 Thank you. Okay. Welcome to the largest screen in the Russell Senate office building Also, thank you for coming to the fifth and final briefing in our five-part series Farm Bill in Focus I'm Dan Prasett. I'm the president of the Environmental and Energy Study Institute and today our look at the Farm Bill continues with conservation practices from farms to forests and wetlands You could say perhaps that we saved the best for last in other words. We've conserved The last the best briefing for last that's about as punny as we're gonna get today if you came to the forestry briefing There was a lot a lot better puns, but just wanted to at least get that out there Also like to say huge. Thanks to the office of senator Peter Welch for having us secure this room today and for hosting and for bringing us all together for this really excellent conversation ESI was founded in 1984 on a bipartisan basis by members of Congress to provide Educational resources to policymakers about climate change topics. That means next year is our 40th anniversary and we're still going strong Briefings like this are probably the highest profile thing we do. We do a lot of briefings And we cover lots of topics even beyond Farm Bill topics So while this is a five-part series about the Farm Bill We've also recently covered Department of Energy's nuclear energy programs Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy programs We did a four-part congressional climate camp series earlier this year. We looked at public polling about climate change We talked about non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants the budget and appropriations process So not just substance also process and then also The fourth briefing in that series was the implementation status of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Inflation Reduction Act This will be our last briefing for a little while, but we'll be back on July 18th on the ninth floor of the heart building for our Congressional Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Expo. That is going to be an all-star series of panels We're also going to have a fun reception after the event So I encourage everyone if you haven't already to sign up for that And with everything we do the best way to keep up and sign up for our programming and things like that Is to subscribe to our bi-weekly newsletter, which is called climate change solutions And you can do that by visiting us On our visiting our website at www.esi.org Our programming is really designed for the congressional staff person We know what it's like when it's you know four o'clock on a thursday and the boss stops by and wants to know Hey, tell me all about conservation programs in the farm bill and you're like i have a dinner reservation at six, okay ESI has those resources to help you answer those questions We we pride ourselves on being timely relevant accessible and practical And our resources come in all shapes and sizes. We do briefings. We also do a lot of writing We do a lot of articles for example. We do fact sheets. We just released a fact sheet A couple weeks ago about heavy duty electric vehicles. It's a real it's a must read We just posted one today about the Renew America's nonprofit program Which was enacted as part of the infrastructure investment jobs act. We do side by side by side comparisons of Of eventually when we get house and senate marks of the firm bill We'll compare that with existing law to help you compare not just what the two chambers are proposing to do But also how those compare to each other We do a lot of issue briefs if you haven't read our sustainable aviation emissions or sustainable aviation fuel aviation emissions Issue brief. That's one of our most popular resources So pretty much if your boss comes to you and has a question about a climate change topics I would go dollars to donuts that we have a resource from the last year or two That will help you answer those questions and do it in a non-partisan science-based way If you like what you're seeing visit us online. All of our resources are free and available If you visit us and my colleagues and I we're all wearing our little lapel pins And so if you have questions that we don't you know, whether it's conservation topics or other things Catch up with me and Molly and Nicole and others We'll all be hanging out after the briefing and we'd love to get to know you and learn a little bit more about your interests and your boss's priorities The conservation title of the farm bill is what brings us here today And that's because it contains important programs and policies that help agricultural producers Forest managers and rural communities take advantage of opportunities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build resilience to climate impacts And that happens while also generating other benefits for example Improved water and air quality soil health biodiversity and jobs Conservation of public private working and non-working lands can take many forms from regenerative agricultural practices to conservation easements And our all-star panel today will help everyone understand what that looks like in practice And some things that you might be thinking about as House and senate start to really get to work on putting pen to paper on the farm bill But before we get to our panelists, we're joined today by two special guests via prerecorded introductions The first is representative Nancy mace representative mace represents the first district of south carolina in the us house of representatives She grew up in goose creek and earned accolades as one of the most fiscally conservative members of the south carolina general assembly And one of the most pro conservation lawmakers in the state Representative mace was the first woman to graduate from the citadel Which is the military college of south carolina in 1999 and earned magna cum laude otters She also started her own business and brings extensive experience in technology public relations and marketing And commercial real estate to her service in the house So my colleague dano will get the video up and running and we'll hear what representative mace has to say Hey, everyone. Hey, everyone. This is congresswoman Nancy mace from south carolina's first congressional district Got a little south carolina flag right there. I want to welcome everyone to the ees i Briefing where the convergence of energy in an environment really are paramount Torrenations future as a as a conservationist and as a conservative and as someone who represents the coast of south carolina I recognize how important it is In terms of energy efforts screen energy efforts all the above approach protecting our environment These things are so important to our way of life and our future. We appreciate your expertise your knowledge your subject matter Policy ideas, etc. Our door is always open We're willing to work with anyone who's willing to work with us on these issues that all of us in the room today care about I wish I could join you maybe next time Thanks to representative mace for joining us and to her great staff for making her participation possible That brings us to our second special guest representative charise davids Representative davids represents the third district of kansas in the house When she was sworn into the 116th congress representative davids became one of the first native american women to serve in congress She studied at johnson county community college in the university of missouri kansas city Before earning a law degree from cornell law school and of special relevance to our briefing today Representative davids is a member of the house agriculture committee subcommittee on conservation research and biotechnology Hi, everyone. It's great to be one. It's great to be with you today Thanks to the environmental and energy study institute for inviting me to share a few words with you For folks who I haven't met yet. My name is charise davids and I represent kansas's third district in congress I also serve as a member on the house agriculture committee but I Uh, my understanding is this is the last conversation in the farm bill briefing series and I hope this has been an informative time For you all, you know that mindset of learning and listening is exactly the approach that I've Taken over the past year to prepare for the upcoming farm bill reauthorization I've had the chance to travel my district in kansas on a farm bill listening to her And I don't have enough time to mention all the fun and amazing stops, but some have included A meat and poultry farm a co-op a no-till farm a small family on farm a livestock auction Just so many things and many of the agriculture professionals that I've spoken to Mention