Registration is now open for the Building for Tomorrow 2019 Staff Conference. 

When: February 27 & 28, 2019 
Where: Genetti Hotel & Suites in Williamsport. 
Who: Conservation District staff, including all technicians, administrative staff, and community educators are encouraged to attend.

The 2019 Staff Conference will focus on themes such as engagement, communication, outreach, and respect.  Sessions will be fun and inspirational as well as informative, and attendees will return to their districts with renewed energy, appreciation, and commitment to the important work they do in their communities.

For more information and to register, click here.

 

PACD has scheduled five free communication webinar series for conservation districts. Presented by Water Words That Work, LLC, these environmental communication trainings will begin in January 2019 and end in March 2019. Each topic has three parts, so plan to attend all three dates for the topics you choose.

How do we get more participation at our programs? How can we effectively reach our target audiences and the general public? What are the most cost-effective means to get the word out about our programs? How can I work effectively with landowners to get more practices installed? Find out answers to these questions and more during these webinars.

Each webinar series consists of three 90-minute sessions. Please mark your calendar for all three dates so you don’t miss part 1, part 2, or part 3. Each session builds on the previous one, so don’t miss out!

The Closing the Deal with Rural Landowners webinar will be repeated twice. Please only sign up for one series.

The dates are:

• Water Words that Work – January 22, 24, 29 from 9:30–11 a.m. 
• More Than a Message – February 5, 7, 12 from 9:30–11 a.m. 
• Perfect Outreach Projects – February 19, 21, 26 from 9:30–11 a.m. 
• Closing the Deal with Rural Landowners Session 1 – March 5, 7, 12 from 9:30–11 a.m. 
• Closing the Deal with Rural Landowners Session 2 – March 19, 21, 26 from 1–2:30 p.m. 

The webinars are free, but registration is required. Space is limited to 15 participants for each topic. Please plan to attend all three parts of the topic you choose. Please register each person participating from your office separately.

Click here for a brochure on the webinars, which includes the course descriptions. Click on the links for each session above to register.

Financial support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection through the Chesapeake Bay Implementation Grant, the Clean Water Fund and the Chesapeake Bay Regulatory and Accountability Program (CBRAP).

Learn the tricks of the trade from the Chesapeake Bay watershed’s most successful conservation field people. If you want rural landowners to say “yes” to voluntary conservation practices and easements, this course is for you.

PACD is co-hosting a free workshop on Thursday, December 13, 2018, from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. The event will take place at the Farm and Home Center (Multipurpose Room), 1383 Arcadia Road, Lancaster, PA 17601.

This workshop is designed for early-to-mid-career field outreach staff at soil conservation districts, land trusts—anyone working directly with landowners to help implement voluntary conservation practices on farm and forest lands. The training explores the demographics and decision-making of rural landowners and the perceived benefits of, and barriers to, conservation practices and easements. Field staff will learn how to cultivate and maintain stronger relationships with landowners to help them reach a decision to pursue conservation on their property. The workshop includes three 90-minute blocks of information and interactive learning, plus a working lunch. Workshop content is based in part on surveys and focus groups of conservation field staff identified by their peers as being especially effective at working with farm and forest landowners to implement voluntary conservation practices.

This training is co-hosted by the Land Trust Alliance, Pennsylvania Land Trust Association (PALTA), and the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts. We are grateful for the project support of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund’s Technical Capacity Grants program, funded in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as well as funding from the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds.

Click here for the event flyer or contact Jennifer Miller Herzog, Land Trust Alliance, jmillerherzog@lta.org, 406-580-6410. Registration is free, but required.

Project Promotion Toolkit Webinar to Kick-off this New Resource

PACD is holding a free webinar on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, from 10–11 a.m. to introduce conservation districts to a series of templates developed in conjunction with Water Words That Work to help districts promote their projects. The webinar will go over the toolkit contents and how to use them. In addition, there will be a brief discussion on how to handle difficult situations with legislators.

This webinar is for all conservation district staff! The toolkit was developed with the intention that all district staff could use it to promote the good work of conservation districts even if there isn’t a communications person on staff.

The toolkit covers an on-the-ground stream restoration project, a post-project tour, and a new staff person being hired.

