Message from the Director

It has been said that the only constant is change, and 2022—like the years that immediately preceded it—proved that axiom true.

While the literal landscape in which we live is experiencing great change due to shifting land use patterns and climate change, the landscape of Wisconsin’s county conservation community itself is experiencing changes. On the land conservation committee (LCC) side of the coin, the two-year election cycle is an expected and regular time of transition, though by most accounts 2022 saw more new incoming faces than is typical. On the land and water conservation department (LWCD) side of the coin, 2022 kept with a recent trend of continued staffing turnover, with more and more newer conservationists coming into the fold to replace longer-tenured conservationists who have moved on.

Amid such shifts, our collective challenge—and the challenge of WI Land+Water, for sure—is to harness and translate the wisdom and experience of those who have dutifully served to a new generation, all the while providing newcomers an invitation and a roadmap to build their own conservation expertise. But there is great opportunity here, as well, to integrate new perspectives, experiences, and expertise into our community, which will only enrich and strengthen us.

To rise to these challenges and seize these opportunities, WI Land+Water bolstered our internal “conservation training infrastructure” in 2022, adding new staff, capacity, and skill sets. Combined with our existing staff capacity to provide leadership to our members on issues related to conservation standards development, youth education, advocacy, and climate resilience. Our goal is to support our members in meeting and rising above the ever-growing list of challenges we face in the conservation landscape, while thriving in their role as conservationists.

Thriving in the field of conservation has always entailed opportunistically matching in-field resource assessments with conservation programs and funding sources, and those, too, are changing. 2022 saw the federal government implement new conservation opportunities via the Inflation Reduction Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities Program. Combined, these efforts make up a once-in-a-generation moment for conservation funding, which presents new and exciting opportunities for our county conservation community. We look forward to continuing to partner with our members to ensure we translate these programs to conservation successes at the local level.

Matt Krueger Executive Director