the need for us to protect our lands so that future farmers and producers can support their businesses and families as well as our economy for generations to come and That includes combating climate change and extreme weather events like flooding and drought Which can devastate our agricultural community in kansas and across the country You know conservation programs administered by the u.s. Department of Agriculture have proven instrumental in achieving this goal This includes the conservation reserve program and the environmental quality incentives program Which gives farmers and producers the tools to mitigate the effects of climate change In their communities and to ensure that they can continue to feed the world Continue to feed the world Uh, you know these programs empower agriculture professionals who know their land best It empowers them to protect and care for it and as a member of the subcommittee on conservation research and biotechnology I'm glad that we can talk about the benefits of these programs and and how and how we can continue improving them moving forward You know the conservation title has long enjoyed bipartisan support And i'm really glad to share this space today with my colleague Congresswoman mace as we work to ensure that programs that support farmers and protect our lands Are funded adequately and and managed effectively through the 2023 farm bill So thank you again for your time and I hope you enjoy the rest of today's session And i'll look forward to talking to you all soon I'd squeeze back here. Sorry panelists. You've you've drawn the short end of the of the stage today short straw um While my colleague daniel puts the slides back up One last piece of housekeeping and that is uh after we hear presentations from our four panelists today We'll have an opportunity for questions and answers. And so everyone in the room will have an opportunity To um ask questions about conservation programs in the farm bill and related subjects But we'll also have an opportunity for our online audience to ask us questions And so if you're on our online audience today, uh, you can send us an email Email address to use as ask that's ask at esi.org can also follow us on social media at esi online And we'll do our best to incorporate those questions Into the discussion That brings us to our first panelist today Samantha levy leads the development and implementation of the american farmland trusts climate policy agenda She leads the trust's efforts to advance adoption of new regenerative practices on farmland protect farmland from development Encourage smart renewable energy siting on farms She also works closely with the farmers combat climate change initiative Which elevates the role of farmers to adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change In 2020 samantha was appointed to serve as a member of the new york agriculture and forestry advisory panel to the climate action council To develop recommendations to reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and increase carbon sequestration in soils And she's also served as a member of the governor's racial equity and diversity and agriculture work group Samantha welcome to the lectern. I will turn the clicker over to you, and I'm really looking forward to your presentation You dan Am I good on sound? This is all I need. Okay, great Great, uh, thank you for having me. Thank you esi for having me. Thank you all for coming and spending your time here this afternoon Uh, just to help me get a sense of who's in the room. How many of y'all work for a house member? Great senator NGO Excellent farm group Okay, thanks, um So, uh, dan already did a great job of talking about what I work on my portfolio cover soil health conservation Solar siting renewable energy siting on farms. So in case you're hearing about that from constituents Um, that's what I work on for our federal team and I support our state and regional staff at AFT in doing so as well For those who aren't familiar with american farmland trust This is us. No farms. No food stickers. Uh, that represents our mission. Our mission is to save the land that sustains us Please take a stack of stickers on your way out. I brought enough for everyone Our uh to accomplish this mission we do it in three ways by working to protect farmland promote sound farming practices and keep farmers on the land And uh, we work we've got a an office in dc We have state and regional offices throughout the country probably in many of the places that you represent And we work directly with farmers and ranchers and we also work on policy at the local state and federal level We often say we work from kitchen table to congress And i'm part of a federal team of five Our farm bill work encompasses what i'll talk to you about today, but also the agricultural conservation easement program land access for a new generation of farmers business technical assistance farm viability and smart solar and I left some resources on the front table about that But like I said, I'm going to focus on sound farming practices and I've been asked to give a 101 What they are why they matter and the programs that support them and then I can't help myself talking about the farm bill Given where we are in the time of year So first what is soil health? How many folks are familiar with soil health? Definition practices great. Well, then I'm glad I included this slide So the definition of soil health from the natural resources conservation service at usda or nrcs Is the ability of soil to function as a living ecosystem that supports plants animals and humans And then here this very large graphic from nrcs as well Depicts the four principles that farmers and ranchers may follow to improve their soil health So that's maximizing biodiversity that can look like integrating animals into crop production Or diversifying crop rotation growing more crops Reducing disturbance so that can look like no till As congresswoman david's mentioned or reduce tillage maximizing cover like planting cover crops in the off season in between cash crops maximizing living roots like planting cover crops or planting perennials So there's your soil health 101 Why does soil health matter so many benefits from soil health to the farmers to communities And uh to the taxpayer as well and I'll talk about each of these in turn so Top graphic you see here is from aft soil health case studies esi has resources which will link you to these on the website We found that over time investment in soil health practices can generate a three to one return on investment for producers Can take a few years to find that benefit that return on investment, but it's quite good as you can see There was also a 2021 study that showed under extreme drought conditions that a 1% increase in soil organic matter Which is a chief soil health indicator Can increase yields under those drought conditions by 33 bushels So soil health practices promote resilience. How many of you are seeing more extreme weather across the country? Right. I see a lot of head nodding a lot of hands going up Under drought and flood conditions these practices are super important for helping build resilience on a farm or ranch And to stabilizing yields and under those conditions Co benefits for communities improved water quality reduce soil erosion on the farm keeps it out of our rivers and our waterways Flood mitigation same reason water infiltration into the soils keeps it away from impervious surfaces in communities And increased carbon sequestration to help fight climate change literally drawing carbon from the air into the soil And I mentioned taxpayers sure many of your bosses care about taxpayer dollars in 2019 the economic research service at usda Came out with a study that looked at the expected cost increases to crop insurance From climate change and extreme weather and they found that under a business's usual scenario Expectations for those costs to increase by 37 percent this century But if farmers adopt adaptation practices such as soil health practices It could go down significantly to only as much as 22 percent. So these are really important for a lot of different reasons but They're not very widely adopted for example as of 2017 Only six percent of eligible acres that could have been planted with cover crops were Leaving 94 percent of acres bare in the off season Why is that? Farmers are working really hard to feed their families to feed their communities and they face a lot of Important barriers that need to be overcome to changing from tried and true methods and adopting new practices and management systems chief of which cost cost of new equipment Cost of seed cost in time figuring out how to do things risk perceived