Please join us for the Iowa Learning Farms webinar at noon CST, Wednesday, Jan. 11, featuring Joe Otto, director of special projects and partnerships, Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS), and doctoral candidate in history, University of Oklahoma. Otto directs operations for over $2 million in federal and state grants, including partnerships with Iowa NRCS and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. As SWCS historian, he works to preserve the history of the Conservation Movement. His doctoral research focuses on the agricultural and environmental history of Iowa, with a focus on drainage water management, drainage districts, and the contested process of planning, building, and maintaining drainage systems.
In the webinar, “Lake Drainage in Iowa, 1880-1920,” Otto will provide a look back at events in the development of Iowa’s agricultural industry which forever changed the landscape through lake drainage and gave rise to the creation of the State Board of Conservation (predecessor to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources) in 1918. He will discuss the goals and controversies surrounding lake drainage and the redefinition of the physical and legal barriers of the state’s numerous depressional lakes. Otto will also cite the sometimes complex conflicts over the benefits of drainage and the ethical stewardship of private lands and public waters.
“During this historical period, farmers and landowners established a large patchwork network of drainage infrastructure that continues to operate beneath Iowa’s fields and farms,” said Otto. “Reconnecting with this historical moment in Iowa’s agricultural past that is as forgotten as it is brief provides a foundation for understanding some of the water conservation and quality challenges facing us today. Exploring Iowa’s history from the water’s edge makes the past a lot muddier.”
Webinar participants are encouraged to ask questions of the presenters. People from all backgrounds and areas of interest are encouraged to join.
Webinar Access Instructions
To participate in the live webinar, shortly before noon CST Jan. 11:
Click this URL, or type this web address into your internet browser: https://iastate.zoom.us/j/364284172
Or go to https://iastate.zoom.us/join and enter meeting ID: 364 284 172
Or join from a dial-in phone line:
Dial: +1 312 626 6799 or +1 646 876 9923
Meeting ID: 364 284 172
The webinar will also be recorded and archived on the ILF website, so that it can be watched at any time. Archived webinars are available at https://www.iowalearningfarms.org/webinars For a list of upcoming webinars visit https://www.iowalearningfarms.org/events-1
A Certified Crop Adviser board-approved continuing education unit (CEU) has been applied for. Those who participate in the live webinar are eligible. Information about how to apply to receive the credit will be provided at the end of the live webinar.
Iowa Learning Farms 