I’ve been thinking about community and how essential it is for people to work together to make a difference for conservation. Here at CTIC, we are broadening and strengthening our conservation community by welcoming new staff and members and by working with our members and partners to advance conservation across the country.
New face at CTIC
First, CTIC welcomes Kyle Nickel, our new communications director. Kyle joined us in August, moving to West Lafayette from Georgia, where he was attending graduate school. He brings to the position his skills in communications and publications, experience working with Agricultural Alumni Seed Improvement Association, a lifetime of knowledge gained on his parents’ Polled Shorthorn cattle operation in southeastern Indiana, and, most importantly, his passion for agriculture and conservation. We are pleased to have Kyle on the team (Learn more about Kyle).
Building connections
Kyle’s been busy during his first two months helping with several ongoing projects that strengthen our conservation community. As mentioned here in the July issue, CTIC has begun a new project under a cooperative agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency Gulf of Mexico Program. We will work with several partners to identify innovative approaches for nutrient management and then take those approaches – along with industry partners themselves – directly to producer groups in selected Mississippi River watersheds. We know that by making that connection between industry and producers, we will help to get the right information where it needs to be to help meet nutrient reduction goals in the river and the Gulf of Mexico.
Partner assistance
Also this summer we have been the grateful recipient of assistance from many local partners in our conservation community. Soil and Water Conservation Districts around the country have been voluntarily collecting data for the 2006 National Crop Residue Management Survey. Due to changes issued by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Survey will not be conducted this year as it has been in the past. However, with the help of SWCDs, we will still produce a quality (but limited) Survey and be able to share a snapshot of tillage trends in most cropland states. We send our gratitude to the many SWCDs who contributed their time and expertise to the Survey this year.
Many other partners within our conservation community have also expressed their support for the Survey. In answering our call for letters of support, partners from the Agricultural Research Service, National Center for Water Quality Research, Michigan State University, The Pennsylvania State University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute wrote about how they use the tillage data and how they value the Survey. With these letters, we have strengthened our efforts to reinstate the transect data collection method for the Survey, and we plan to bring the Survey back in full form in 2007. If you would like to contribute a letter of support, please send it to me at scanlon@conservationinformation.org.
Strengthening our roots
A new initiative for CTIC this year is all about strengthening the conservation community through the sharing of reliable information. Through strengthening our roots, CTIC will work with state conservation partners to first identify farmers’ questions and concerns about conservation. Then, working with those partners and an advisory panel of experts, we’ll find the answers, compile the information and distribute it through partner channels. We’ll be working together to get more and better information about conservation into the hands of the people managing our working lands.
Renewing your commitment
These examples are just a sampling of what CTIC is doing to strengthen our conservation community and serve our members. Consider them when you open your mail in the coming weeks. CTIC’s annual membership campaign begins soon, and we will be contacting current members to strengthen their commitment to conservation by renewing their place in the CTIC public/private partnership. With your help, we will continue to move conservation forward – helping agriculture to make economically viable, environmentally responsible decisions.
CTIC is dedicated to helping our members meet their conservation goals. Every project, event and special initiative we undertake is focused on directly improving the relationship between agriculture and the environment. If you share the vision that we can help today’s farmers protect our natural resources while running a profitable operation, then please renew your membership in CTIC. Together we are building a stronger, more effective conservation community.