or real risk of yield loss Information gaps and barriers. What do I do? How do I know how to do it? No access to the right information or lack of knowing where to look Cultural barriers. So may just not be what has been done Though I will acknowledge there are many producers that have been doing That have been practicing these practices for centuries even and then insecure land tenure I mentioned that sometimes it can take time for these practices to pay off How many of you rent or have rented in your in your lives? You're less apt to invest in improvements if you're renting right versus if you're owning Because it's not going to really benefit you per se over the long term. So insecure land tenure is important to address as well What we're here to talk about today, there are programs that are out there to address so many of these barriers And I'm going to talk about nrcs programs today Conservation reserve program. This is administered by the farm service agency or fsa. This is a Term Retirement program that provides farmers with rental payments if they were to enter into a CRP contract for a length of time The rest of these are administered by nrcs. So you've got the environmental quality incentives program Which invests in shorter term contracts to address identified resource concerns on the farm Then you've got the conservation stewardship program just kind of like the next level graduation step two This invests in longer term contracts perhaps around five years to invest in maintaining those practices and adding new enhancements The asap program agricultural conservation easement program, which my colleague chris coffin works on Invests in permanently protecting farmland. This also can help with farmland affordability and access And then the regional conservation partnership program which invests in regional or watershed scale Um Projects that are proposed by rcp folks who apply to the program To implement conservation on a regional scale and maybe in more innovative ways. That's the ideal for the program This pie chart gives you an idea of the funding relative funding for each of these programs in the last farm bill So you can see crp was about a third And same with equip about a third of all the funding that went to these programs CSP about a quarter and then a smaller share for rcpp and for asap and for equip and csp in particular Producers to gain access to that financial assistance to overcome those cost barriers. They need to work with Somebody who is qualified to provide them with technical assistance. So that could be an nrcs staff person Could be someone else that nrcs has entered into agreement with aft has some of those planners on staff And they work with the producer directly to identify what are the resource concerns that you want to work on What practices that nrcs supports funding for can we invest in and then helps them find financial assistance for those Hopefully everybody's clear on the 101. So um back last year aft held farm bill workshops With farmers and ranchers across the country with service providers researchers and others And we learned a little bit about what's working really well and what Where we have opportunities for improvement for these programs. And so I've Written a white paper with my colleagues and we just released this last week I have a few copies in writing here if folks want to grab them after but also available from esi by link And at a very high level These are locally led locally implemented programs with well vetted science based standards So if you want to practice no till there are science based ways that they have identified for you to do that But on the needs for improvement, they're highly oversubscribed a lot more demand than funding available And perhaps even more demand for technical assistance than agents available Length the application processes farmers have reported facing gaps in support whether it be by production type or region Some equity challenges we heard a lot from small scale producers small operations that they struggle to access this assistance And there there's some limited room to invest in innovation because they're supporting The really tried and true practices with the exception of rcpp and conservation innovation grants within the equip program For example between 2010 and 2020 only 30 percent of equip applications were able to be funded So less than a third And there was also a study released in 2020 That showed that uh between 2009 and 2018 only 17 to 27 percent of uh funding from equip went towards soil health practices So they're investing in a lot of different resource concerns. So just a small share of the overall pot there We have developed some goals recommendations that i'll just touch on briefly you can find more information in our white papers Um, and those like I said those links are available from ees i and our goals in this arena are to support producers in increasing Long-term adoption of conservation practices that will improve soil health address climate change build resilience Uh to make nrcs programs more accessible and equitably available and to benefit or to build sorry farmer to farmer learning networks And I'll say a little bit more about that So first on our checklist providing sustainably increased funding to meet farmer demand for conservation financial and technical assistance The inflation reduction act injected a lot of funding into these programs But that funding sunsets in 2026 So, you know solving the longer term. How do we meet the funding demand problem? Hopefully something we can do this farm bill and streamlining program implementation. And like I said You can find more on this here Oh, there's some uh animation Okay, so increasing support for farmer to farmer learning we see this as kind of the missing piece We're investing in technical assistance and financial assistance. It helps with cost barriers This can help with information barriers cultural barriers can even help with land tenure Farmer to farmer learning is so critical to this conversation It really helps to overcome the adoption barriers by having someone with first hand experience address perceived risks to yield And more that may prevent a farmer from trying a new practice It's as much about what doesn't work as what does This is already happening organically across the country informally formally in coffee shops, etc in the field According to a survey that we did in new england Over 50 percent of farmers that we surveyed We're learning about conservation from other farmers and that's something we hear across the country Ask any farmer rancher. Where do you learn about conservation nine times out of ten first thing? They'll say is another farmer So we have a proposal to build this into the farm bill. There's more information on the front table or I can provide it Creating a program that provides matching funds for state and tribal soil health programs So there are innovations happening. There are locally led programs being developed at the state level I can we have another white paper on that that gives you tons of examples of that We've done a webinar as well. You can find more information on that or just ask me Creating a program in the farm bill to match those funds to augment them helps to augment innovation for locally led programs Build off of nrcs programs and to fill gaps For example, many states invest in equipment purchase for soil health practice adoption and that's a really big key barrier Oh, and I should also mention there are a couple of bills the agriculture resilience act includes this in the bill And there was a bill introduced last week by representatives Gallagher nun and Huffman Uh called the no emits act that includes a proposal for this and the area was introduced by senator Heinrich and representative Pingree amongst others and you can see on this memo just incredibly broad support I have a little pointer incredibly broad support for this across the country Finally, I mentioned we heard small scale operations struggle to access some of these programs So we've been working with senator booker representatives I'm sorry. I just lost my card, but I can remember representatives Strickland Adams and McGovern to introduce a bill which was introduced recently the office of small farms establishment act That would basically look through USDA program policies and make sure that small scale producers are able to access not just conservation programs But all of the services that USDA provides And so I encourage you to keep in touch. This is my contact information You can look on our website for all these resources and like I said, some of them are available through EESI We're also working on crop insurance and conservation Happy to