Conservation INsight
February 16, 2022
|
|
IASWCD Newsletter Database
The Indiana Association of SWCDs sends out this newsletter (Conservation INsight) every other Wednesday and if you are reading this, you are receiving it! Please check that your office colleagues are receiving it and your Indiana District Supervisors.
|
Meet & Greet with IASWCD
Every few months IASWCD Staff, Joe Schmees and Amy Work, host an IASWCD Meet & Greet for New Indiana District Staff. If you would like to participate in our next Zoom session where we explain more about the association and how it supports districts, please contact Amy (amy-work@iaswcd.org).
|
|
Updating District Names and Email Addresses in Conservation Link
Reminder to Indiana Districts to update their staff informaton in Conservation Link and to let your District Support Specialists know of any Supervisor updates needed on that site. IASWCD will be updating their email databases in April from what is input in Conservation Link.
|
|
Webinar on Agrivoltaics
Miss the recent CCSI webinar on Agrivoltaics (co-location of production ag and solar farms)? The recording is available on the CCSI YouTube channel.
|
|
CCSI Newsletter
and
Soil Health Events
|
|
NACD Announces 2021 Photo,
Poster Contest Winners
February 14, 2022, ORLANDO – Today, the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD), in partnership with the NACD Auxiliary, announced the winners of the 2021 Photo Contest and 2021 Poster Contest during the 76th NACD Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL.
|
|
|
2022 Friends of NACD District Grant
February 14, 2022, ORLANDO – Today, the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) announced the 2022 recipients of the Friends of NACD District Grants Program during the 2022 Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL.
|
|
Nearly $500,000 in Federal Grant Funds Available for Specialty Crop Industry
INDIANAPOLIS (Feb. 8, 2022) — The Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), beginning Feb. 15, will seek project proposals from Indiana’s specialty crop sector for funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. Eligible projects must enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops in Indiana, defined as fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, horticulture and nursery crops.
“Indiana is home to an abundance of agricultural sectors, including a robust specialty crop industry that contributes significantly to our economy,” said Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, Secretary of Agriculture. “The funding through this program, whether that be research, market development or education and training, will help to greatly advance this industry in our state.”
|
Supervisor Directory
Annual meeting season is a great time to review your Supervisor information on Conservation Link’s supervisory directory. The Supervisor directory is utilized by ISDA and the IASWCD to communicate and share pertinent conservation news and events, so please make sure all information is up to date.
|
Internal Controls and Preventing Sexual Harrassment Trainings
New staff and supervisors must complete the internal control training video, found on the State Board of Accounts webpage. Please see the link below for the internal controls training. https://www.in.gov/sboa/5072.htm. In addition, contact your DSS for the Preventing Sexual Harassment training video.
|
|
ISDA Welcomes New District Support Specialist, Sandra Hoffarth
Previously employed with the St. Joseph County Soil & Water Conservation District, Sandra Hoffarth joined the Indiana District Support Specialist team on January 24. She will be serving the northernmost counties.
|
For SWCD Supervisors:
SWCD TRAINING NEEDS SURVEY
The Indiana State Department of Agriculture and the Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts are evaluating training content and delivery methods to provide a better experience for SWCDs. The responses to this survey will help to inform future training opportunities for Supervisors. Supervisors, please fill out the survey at your earliest convenience.
|
Clean Water Indiana
CWI Training funds are now available for SWCD supervisors and staff for trainings that fall between March 16, 2021 and March 15, 2022. The funds will be available in the form of reimbursements and are reserved for training registration fee reimbursements only. The application can be found on Conservation Link, or requested through the cleanwaterindiana@isda.in.gov or your DSS. Applications should be submitted to cleanwaterindiana@isda.in.gov.
|
|
Upcoming Deadlines for Districts:
- Election of District board officers – (March 31st)
- Annual Financial Report and Audit Form/page 2 of AFR (March 31)
- Certification of Election of Supervisors – (Within 7 days of election, via Conservation Link)
- Annual Meeting Held (March 31)
|
|
IDEM Newsletter:
Riffles & Pools
|
|
|
(February 2, 2022) - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack selected 12 members to serve on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) inaugural Secretary’s Advisory Committee for Urban Agriculture to provide input on policy development and to help identify barriers to urban agriculture as USDA works to promote urban farming and the economic opportunities it provides in cities across the country.
