or rice in northern California. These programs must continue to be voluntary, which means we must offer practices that provide farmers choices.”

Read the full recap in NACD's blog.

On January 27, 2021, President Biden signed Executive Order (EO) 14008, Tacking the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. EO 14008 calls for the conservation of at least 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030 and is also referred to as the 30x30 program.

On May 6, 2021, the National Climate Task Force released the long anticipated “Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful” report, which outlines a ten-year recommendation for conserving and restoring America’s lands and waters. The document is the beginning framework for the 30x30 program, which supports and accounts for existing and future conservation of public lands and waters, as well as collaborative and voluntary conservation efforts on working lands, tribal lands, as well as state, local and private lands. The U.S. is well-positioned to achieve a 30-percent goal over the next decade.

NACD looks forward to continue its engagement with the administration in these efforts. In order to gain a stronger understanding of how 30x30 will impact our conservation district membership, NACD is seeking member feedback. Please provide your feedback on the 30x30 program here or by clicking the button below.

Join us for the 2021 NACD Summer Meeting and 75th Anniversary Celebration, scheduled to be held July 24-27 in Chicago, Ill. The agenda includes a full NACD board meeting, a 75h Anniversary Celebration event and a conservation forum full of regional and national leaders in conservation.

NACD's Summer Meeting will be held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Chicago - Magnificent Mile. Hotel rates are $185 per night. To book your hotel room, click here and use the group name "NACD Conserv Districts". Early-bird registration is $275 and includes access to all meetings and events.

Don’t delay, the deadline for early-bird registration and hotel reservations is Friday, July 2!

Attendees must agree to follow all local protocols, including but not limited to: mask mandates, social distancing and other protocols in effect in Chicago. In addition, NACD is requiring a face covering for all attendees entering any meeting room being utilized for the meeting. Those not following the NACD guidelines will not be allowed entry to meetings or events. An NACD mask will be provided to each registered attendee.

To learn more, book your hotel and view the agenda, visit NACD's Summer Meeting webpage. We can't wait to see you all in Chicago!

As part of our joint agreement with The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation (SMGF), NACD has the opportunity each year to gather with other nonprofit organizations through SMGF’s National Partner Network (NPN).

On May 7, members of NACD’s Urban and Community Resource Policy Group (RPG) joined 16 other partner members from across the U.S. and SMGF to discuss partnerships broadly, as well as issues related to equity in nonprofit programming and policy.

Many members of the partner network share the need to engage new and diverse clientele and partners in their activities, while still addressing their main conservation-related mandates.

This commonality guided many of the sessions of the day, with over 30 attendees sharing novel approaches for partnering with like-minded organizations, discussing appropriate engagement strategies for members of our communities (especially underrepresented individuals), and learning from each other on topics like water policy, citizen science projects and nature-based solutions.

“The creativity and breadth and depth of knowledge represented in this network of environmental partners never fails to inspire me. It’s wonderful to see NACD and our other members connecting with one another to support their vital mission of protecting our natural resources,” said Carol Kauffman, manager of corporate social responsibility at ScottsMiracle-Gro.

As a longtime supporter of our monthly urban and community conservation webinars, SMGF has played a valuable role in helping NACD’s members learn from the NPN members, while also ensuring conservation districts have access to the type of information shared during the NPN meeting.

“As my first NPN meeting, I enjoyed the diverse, energetic group of people talking about water quality and diversity/inclusivity,” said Alex Schmidt, chair of the Urban and Community RPG. “A key lesson learned for districts is that there are a lot of voices at the conservation table, and there are voices that need be there that aren’t and need to be invited, and everyone at that table’s voice is important!”

Districts will have an opportunity to learn how to bring such voices to the conservation dialogue in the next SMGF sponsored monthly and urban community conservation webinar on May 20 (9 AM EST); Dr. Carol Couch, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Oklahoma State tribal liaison will introduce strategies for engaging with tribal communities. Registration is free online for the one-hour webinar, held via Zoom.

The next NACD Monthly Urban and Community Webinar will be held May 20 at 12 p.m. Eastern, jointly organized by the Tribal Outreach and Partnerships and Urban and Community RPGs.

Join Dr. Carol Crouch, the Oklahoma State Tribal Liaison for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), as she introduces strategies for working effectively with tribal communities. Both RPGs represent districts in their approaches for conducting outreach with underrepresented communities, and this webinar will help districts identify approaches that may be helpful in their own efforts.

The one-hour webinar will take place on Zoom; registration is available online for free, but is required.

NACD is currently seeking candidates for a Marketing Coordinator and Northeast Region Representative. 

The marketing coordinator is a full-time position based in NACD’s Washington, D.C. headquarters that supports coordination across a broad portfolio of communications activities, including social media, marketing emails, publications, website management, data analytics and more to achieve specific, project-driven outcomes.

The Northeast Region Representative is a full-time position based in NACD’s Northeast Region providing assistance to NACD’s member conservation districts and NACD Board of Directors to advance conservation, resource development and to assist in the implementation of the association’s policies related to the Northeast Region (CT, DC, DE, MA, MD, ME, NJ, NH, NY, PA, RI, VT, WV). This is a service-oriented position focused on creating and maintaining relationships and increasing the effectiveness of NACD’s support of conservation districts and their state associations.

Learn more about the positions on NACD's careers webpage and apply by Friday, May 28, 2021 for priority interview consideration.

NACD and Agriculture Future of America (AFA) are working together to host the 2021 Conservation Careers Virtual Workshop, scheduled to be held from June 13-15, 2021.  

This year’s Conservation Careers Workshop will have a focus on Forest Management and Regeneration. Delegates will develop conservation career outreach plans and discuss action strategies to implement career outreach on their campuses.

The eligibility requirements and application details can be found at this link. The application deadline has been extended to tomorrow, May 19, 2021. 

Join NACD for the last Winds, Water and Wildfires Virtual Summit, where we’ll host speakers discussing how disasters such as high winds, wildfires and flooding cause significant damage to natural resources in the North.

These needs are identified in the three goals of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy. The Northeast session is scheduled for May 25 and 26. Visit NACD's events webpage to register.

Recordings of the West Region summit can now be found on NACD's YouTube channel, and recordings from the Southeast Region summit will be available soon. For questions, please contact NACD's Natural Resource Policy Specialist Mary Scott.

The newest episode of Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE)’s “What is Sustainable Agriculture?” animation series highlights how farmers can use natural principles to control pests and improve the health and productivity of their production systems.

To learn more and view the video, click here.

On May 13, 2021, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI) announced that USDA Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen is the winner of the 2021 SFI President's Award.

The award is given to an individual or an organization that leads the forest community on important issues related to sustainability, education and collaboration.

Christiansen is being recognized by SFI for her longstanding leadership on myriad issues critical to the future of the forest sector including building a diverse workforce, educating youth, and enhancing biodiversity.

To learn more, view the SFI press release here.

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