talk about that. And like I said ASAP land access business technical assistance and solar And thank you so much for your fabulous presentation And if anyone would like to revisit that fabulous presentation, I have two suggestions One would be to go to esi.org and download all the great materials and presentation materials that Samantha just presented and referred to You could also watch the archived webcast will be up in a few days So if you want to go back and revisit anything that Samantha just said or anything that our other panelists are about to say That resource is available to you Including the the white paper that you that you mentioned Our second panelist today is Eileen shader Eileen is the director of river restoration at american rivers in 2015 She relocated to her home state of pennsylvania Where she leads american rivers national floodplain floodplain restoration program Eileen spent most of her career at american rivers advocating to congress and the federal government to support sound floodplain management policies Prior to joining american rivers. She held positions at the national wildlife federation the national environmental trust and us epa Eileen is a certified floodplain manager and works to reconnect rivers to their floodplans and restore natural floodplain habitats Eileen the clicker is yours. Take it away. Thank you very much Um, thank you very much for having me and really appreciate the opportunity to participate in this briefing and talk about The farm bill and conservation practices. So um today i'm going to focus on um a program that is uh technically an emergency protection program under the nrcs But in reality is a conservation program. Um and how it is applied. So If you're not familiar with american rivers, we are a premier national river conservation organization that works to protect wild rivers restore damaged rivers and conserve clean water for people in nature And as dan mentioned i lead our national floodplain restoration program, uh, which is uh focused on working with partners and communities across the country to implement nature-based equitable and multi benefit floodplain management programs and projects so that can include anything from We have staff working directly on the ground to Reconnect rivers to their floodplains restore natural habitat to working at advancing state level programs that support multi benefit projects that both reduce flood risk and restore habitat for floodplain dependent species And working on federal policy initiatives like the farm bill and water resources development act and national flood insurance program But today we're going to talk about floodplain easements under the nrcs My colleague, um, olivia dorthy who lives in illinois and leaves our mississippi river program wasn't able to be here today um, but she led uh The effort to produce a report On the multiple benefits of floodplain easements that looked at their use within the upper midwest states the upper mississippi and then Assessed how floodplain easements are utilized and how some of the challenges with that program so, um, if you are Well, one thing I would say about the if you're not familiar with the floodplain easement program um essentially it works where the nrcs will put Their voluntary program will put an easement on a flood prone land agricultural land um, and then the landowner enters an agreement with the nrcs to restore that land to more natural conditions So we're restoring the hydrology so that the water Is able to soak into the ground restoring natural habitat native vegetation in order to improve the capacity of that um, that land to provide benefits to society When we talk about floodplains, I know many people think about a floodplain as the 100 year As floodplain as defined by the national flood insurance program and where you might need insurance But for our purposes we're talking about it more as an ecosystem or a landscape So the lands next to rivers and water bodies that gets flooded on a regular basis and Some people think that floodplains are interchangeable with wetlands. That's not quite correct You can have wetlands on a floodplain, but not all floodplains are wetlands floodplains tend to have much more diverse ecosystems There will be some standing water. There may be some side channels and streams. There may be some areas of high elevation with different kinds of trees and And native vegetation and one of the most amazing things about floodplains It's that many of our wildlife and fish and birds Are evolved to exist on a floodplain some part of their life cycle depends on access to a floodplain In order for them to thrive So they're really really undervalued or under appreciated. I should say ecosystem within our Within our nation and the world um And one of the great things about floodplains is they provide so many different benefits to society when they Especially when they're in their natural condition They are able to sequester carbon into deep root systems of native Native plant species They help to clean and capture Clean water by capturing excess nutrients of nitrogen and phosphorus and and these these Pollutants that we're trying so hard to try and manage within many of our agricultural waterways Um, and they're really amazing places for fish and wildlife Which then produce recreational opportunities? Which are economic drivers for many communities So what made us start looking at floodplain easements as a program that maybe needed some improvements? So our interest really was sparked by this one incident in dogtooth bends, which is uh in southern illinois. It's a Area, this is the mississippi river flowing down here And this is a very heavy agricultural area This levy district. I believe is about 17 000 acres Farmed in corn corn and soybeans and they experience regular flooding It's it's protected by a levy and we saw levy breaches just happening over and over at this place In short because the mississippi river wants to cut through there So it was a place where the the river wants to go where it wants to go and it's going to take out that levy And it did multiple times in 2016 The army corps of engineers decided that they weren't going to rebuild that levy anymore It was just not economically feasible to continue doing this And then they needed a new approach So for the farmers that are left in this area Um, what can they do with their land? What options do they have? So many of them started looking at conservation programs And could they put this land into permanent conservation? Since they just weren't going to be able to farm it anymore. I mean, this is Uh part of this area after repetitive flooding. I mean, it's just like sand dunes there's just all sorts of material deposited all over the place and Well, that's not a wetland doesn't qualify for wetland conservation programs So what else can they do? So we started looking at floodplain easements um But the challenge is that uh, there was no money in the floodplain easement program that was available for them So some farmers started applying um, and we're told that there wasn't an opportunity right then part of the challenge is that uh, the way that this program operates as an emergency program is that Funding is only appropriated and goes into the program when there's sort of a major disaster declared So when there's like a Stafford Act declaration if anybody's aware of how that works um, and If there's no disaster declared, there's no money put into the program So even if farmers apply, they're not going to be able to access the funding Um, when we looked at the upper Mississippi river states, we found that over the last decade even though there was over 2,500 Agricultural disasters. So in these rural areas, there was flooding disasters Only one time had there been Funding allocated to the floodplain easement program When we looked a little deeper and i'm gonna throw a couple of different graphs at you But looked a little deeper at the data one of the things we saw was that um The enrollments of floodplain easements within this program over the years were pretty low. Um, so uh, you know a couple of years where we had uh funding allocated and a decent number of floodplain easements um enrolled For the most part. I mean we're looking at under 50 easements being uh implemented every year and this is across the country for these numbers When you compare that to the number of agricultural disasters that are declared in counties in agricultural areas It's a very small amount of easements that are available in these areas that are being flooded Particularly ones that are flooded regularly So one question that folks ask then is well if people aren't getting easements is it because there's not demand And