The Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts brought board members and employees of Soil & Water Conservation Districts, Conservation Planners from the Capacity Building Initiative, and other supporters of soil health to the Illinois State Capitol for Soil Health Week 2024. AISWCD board members participated in Lobby Day on Wednesday March 6, and SWCD and CBI staffers helped with The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday March 7, and a display of the The Art and Science of Soil Health the entire week.
Here’s how to reach out to legislators to thank them for their support of SB1701 and their continued support of Soil & Water Conservation Districts to increase opportunities to improve nutrient management planning, advance soil health, and ensure clean water by contributing to the reduction in nutrient losses to Illinois streams, rivers, and lakes.
Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello II joins local Soil & Water Conservation District employees and board members, Conservation Planners for the Capacity Building Initiative, and other supporters of Soil Health Week in group photo following The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
Sarah Earles of Ford County Soil & Water Conservation District and Becky Taylor of Livingston County Soil & Water Conservation District talk during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
Tom Beyers, Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts board president, speaks during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
State Sen. Doris Turner (chair, agriculture committee, center) with Reed Best, Erin Hoover, David Nguyen, Heather VanTillburg, Davonne Long (all Conservation Planners with the IDOA/NRCS Capacity Building Initiative), Hannah Tomlin (Soil Health Coordinator with Agroecology + Innovation Matters), and Dr. Michael Woods (Executive Director of the Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts) during Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday.
- Sen. Doris Turner
State Rep. Charlie Meier (sponsor Soil Health Week) speaks as Master of Ceremony Todd Gleason, of the University of Illinois Extension, holds sign reading “And on the 8th day, God looked down on his planned paradise and said ‘I need a caretaker,’ so God made a FARMER” during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
- Rep. Charlie Meier
State Rep. Sonya Harper (chair, agriculture committee) speaks during Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday at the Illinois State Capitol.
“We don’t have a vibrant economy without healthy soil.”
- Rep. Sonya Harper
State Rep. Jason Bunting (sponsor SWCD Sign Legislation) speaks during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
- Rep. Jason Bunting
Jerry Costello II, director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture, speaks
during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
“There are no better stewards of the land in my opinion than farmers.”
- IDOA Director Jerry Costello
Steve Stierwalt, co-founder of STAR (Saving Tomorrow’s Agriculture Resources, and of the Champaign County Soil & Water Conservation District) speaks during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the Illinois State Capitol.
Jeff O’Connor, farmer and STAR National Board Member and of the Illinois Soybean Association, talks during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday March 7, 2024 at the State Capitol.
Dick Lyons, farmer from Montgomery County and one of the originators of Soil Health Week, speaks during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the Illinois State Capitol.
Jerry Costello II, director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture, speaks during Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday March 7, 2024 at the State Capitol.
Dr. Michael Woods, Executive Director of the Association of Illinois Soil & Water Conservation Districts, speaks during Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday.
- Dr. Michael Woods, AISWCD executive director
Conservation Planners for the Capacity Building Initiative join Illinois Department of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello II in group photo after Soil Health Week – The Art and Science of Soil Health Advocacy in Action Day Thursday at the State Capitol.
Dick Lyons (center bottom), farmer from Montgomery County and one of the originators of Soil Health Week, surrounded by others during a all-hands group photo at the end of Soil Health Week Lobby Day Wednesday. Photo by Kehinde Adesina/AIMillinois.org
See separate stories on winners of the Soil Health Week 2024 Essay Contest – Rylee Phillips of Bond County Soil & Water Conservation District and Toby Williams of Stark County Soil & Water Conservation District.
