Anyone interested in learning more about soil health, including the positive impacts of regenerative practices, is invited to join the Land Stewardship Project for a presentation in Ridgeway, Iowa, on Feb. 24.
The event, “Laying Out the Promise & Challenges of Soil Health,” will be held on Thursday, Feb. 24, from 1-4 p.m., at the Ridgeway Community Center (690 County St.). The cost is $10 per person (children are free). To register, visit https://bit.ly/3qSUrGe. For more information, contact LSP’s Alex Romano by Feb. 22 at (612) 767-9880 or [email protected].
After the presentation, Land Stewardship Project and Practical Farmers of Iowa will co-host a free screening of “Livestock on the Land,” PFI’s feature-length documentary on regenerative grazing. The screening, which is open to the public, will take place at 6 p.m. at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. For more details on the film, visit practicalfarmers.org/livestock-on-the-land.
“Laying Out the Promise & Challenges of Soil Health” Presentation – Ridgeway Community Center
Allen Williams is out to prove that regenerative agriculture works well regardless of the landscape, the foods being grown or the climate. During his presentation, Williams will show the positive impacts of regenerative practices on everything from soil, plant and animal health to ecosystem, climate and human resiliency.
“We have looked at three distinct regions of North America – the Chihuahuan Desert, North Dakota and North Carolina – and documented significant resiliency regardless of whether we were dealing with a desert environment, a drought in the northern Great Plains or the coastal plains of the Eastern Seaboard,” Williams wrote in a recent article in Graze magazine.
Williams is a sixth-generation family farmer, “recovering academic” and founding partner of Grass Fed Insights LLC, Understanding Ag LLC and the Soil Health Academy. He also authors a regular column for Graze magazine. Williams spearheaded many of the early adaptive grazing protocols and forage finishing techniques, and has spent the past 15 years refining them.
He has consulted with more than 4,000 farmers and ranchers on multiple continents and on operations ranging from a few acres to over 1 million acres. Williams specializes in whole-farm and -ranch planning based on the concept of regenerative agriculture.
“Livestock on the Land” Documentary Screening – Luther College
The film, “Livestock on the Land,” shines a light on regenerative grazing and its promise for the Iowa landscape. Central to the story is the role of community as an essential connective thread.
Since premiering in January 2021, the film has grossed more than 139,000 views on YouTube and serves as an introduction to Practical Farmers of Iowa’s vision: an Iowa with healthy soil, food, clean air, clean water, resilient farms and vibrant communities.
After the screening, guests are invited to stay for a panel discussion with Allen Williams and Seth Watkins, Wendy Johnson and Martha McFarland, three farmers featured in the film. Guests will be able to learn more about the project and ask questions inspired by the film.
COVID-19 Safety
The Land Stewardship Project and Practical Farmers of Iowa are committed to creating an environment that follows COVID-19 safety best practices and balances in-person interaction and learning. Masks will be required at both the presentation and the screening. Presentation attendees will be required to sign a waiver. LSP in-person events are subject to change based on guidelines set by state departments of health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For more information, see https://landstewardshipproject.org/covid-lsp.