that's not accurate. Um, there's definite demand when you look at the number of Farmers that have applied to put their their land into a floodplain easements. Um, there's a significant unmet demand and this doesn't just apply to the Upper Mississippi states if we've pulled some preliminary numbers from all states across the country and um these Track that there's always a significant amount of applications and just not enough money and availability to go around So there are just definitely a number of farmers around the country who do These are farmers who just don't want to deal with their land flooding over and over and over So it's we're talking about farmers that voluntarily want to put their land Into to a better use rather than just continue to farm and then get crop insurance payouts every couple of years Um, I can't can't see this one up here. But um, just a couple of other things points I wanted to make is that flooding is Continuing to increase we all know this um being more severe And the costs associated with flooding and repetitive flooding continue to increase due to climate change I think this is a point. Hopefully we're all well aware of and when that happens that also means that our payouts for things like crop insurance and the damages to Crops is going to continue to increase as the years move on Within the Upper Mississippi river, um, we've seen that The producers are particularly hit by flooding we're talking damages and and payouts in the billions of dollars for many of our most heavily agricultural states And this then applies to the cost to taxpayers across the nation In terms of how much is being paid out in crop insurance And in the funding for Responding to floods and responding to disasters every year But when we're talking about the floodplain easement program, it's not just that cost Although that's certainly one reason to be interested in this For american rivers. We are of course interested in conserving and restoring more natural floodplains for those benefits that can provide to society So just a couple to touch on wetlands in particular Are incredibly effective at helping to Store water convey floodwaters Slow down how the water is moving through a watershed The more wetlands you have within a watershed The slower your floodwaters will move downstream and it will help reduce the damages to communities and to infrastructure downstream Uh, I mentioned nutrient pollution before. Um, many of our conservation programs don't count floodplain restoration as a best management practice even though much of the the scientific Literature demonstrates that they do an incredible job at capturing Nitrogen and phosphorus and helping us reduce our or improve our water quality And these the orange ones up there is floodplain restoration compared to many of the other best management practices And then I mentioned before Floodplains as being really key in helping with biodiversity and restoring and protecting some of our most vulnerable species I mentioned before that some of our species are really floodplain dependent when um, there's some really amazing research that's been done where endangered many endangered fish sends their their spend part of their life on a floodplain At key times and that's really important because it's slower water. It's much more There's more food There's much more shelter and that can help them to grow faster and thrive And having access to floodplains within our watersheds where we have a lot of endangered species can be really important Aspect to help with that recovery of those different species So one of the things that american rivers has been doing is talking with different offices about the opportunities to try and Enhance the use of the floodplain easements program a couple of key Areas where we see an opportunity One is to figure out how to get this program funded on an annual basis. So it's not going to be just dependent on having Congress allocate funding when there's a major disaster declared We need to get money into this program annually so that it's available when when farmers need it Second would be making sure that farmers have an opportunity every year to enroll as we see in these unmet unmet need and opportunity to have The farmers that need it in any particular year be able to access and apply Can help us help them address their needs of how they need to manage their land And a third idea is To really be able to focus on some of the most repetitive flooded properties. So the ones that Are are experiencing some of the most repetitive payouts and crop insurance or experiencing the most investment In terms of emergency response funding. Um, those are easy opportunities to be able to adapt to climate change and ensure that we are Investing our funds appropriately while having an opportunity to protect and restore the land around them Um That is about it. Um, I have uh our reports that we published on this. We have some copies out on the front desk Um, and happy to take any questions. Thank you That was great. I Wanted to stand up rather than sit down and I'm glad I did because that catfish photo I think if I had been sitting in the front row, I would have I would have shrieked a little bit It's a big catfish for me. Um As a quick reminder, um, we have some questions coming in from our online audience So if you're in our online audience and you have a question, you can send us an email The email address uses ask. Uh, that's ask at esi.org and of course for folks in the room We'll have um, uh, we'll be able to take questions after our fourth panelist today Our third panelist, however is palette vet bonilla carrero Uh, she's with us today on behalf of the spanic access foundations latino climate council And she's a licensed agronomist with a focus in animal behavior and welfare She explores the socioeconomic limitations to achieving food security and how those issues can be addressed through community engagement Agriculture extension programs and education. Thank you so much for joining us today. I'm looking forward to your presentation Hello to all and thank you for being here today. My name is paula bonilla carrero As I mentioned, I'm an agronomist and animal scientist and an educator from our way up with theoretical my areas of interest are integrating social equity food accessibility and creating agriculture and engagement And extension by creating better connection with the farmers and producers and the community states serve I have Wait, let me let me put my presentation real quick um Perfect awesome. So I have been a part of academia and I have also engaged in public policy But most importantly I've been part I've been working in the field as an agronomist Both in areas of the dmv and in Puerto Rico And something that I realized in both situations is that there is a clear gap between The efforts that academia and public policy do Towards the improvement of agriculture versus how that is translated into the producers and the farmers It is crucial to reduce these gaps because Invisibilize the issues that these producers and farmers point forward because at the end of the day Thanks to them. We have food in our table. So that's what I'm going to be talking about today I'm going to be focusing on Productions and farmer biological products in Puerto Rico and how they have come Implemented conservation practices before I begin I want to thank all the farmers and producers who took the time to have these conversations with me as well as team members of the usda Caribbean climate hub and the institute of agriculture. Thanks to them. I have this presentation So there is no clear definition of agroecology But rather a set of disciplines and knowledge that and how they're integrated Agroecology takes ecological concepts and applies them into farming. It is a global movement that emphasizes Ancestral and campesino knowledge And it's honored and applied and it breaks away from the industrialized industrialized paradigm Where there's a hierarchy of who are the experts are It's basically a multi-factorial approach and inclusive approach to the way we produce food agroecology And it's in prioritizes long-term economic viability by ensuring that all parts of the economic Production of food is considered whether it's marketing technology distribution and accessibility. It also prioritizes conservation by Protecting and regeneration regenerating our natural resources. It looks for technical and and technical Ways to use our energy more practically and also It tries to stem away from external inputs Agroecology all the centers around social equity because it promotes dignified salaries for the workers It centers and uplift Previously marginalized communities Like black indigenous