Wisconsin Envirothon 2021

County connections with our schools in critical to engaging youth in conservation

With the cancellation of the 2020 Wisconsin Envirothon due to COVID-19, a number of schools and students lost out on the opportunity to participate in the Wisconsin Envirothon. This year the Youth Education Committee worked hard to organize a virtual WI Envirothon using the opportunity to reach schools and students that had never participated before.

Our Youth Education Committee is made up of county conservation staff through-out the state who have personal connections and relationships with their local schools. Many of the staff have built these local connections overtime through the conservation programs they promote in the schools. By being in the schools promoting their conservation programs, our county conservation staff are the perfect partner to build those local connections and help us expand our reach to students statewide.

Being able to promote the WI Land+Water Conservation Association Youth Education programs is critical to ensuring that the next generation is educated about conservation challenges, practices and ways to conserve our natural resources. Our county staff are on the front lines and with the virtual Envirothon we saw first-hand the impact our county staff have on reaching students and getting them engaged with conservation education and programs.

First Timers Take First Place

Slinger High School FFA, first-time paticipants in Envirothon, will represent Wisconsin at the NCF-Envirothon after taking first place overall during April’s three day virtual event.

During our April three-day virtual Envirothon, the winning team who will represent Wisconsin at the NCF-Envirothon is Slinger High School FFA. This was the first year that Slinger High School has participated in the WI Envirothon and one of the schools that our Youth Education Committee member Stephanie Egner, Washington County reached out to. Stephanie has developed a relationship with the Agriculture & Science teacher/FFA Advisor Katelyn Dei and worked with her in re-organizing the Slinger Area FFA-Food for America Program (3rd grade farm tours).

When Slinger High School won, Stephanie shared with our Envirothon Committee that while this was the first time that Slinger High School had competed in the WI Envirothon, their team captain, Ben McMeeken, has been a long-time participant of our Youth Education programs.

Ben competed and won the County WI Land+Water Conservation Awareness Poster contest in fourth grade, attended Sand Lake Conservation Camp twice when he was in middle school and has also attended our WI Land+Water Conservation Camp for high schoolers. Building this relationship with the schools is critical to reaching students at a young age and hopefully instilling an interest in conservation or helping them pursue a career in conservation. By looking at the makeup of the Slinger team it certainly seems as if the future of conservation is in the hands of the next generation.

Meet the Slinger High School Envirothon Team

Ben McMeeken, Team Captain

(from left to right) Madi Jensen, Julianna Duerst, Hannah Hellesen, Austin Junk

Ben McMeeken, Team Captain, Junior - career plans include Agricultural Education with a strong passion for enviro science/natural resources

Madi Jensen Junior, - William Woods U (MO), equine science, also participates on the Wildlife CDE with the FFA

Julianna Duerst, Senior - Northland University for natural resources, Girl Scout, competed on Wildlife CDE with FFA and will try out for the Forestry competition

Hannah Hellesen, Junior - avid hunter, currently doing an Ecology and Conservation Management independent study for class

Austin Junk, Senior - UWWC for now, then Eau Claire for natural resources and biology, avid fisherman, currently doing a Biology independent study where they test surface waters in the tri county area every 2 weeks