REFLECTIONS ON THE ILLINOIS STATE FAIR
The AIM Initiative had a booth in the Illinois Department of Agriculture tent at the Illinois State Fair from Friday, August 14 to Sunday, August 23, and some of our Conservation Planners traveled from different parts of the state to share information about our program and facilitate our scavenger hunt, which included a $50 Amazon gift card raffle for those who completed. We would like to congratulate Anna from Effingham County on winning the raffle! The following reflections are from three Conservation Planners who spent plenty of time staffing our booth.
Courtney Lercher, Scott County Conservation Planner
This year, I worked at our fair booth Tuesday through Friday. While working, I was able to interact with a diverse mix of the public since each day of the fair supports a different cause or group. As Conservation Planners, our duty at the fair booth was to promote our scavenger hunt for the kids and inform the public on our role in both agriculture and conservation. There were many great interactions with the public throughout the week, but one really stuck out for me.
We met a local family who was interested in converting cropland and wooded areas into something that would promote native species, but they weren’t sure what options were available. Nick Werries and I were able to walk the family through the process of the CRP and CREP programs, options for them to consider, and each step they would need to take if they were interested in this route. By the end of our conversation, we were able to connect them to additional staff and resources to help get their conservation journey started. Interactions like this one are just one of the things we do daily in our line of work and really help us get our conservation message across to the public, who often don’t know about the services we provide.
Nick Werries, Sangamon County Conservation Planner
The State Fair is one of my favorite times of the year. It is a tradition like many others, and it allows us a chance to see livestock, Conservation World, and (of course) the food. It also gives us a chance as Conservation Planners to show the work we have done throughout the state. It provides the opportunity to explain the conservation work we do. Most of the people who I speak to are not farmers themselves, so it is nice to talk to people who may not know the work farmers do for conservation. I also had a chance to talk to farmers on their progress implementing conservation practices and CRP. I enjoy hearing stories from farmers and producers participating in the conservation programs from the struggles they may have with invasive species to the successes they have had. Talking with producers, pollinators and native grasses seem to be some of the most popular practices.
Jamie Harris, Clark County Conservation Planner
Upon arriving at the IDOA tent for my shift, I first purchased a frozen apple cider slushie from the Illinois Specialty Growers booth. Amazing, by the way! I remember one family in particular as we discussed our program. They asked how they could sign up for a “Wildflower Program,” and we explained to them that we offer many programs through NRCS/SWCDs and invited them to stop into their local office so we could discuss with them the steps needed and help them get started with the right program to address their specific resource concerns. Our public outreach about our program and how all of us Conservation Planners throughout the State of Illinois can assist in addressing resource concerns and providing education on current programs was very beneficial to promoting conservation and “Keeping Working Lands in Working Hands.”
Overall, the Illinois State Fair was a great opportunity to connect with people from across the state, share the work of our Conservation Planners, and highlight the many ways agriculture and conservation go hand in hand. From answering questions to sharing resources and speaking about conservation practices, our team was proud to be part of the fair and looks forward to returning to next year.
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