people of color who are farmers and producers and aims towards food sovereignty Which is not the same as food security food sovereignty is a fundamental right for everybody everybody to have accurate adequate culturally appropriate Affordable and healthy food and it centers the people as the decision makers for their agricultural systems and their food I'm sorry. I move a lot. So I'm going to try to work on that. So There are multiple conservation practices. I cannot name all of them So I'm going to focus on the ones that the farms that I will be talking about focuses So agroecology mimics natural ecosystem and that way they have more resilient and diverse systems they diversify the crops and by adding local native plants and Cover crops which usually are deep-rooted perennials that provide structure Integrity and nutrients to the soil by diversifying these crops. They build stronger Lands that that differentiate from monocropping the things that we usually see in industrial agriculture and monocropping make plants Vulnerable and more dependent on external inputs like herbicides, plaguesides and synthetic fertilizers Contrast to industrial agriculture agroecology uses organic matter as a natural fertilizer of the soil Adequate water management is crucial for agroecology as we are facing a very real water crisis It focuses on reducing waterways Reducing soil erosion and also preparing the land for inclement weather like mentioned before of floods and droughts And lastly the reintegration of livestock is crucial for agroecology Given that we do need to follow the thought of more crops less land More outputs less land So now I'm going to take the opportunity and talk and highlight some of the projects that are happening in Puerto Rico These projects are usually small-scale and family projects. So I want to point that out as well So I am working with these this farm right now. It's called finca de limón and lattice is a family operated farm That practices sustainable agriculture by integrating animal husbandry and vegetable farming Their main purpose and focus is the reintegration of livestock particularly this native cattle breed called the india creola This breed is adapted to the tropical climate But it's also a dual-purpose breed where the cattle is used for milk which they produce cheese and merchandise it As well as the oxen is used for plowing or tillage of the land This is much more less aggressive than heavy machinery Is cost effective and the oxen are fertilizing the soil with their manure as they walk So other than this cattle breed they also integrate a variety of crops They do um grace rotations to the the land doesn't saturate They do conscious tree clearing for to promote native trees and practice civil pasture They also have other types of husbandry like cattle Like goats chickens and turkeys and they're also part of the making of compost Which then they in fact use from crop harvesting So it's a cyclical practice that they do And their mission is to protect this cattle breed promote The oxen plowing which is a cultural practice that has been lost and stem away from heavy machinery use This other farm is called finca plenidus in las marias. It's a non-profit educational project They have a multiple multiple conservation practices from permaculture to bioconstruction But they have a really smart water management system because they're in the mountainous area And we know that mountainous area when there's heavy rainfall water falls with a lot of energy So they follow the soil and barms Approach as well as counter farming a soil is basically a grass line depression That allows the water to pass through and dissipates this energy And it prevents runoff when the when there's heavy rain the barms are Land earth walls that are close to the ditch and they are in charge of retaining that water and allowing to infiltrate the soil This in addition to counter farming, which is basically preparing terrorists or plowing the land In a way that follows the natural landscape and and slopes This reduces erosion. It makes it easier to work in the land because you're following the The landscape and integrated is a passive water management tool That should be implemented in many other places that have the issue with droughts and flooding So now i'm going to mention other farms that are specifically on benefiting from the usda conservation programs So this las vincas enrioranda is a woman owned agribus that is focused on The the raising of cattle for meat when they first acquired their land. It wasn't prepared for Agriculture, but thank you. Thanks fully to the usda nrca conservation program They have had the opportunity to begin the efforts to reach their goals Some of the things this is some of them they had they received a couple of them But one of them some of them was the tree shop site propagation program that allowed them to start planting trees to create shade and reduce heat stress in animals prescribed grazing which basically is harvesting and maintaining healthy Pastures while maintaining soil healthy soils and you do that while having grazing animals Forage and biomass Planting to improve pasture quality the pasture that they had had low pet ability And low nutritional value So they're trying to create native to add native pastures that are better for the animals their beef Beef production is a niche market in Puerto Rico And they center it in the protection of natural resources And focusing on animal well-being and Creating good quality meat. So it's important to promote Conscious agroecological animal production not only crop production Because we need to eat right So the last one i'm going to talk about is the proyecto agroecological Agroecological josco bravo into alta There are pioneers in Puerto Rico for agroecological farming and education They basically do all the practices that i've mentioned before But most importantly they have been classified as primer farmland by the nrcs program due to its soils with high fertility and excellent agroecological output Less than five percent of the world have this classification and i have to Remind you how small Puerto Rico is so that's really impressive. So the conservation and protection of this soil is crucial They also produce over 21 000 pounds of food in 2021 in just a three acre land So they serve us proof that sustainable agroecology can feed communities and it's done in a really small space So the opportunities are endless They also offer a agroecological promoter course, which i'm taking right now Which is an intensive theoretical and practical course that teaches all audience how to start a vegetable garden from scratch The principles of agroecology and the students work in different farms around the area I feel that this type of courses should be implemented worldwide Whether you want to have a project or not because there is an urgency to shift Our agriculture production and people everybody eats the more people are aware of our situation the larger scope we can impact They've also benefited from nrcs conservation program. Although their farm as you can see is open We do have variations in weather in Puerto Rico. We have an intense dry season and intense rainy season rainy season It's hard to produce. We have incidents of mold and plaques and it just is hard to maintain So thanks to the high tonal initiative They were able to create a shaded structure with a waterproof roof That allow for stabilities in the crops and allowed for them to be able to produce even more types of Crops that are that do not depend on the actual season while still practicing agroecological practices So like everything there are challenges I'm first going to talk about the challenges in Puerto Rico and then talk about challenges in general So we are currently going through a land access and land tenure crisis like sam mentioned It is gentrification and displacement have spiked the prices of land making it really inaccessible for the Puerto Rican Stenlit in the island It is not feasible for everybody to put out a loan to buy a land because a Farm is a high risk investment So people are struggling to have tenure because it's not really feasible to To rent a land that you're not promised that you're gonna see see your rewards Also entities like the land of authorities don't really have an accurate census of the available land So and bureaucratic limitations really makes the process even more arduous and tedious Secondly and what we've been struggling for centuries are austerity measures like the jonesack We really limits the scope from which producers can compete at the market when we have Second-class lower quality imported food in the supermarket that will not ever be able to compete