Effective monarch conservation requires an "all hands on deck" approach. What does that look like? Come find out at the first Celebration of Collaborative Conservation in America's Heartland event, which will feature remarks from Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey and will celebrate and discuss opportunities for collaborations between farmers, food and agriculture companies, policymakers, the public, and countless other ag stakeholders. EDF and ag partners in Iowa are eager to bring together food and farming leaders to discuss how working in partnership is the most effective way to support conservation and farm resiliency.

The event is free (and includes entry to the botanical garden!), but RSVPs are required: IACollaborativeConservation.eventbrite.com. 

The program is as follows:

• Welcome from Bill Shipley, President-elect, Iowa Soybean Association Board of Directors
• Remarks by Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey
• Panel session moderated by Josette Lewis, Associate Vice President – Agricultural Sustainability at EDF, and including:
  • Dean Meyer: Director, Iowa Corn Growers Association Board of Directors and Chair, Animal Agriculture and the Environment Committee
  • Dave Coppess: Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Heartland Co-op
  • Dr. Steve Bradbury: Professor, Iowa State University and Workgroup Leader, Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium
  • Dave Nelson: Vice President, Nelson Family Farms and Co-owner, Brokaw Supply Company
• The panel session will be followed by a condensed sneak preview of the Discovery Channel’s forthcoming Rancher, Farmer, Fisherman documentary, based on a book that the Farm Bureau referred to as “the most important book about agriculture you’ll read this year – maybe ever.”

Hosted by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) in conjunction with the Iowa Soybean Association and the Iowa Corn Growers Association.