The North Central Agriculture and Climate Conference aims to connect research, extension, and outreach within the agricultural community and will be held at the Peoria Civic Center from July 31 to August 1.
Register here!
What to expect
The North Central Agriculture and Climate Conference is an event for anyone involved in agriculture and climate science. The conference is designed for a broad audience, including extension personnel, conservation agencies, private consultants, agronomists, farmers, producers, and landowners.
The conference will include speakers and panels designed to address critical issues in agriculture and climate. Highlights include:
Eric Snodgrass, Principal Atmospheric Scientist at Nutrien AG Solutions, will kick off the conference with a keynote speech focused on precipitation variability and future weather risks.
A social science panel featuring Linda Prokopy from Purdue University, Chloe Wardropper from the University of Illinois, and J. Arbuckle from Iowa State University, will delve into current social science research on agriculture and climate.
David Kay from Cornell University, the National Extension Climate Initiative lead, will open the second day with a discussion on national and global climate initiatives in research and extension.
The conference will offer 12 breakout sessions spread over six time periods across the two days, alongside a poster session showcasing 14 accepted posters. This allows for a wide range of topics to be covered and provides opportunities for networking and discussion. To see all of the sessions, you can check out the agenda.
Hear from the speakers:
Eric Snodgrass
Eric Snodgrass plans to focus on discernible trends in weather patterns, particularly precipitation, and their implications for agricultural practices at the conference. Snodgrass emphasizes the importance of understanding these trends to develop best practices for resilience and effective planning in agricultural operations.
Hans Schmitz
Hans Schmitz highlighted the importance of the social science panel, which will explore what influences farmers’ adoption of certain practices and how relationships with non-operating landowners impact decision-making.
Registration
The North Central Agriculture and Climate Conference is an event for anyone involved in agriculture and climate science. With a variety of speakers and sessions, attendees will gain valuable insights and practical knowledge to apply in their fields. Don't miss this opportunity to engage with experts and peers at the Peoria Civic Center from July 31st to August 1st.
To register, visit the North Central AG website and click on the "AG and Climate Conference" tab. There, you will find registration details and the full agenda.
About the authors:
Rachel Curry is an Agriculture and Agribusiness Educator focusing on agriculture and watershed education and is a part of the Illinois Extension's Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy implementation team. Rachel earned a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Knox College and an M.S. in Environmental Science and Soil Science from Iowa State University with an emphasis on soil fertility. Her work focuses on education and outreach regarding the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy and agricultural conservation practices to reduce nutrient loss and improve water quality and soil health throughout Illinois.
Nicole Haverback is a Watershed Outreach Associate and is a part of the Illinois Extension's Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy implementation team. Nicole earned a B.S. in Agriculture and Rural Policy Studies from Iowa State University. She coordinates watershed and planning activities to reduce nutrient losses from priority watersheds, provides expertise on best management practices for nutrient loss, and conducts outreach on agricultural conservation practices outlined in the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy.
Emma Eldridge is a Watershed Outreach Associate and part of the Illinois Extension Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy implementation team, serving the Little Wabash and Embarras watersheds, designated as phosphorus-priority watersheds in the NLRS. Emma earned a B.A. in Environmental Studies from McKendree University and an M.S. in Forestry from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She coordinates watershed and planning activities to reduce phosphorus losses from identified priority watersheds, provides expertise on best management practices, and conducts outreach on agricultural conservation practices outlined in the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy.
About the blog
At Illinois Extension, we’re working to improve water quality at home and downstream. Every month, our Watershed Outreach Associates will bring you stories highlighting agricultural conservation practices, current research projects and results, and from the field farmer interviews. The Nutrient Loss Reduction blog covers conservation practices recommended by the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy, timely updates, farm safety, and new decision tools to help farmers and producers reduce the nutrients leaving their field. Want to get notified when new blog posts are available? Subscribe at go.illinois.edu/SubscribeINLRS.