with good quality Organic produce that are the formal our cultures are doing Also, it really limits and inhibits their opportunity to export their goods Other issues are we need to increase the public policy to protect farmers from inclement weather And natural disasters We need to update our curriculum in universities that are specialized in agriculture So we can have degrees that are specific for regeneratory agriculture social economic Social economic disparities and inaccessibilities have made process food more common than fresh food So that's another issue that we face as well that the as the dwindling practice of eating seasonally And lastly and the reason why we're here We need to expand how much we reach the reach of agriculture farmers and and incentivize them for the conservation practices And this is because conservation farmer practices involve many types of people and needs There is a need for technical and educational assistance for farmers because not everybody has access to computer social media Not everybody and we shouldn't focus on the people that have that access to be able to implement This is where agriculture extension comes into place. We have to focus our We need to focus on small-scale regional production And to conclude Intensive and conventional agriculture that we've seen for the last 60 years is not a viable production of food It has proven that it's not capable of feeding our communities and has caused irreparable damage to our ecosystem Not more than ever we need to uplift the communities and the farmers that are doing Our feeding our communities are working against food insecurity and food deserts while Regenerating regenerating our natural resources Agroecology is not an idea. It is not a concept. It is an applicable and effective practice that can protect our natural resources and feed our well Thank you So much There's nothing wrong with the with sr 188. It's a perfectly fine place for briefing But we might have to talk about maybe doing our briefings in Puerto Rico because the photos you display that's kind of nice It's pretty amazing. Those are great great shots that you provide. Thank you um We have our final panelists joining us now and i'm really pleased to introduce bane cali bane is an enrolled member of the palma band of luiseno indians and a proud Descendant of the weak old people of jalees halle sco excuse me Over the last 35 years bane has represented indian country in various political cultural and administrative capacities She has served as the repatriation chair since the age of 21 and her life's work is to preserve the culture and traditions of her people Through various roles bane interacts with the youth culture public and political relations of her tribe She's established and served as board chair and president of ono po strategies a multifaceted consultancy and holding company With capabilities and economic development technology procurement distribution business strategy marketing and environmental and agricultural management And for people who joined us a couple weeks ago at the role development briefing bane also introduced us to duane who stole the show along with aliyah and our other panelists So thanks very much for that as well bane. Welcome to the lectern. I'm looking forward to your presentation so I'm the i'm the The last person which is a really hard position to be in Only because these women here did an amazing job So I really appreciate that. Uh, me or you're my chakron icon. Uh Uh, no bane collect no, uh, pomegranate. So, um, all what I just said was Hello, how are you? Um And how are you and that um, my name is bane collect and I'm from palma. So I'm born and raised them. Well, wasn't born on reservation down the road But pretty much raised all my life on my reservation Um served tribal council for three terms Um was raised on the reservation Uh in the mountains in the in the in the In our river. Well, it's not river. It's a stream But um, it was raised in a good way. So, uh, I'm I'm really honored to be here I am a person who You can ask me any question. I think sometimes and for the people who do work with Representative streets, davis, you probably um have a she's an amazing person and anybody who's worked with Depp Holland Honorable Depp Holland She I was had the pleasure of meeting them prior to them being here. So even at that time, they were just so amazing But I am the kind of person who wants to um be asked any question that you think may not be politically correct or Ununcomfortable it does seem like sometimes as tribal people we're still held under a glass um that there's that um, I'm still to this day get the question of you know That we don't exist so I'm really thankful and honored to be here as well as I'm sure if you were here when doing Sherman was giving his presentation. He definitely stole the show So honorable strategies as a company organization that helps tribes and outside organizations with tribal engagement We um, if you see here on the on the screen, well, maybe it's not there So I I just wanted to share a little bit about these photos. Um, that's actually a young girl From the um Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. That's her horse. She's an amazing horse Horse her horsemanship is amazing, but um, you know They obviously struggle with a lot of issues and and they are huge farmers, but they deal with a lot of water issues the picture of the basket is a basket Of the whirlwind and it's in regards to perpetual motion and that our people believe in and When it comes to our gathering rights We have still difficulties to the to this day So I wanted to be able to show you just a little bit about us as a people I'm going to Stay pretty close to my time. I think and and just fyi being on tribal council And I'm sure this is the way for you guys as well We're always ensured or When we provide a presentation or someone provides a presentation to us Uh It's direct. Here's the information Um, although I'm a little jealous because there were some really great pictures I was like, man, I should add more pictures, but I did not Just really I'm actually stepping back a little bit on a both strategies. Also. We are the ambassadors of um The nation of Hawaii the nation of Hawaii is out of why I'm out of Oahu Out of why I'm in Olo Obviously, there's a lot of People for the nation of Hawaii, but this specific group is responsible for re establishing their puno Uh, and they are total sovereign. Uh, so if you want more information on that I can share that as well so What I wanted to do is kind to kind of take you back because I always want to make sure that people understand The beginning in order for you to learn How to walk you had to start at the beginning In order to learn you had to start at the beginning So that's extremely important for me And it is amazing that a lot of people in regards to um when they talk about manifest destiny That's actually one of the first things that we as tribal people learn Um about manifest destiny not too many people really understand the definition to that My young daughter my son and my nieces and nephews understand manifest destiny Um, and I won't go into the definitions and please if you guys get a chance um You'll really grasp a concept About our tribal people if you understand the different arrows that had gone through and um, and this is I'm going to tie it into the farm bill and conservation So um quickly after manifest destiny, there's discovery and conquest treaty making You know, I don't have to read them to you but the removal and relocation act that has a really huge effect on us in regards to Taking action regard in farming Because when you remove a people from the land and then you put them on a smaller one They then have to create another way to address or their infeed their families And then we have a cultural tie We have a cultural tie to the land The land That we sit on is Tells a a creation story of the people that were here. This was their beginning place And so there's that's a large Uh, there's a disconnect. So for allotment and assimilation That was uh, again in a difficult time for us to try to re-engage back into um into farming and to Agriculture and to supplying for our life and and for our people The regors regor reorganization act and self-government Uh was an opportunity for us to be able to re-establish who we are. Although it didn't really Um happen that way and then you suffer the termination act the termination act where they were tribes where They were just no longer in existence the United States government said You're no longer a people And um, so that was devastating And then we came obviously to the self-determination act and um, that is actually to the