|
Funding is still available to restore, protect and enhance wetlands throughout Indiana. While applications are accepted on a continuous basis, February 28 will be the second-round application date for WRE.
|
Indiana NRCS recognizes the start of Black History Month
(Indianapolis, IN, February 1, 2022) – Today marks the official beginning of Black History Month in America. The monthlong celebration began in 1926 but by the late 1960s, thanks in part to the civil rights movement and a growing awareness of Black identity, "Negro History Week" had evolved into what is now considered Black History Month. Since 1976, every February has served as a time to honor the contributions of Black Americans throughout the history of the United States. This includes the lasting impact Black farmers, landowners and communities have had on agriculture throughout the country.
|
|
(February 14, 2022) - Jerry Raynor, State Conservationist for Indiana’s USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced today that NRCS is accepting applications until March 25 to be considered for the next round of funding to improve water quality in the Black River watershed located in Posey and Gibson counties. This funding opportunity is made possible through NRCS’ National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI).
|
Producers with Crop Insurance to Receive Premium Benefit for Cover Crops
Agricultural producers who have coverage under most crop insurance policies are eligible for a premium benefit from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) if they planted cover crops during the 2022 crop year. To receive the benefit from this year’s Pandemic Cover Crop Program (PCCP), producers must report cover crop acreage by March 15, 2022. Find out more information by visiting: Pandemic Cover Crop Program
|
|
USDA to Invest $1 Billion in Climate Smart Commodities, Expanding Markets, Strengthening Rural America
Indianapolis, IN, Feb. 8, 2022 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today the U.S. Department of Agriculture is delivering on its promise to expand markets by investing $1 billion in partnerships to support America’s climate-smart farmers, ranchers and forest landowners. The new Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities opportunity will finance pilot projects that create market opportunities for U.S. agricultural and forestry products that use climate-smart practices and include innovative, cost-effective ways to measure and verify greenhouse gas benefits. USDA is now accepting project applications for fiscal year 2022.
|
|
Connecting with Amish and Other Plain Communities:
A Conference for Extension and Related Agency Professionals
Are you new to working in an Amish or Plain Community? Do you seek to learn more about their unique culture and traditions? Are you looking for ideas on more successfully engaging with these communities? Then we invite you to join us for a conference on Connecting with Amish and Other Plain Communities: A Conference for Extension and Related Agency Professionals to be held on March 29 – 31, 2022 in Shipshewana, Indiana, home to one of the top three largest Amish and Plain Communities in the United States.
|
|
|
DNR
Division of Fish & Wildlife Newsletter:
Wild Bulletin
|
|
|
Women Woodland Owners Virtual Conference
The National Women Owning Woodlands (WOW) Network is hosting a Virtual Conference for women woodland owners, stewards, and enthusiasts on March 3-5, 2022.
|
Call for Presentations!
Climate Intersections Conference: Taking Care of People, Water, and the Land
July 12-14, 2022
Duluth, Minnesota
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Monday, March 7, 2022, at 11:59 PM Central Time.
How can water professionals work with local communities effectively to foster resilience and equity in a changing climate?
Seeking submissions for symposia, oral presentations, and posters. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to share your research, outreach and programming with water, climate and natural resources professionals from across the region!
|
|
SWCS Student Leader Project Intern Opportunity
The Soil and Water Conservation Society, in partnership with Association of Retired Conservation Service Employees, is looking for a summer Student Leader Project Intern. Intern tasks may include, but are not limited to, assisting with operations and logistics of the 77th SWCS International Annual Conference, planning a student and early career professional development session during conference, assisting with the creation of a social media calendar and designing posts, updating WordPress website, assisting with a retiree project, other resource creation and design, and more.
|
ALP Benefit to Support Ag Leadership
March 26 @ 4:30 pm
Connor Prairie, Fishers, IN
|
|
Job Postings :
Current list of Conservation Job Opportunities now posted on the IASWCD website.
Note: Job Postings can be submitted to Amy Work at: amy-work@iaswcd.org . Please include job description and deadline to apply in a single PDF file or with a link.
|
|
Upcoming Conservation Events:
March 3-4 - Indiana Small Farm Conference
*As more events begin to take place in person, please check the individual hosting organization's website and/or Facebook page for the latest information on locations, guidelines and details. Thank you.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