Specifically, the toolkit includes each of the following items for each of the three topics mentioned above:

• Press release template
• Media advisory template
• Newsletter article template
• Social media template

These templates will be available for conservation districts to adapt and use to promote their projects throughout the year!

Information on how to access the webinar will be sent the week prior. Information on how to access the toolkit will be included in the webinar.

Click here to register by January 9, 2019. Questions? Contact PACD Director of Communication & Education Shannon Wehinger at swehinger@pacd.org.

Twenty-nine students completed the Intro to Conservation Planning Course in Grantville, PA from November 13-15, 2018. The training included classroom and field experience. The course targeted entry-level conservationists, introducing them to the conservation planning process in Pennsylvania.

Participants attended the three-day training free of charge thanks to the generous sponsorship of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the State Conservation Commission. PACD provided administrative support for the course. 

On November 6, 2018, the sixth and final Chapter 102 Fall Regional Session was held in Harrisburg, PA. The regional training was presented by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) with administrative support from PACD.

Holding six regional sessions rather than one large session for the entire state has allowed DEP to deliver training more effectively and better address regional issues. The training this fall included program updates, common plan of development or sale, sediment and basin review, and the Clean Water Academy.

The next Chapter 102 training will take place in the spring.

 

Learn the tricks of the trade from the Chesapeake Bay watershed’s most successful conservation field people. If you want rural landowners to say “yes” to voluntary conservation practices and easements, this course is for you.

PACD is co-hosting a free workshop on Thursday, December 13, 2018, from 10 am – 3 pm. The event will take place at the Farm and Home Center (Multipurpose Room), 1383 Arcadia Road, Lancaster, PA 17601.

This workshop is designed for early-to-mid-career field outreach staff at soil conservation districts, land trusts—anyone working directly with landowners to help implement voluntary conservation practices on farm and forest lands. The training explores the demographics and decision-making of rural landowners, and perceived benefits of, and barriers to conservation practices and easements. Field staff will learn how to cultivate and maintain stronger relationships with landowners to help them reach a decision to pursue conservation on their property. The workshop includes three 90-minute blocks of information and interactive learning, plus a working lunch. Workshop content is based in part on surveys and focus groups of conservation field staff identified by their peers as being especially effective at working with farm and forest landowners to implement voluntary conservation practices.

This training is co-hosted by the Land Trust Alliance, Pennsylvania Land Trust Association (PALTA), and the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts. We are grateful for the project support of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund’s Technical Capacity Grants program, funded in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as well as funding from the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds.

Click here for the event flyer or contact Jennifer Miller Herzog, Land Trust Alliance, jmillerherzog@lta.org, 406-580-6410. Registration is free, but required. 

Save the Date: the Building for Tomorrow 2019 Staff Conference is scheduled for February 26 & 28 at the Genetti Hotel in Williamsport.  Stay tuned for more information. Contact Matt Miller at mmiller@pacd.org with questions.

Over 80 attendees, including 67 watershed specialists, participated in the 18^th Annual Conservation District Watershed Specialist Meeting at Toftrees Golf Resort in State College, PA, October 9-11, 2018.

The first day provided an orientation for newer staff, with the full group in attendance for the rest of the conference. The event offered hands-on workshops, including: computer modeling software to help improve water quality, macroinvertebrate identification with staff from Stroud Water Research Center, and PAOneStop. Presentation topics included invasive species, grant-writing and the bidding process, and partnering with the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to implement best management practices. PACD coordinates this annual meeting through a grant from the PA Department of Environmental Protection.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection will hold Chapter 102 Fall Regional Sessions for conservation districts and DEP staff September through November of 2018. Registration will be required, but attendance is free and lunch will be provided. Please save the date for the meeting closest to you! An agenda and more information will be provided closer to the date.

• Northcentral: September 25, 2018, Northcentral Regional Office, Williamsport, PA
• Northwest: October 2, 2018, Northwest Regional Office, Meadville, PA
• Southwest: October 3, 2018, Cranberry Public Library, Cranberry Township, PA
• Northeast: October 16, 2018, Northeast Regional Office, Wilkes-Barre, PA
• Southeast: October 30, 2018, Southeast Regional Office, Norristown, PA
• Southcentral: November 6, 2018, Southcentral Regional Office, Harrisburg, PA