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

PACD is partnering with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the State Conservation Commission (SCC) to deliver a three day Introduction to Conservation Planning course. This free training will take place November 13-15, 2018 at the Holiday Inn Harrisburg (Hershey area) in Grantville, PA.

The event is for entry-level employees of all organizations in Pennsylvania delivering conservation planning technical assistance, including but not limited to, NRCS, conservation districts, SCC, farmland preservation entities, non-profits, and private consultants. Lunch will be provided.

The application link will be emailed to those who are interested in taking the course after they have submitted their pre-requisite certificate of completion to swehinger@pacd.org.  Click here for information on the pre-requisite. The deadline to apply is October 12, 2018.

Twenty-six individuals attended Agricultural Conservation Technical Boot Camp Training – Level II April 23-27, 2018, at Fort Indiantown Gap in Lebanon County. Attendees included staff from conservation districts, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and affiliates, local agricultural preservation boards, and the PA Department of Environmental Protection.

The Level II training consists of two learning tracks: agronomy and engineering. The two tracks allow participants to focus more deeply on their area of study. The event features a balance of classroom work and field work to give participants hands-on experience.

The training is sponsored by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the State Conservation Commission. PACD works with these partners to coordinate the training.

 

This year’s 102/105 Topic-based Technical Training took place April 10-12, 2018, at the Ramada Conference Center in State College, PA. A record 125 participants from 47 conservation districts and the PA Department of Environmental Protection received in-depth training on Post Construction Stormwater Management (PCSM), Chapter 105, and other topics that support clean, accessible, water for Pennsylvania’s citizens.

This annual training is funded through a grant from the PA Department of Environmental Protection and made possible through the cooperation of the PA Association of Conservation Districts and Pennsylvania’s conservation districts.