present time So again, I'm you know, I'm not going to go into details to them But when we talk about the federal responsibility and the power of ending affairs We as tribes And I'm sure many of you I raise a hand how many of you met with tribal leaders or Tribal staff Not too many Although tribal leadership doesn't want to meet with staffers. They want to meet with you know representatives, but I think it's extremely important that you do engage It's extremely important for you to engage with what is happening with the tribes um, so The federal government has a fiduciary responsibility to address tribes And you know, I don't need to go into detail what you guys know about us as tribes, but so, um The next page is I wanted to give you guys a little bit of insight on on Our phases or just phases of engagement Sorry, I'm gonna go on here. Here it is. Here's my note So, um I think that's probably one of the the hardest things for The outside communities to understand and this isn't our this is in regards to um A process and in understanding the tribe's needs Especially around now that there's a there's a huge interest in in tribes and conservation It's not just an interest. You have DOI stating that we as tribes have a place and we need to be heard so, um And and I don't know if any of you guys know in here that there are over there's 574 tribes within the united states Um, that doesn't mean that that includes all of them Obviously, I'm not talking about the ones that have been terminated So there are some states that don't have tribes, but that doesn't mean that there was in tribal land at one time So when you engage with tribes, um the phases of it or I call it phases, but you know tribes are tribes Are key to the success success of conservation And the efforts for the what the united states is is trying to establish the reason why is we Have um, we have we hold the knowledge and it's not just the tribes here It's the indigenous people, but we hold the knowledge of traditional ecological knowledge Um, I've heard tribal leaders say well if they would listen to us Then that probably wouldn't happen right the flooding probably wouldn't happen the burns probably wouldn't happen um, you know, we would have had a lot more To you know to to sustain our our people And that's just not the people of the reservation, but that's the people of this united states So, um again, these are just suggestions In an excited earlier to initiate conversation among small groups tribal leaders tribal technical experts But I can ensure that you understand that it is extremely important to talk to the right tribal person Do not assume that Benet is here speaking for all of indian country because I know we can do that Or am I even allowed to do that? So it's extremely important to find the proper one and I know that's a little difficult because our world is pretty um Can get a little crazy, but um, you know, you have people like myself And I know you guys have talked to tribal people. So I'm really excited that they did mention that And and when you go into the next phase so the first phase of that is engagement In hearing the stories of the people the second phase would be um Again that we're important to conservation efforts into oh, that's the same thing, isn't it? But it's feedback, right? I'm sorry. That's the same thing. I'm like I think I caught being pasted the wrong things. I apologize you guys But I don't need that phase two is just comments and feedback You want to be able to engage with tribes to hear what their story is You want to have them tell you their issues? How many of you in here know about tribal water rights? It's huge That is going to be a game changer when it comes to the farm bill in conservation that that I would um Do your do your studying on that because it's extremely important and they're all different for every every tribe so, um My tribe is was in a 45 year water lawsuit against the federal government. We there was five of us The soboba tribe, which is out in southern california. They were in a 73 year Oh, yeah lawsuit which again Water rights is described that we as tribes would have that but It was obviously taken from us So in regards to like step three, um, which is the next next steps Once you do engagement once you do conversation once you hear the story and you build, um You maybe collaboratively build policy But you also implement what was what was established and um Those are those are things that I've seen in being extremely successful in conservation efforts USDA I know in rcs is everywhere and they're doing some amazing jobs But again out of the 574 tribes Maybe 20 of those tribes are seeing those efforts and so again my goal here today is to emphasize on engagement emphasize and learning your community um and And understanding that you don't have um, you may not have all the answers or you may not know who to go to but I'd like to simply say is there's 50 states There's 50 governors There's 574 tribes I'm pretty sure not all 574 tribes get to talk to Whether it be the president or the congress or the senate so It would be nice, but I can understand the difficulty of a program Or a representative in in wanting in needing to talk to individuals So So the in in the past Probably three years. I've been doing a lot of work in regards to national monuments land conservations Different efforts and in Developing policies around that even most recently Discussion at the national congress american indians on the farm bill and the need for water rights But um, this is something I wanted to provide you guys kind of like as an insight You know to learn the purpose and the process of public lands and their efforts, you know, that's what It should be either Conveyed to the tribes or having an understanding of what the tribes are how they're looking at it And then another part is to learn from one another and learn from tribes What they see as opportunities to collaborate on protecting lands and other natural resources that are important to the tribe and to angios and usd USDA efforts and advocacy groups and I mentioned that because the um As just most recently we when you talk about water rights and then you talk about lack of access of um fishing or Or Any any foods one of the things that I think sam had brought it up was oh, no, it was um elaine elaine is that correct elaine, excuse me was the um it's talking about flood floodplains so And this is again. I'm just going to give you guys examples because it it does affect all of us in different ways the lack of you to zero tribe was up in from upper michigan They are affected by the damning of some of their lakes And they now lack wild rice Which was a main source of food for their people They now lack walleye the main source of food for their people And like every culture food The land the animals ties in to our our lives They're also suffering from being shot at by simply um fishing off of their um their traditional lands it may not be their land but They have the rights and so they're dealing with that in 2023 Amazing, but it you know what happens so um extremely important to hear the issues that you know tribes are dealing with when it comes to um Again the different the issues that are happening so To emphasize uh the next one is to emphasize on the significance of tribal involvement going forward in conservation efforts and to convey ways tribes can be involved and stay connected that's extremely important because as tribes are governing the rest of their people's lives They now have to address this new thing that's coming about and um most of tribes Well, not most of tribes you have level different levels of tribes right not all tribes have This large budget or not all tribes have this extensive structure of government not all tribes Have the technical assistance or the funding you know to do those type of things There are some tribes that are only 12 members There are some tribes that are 75 000 members And and so it's it's it's there's there's so diverse so um And again and one of the thing I think it's extremely important is you know In strengthening tribal engagement consultation and capacity building implementation and process to ensure that Whether it be conservation efforts or in regards to the farm field as well as efforts are responsive and engaging with tribal communities Engagement is key. So what should tribes expect to you engage with and this is not just with NGO and conservationists, but also USDA communities In groups is helping shape the planning process and be used to develop the management and develop management plans for conservation efforts tribes um historically have been Have policies In laws written for them and then it's put in front of them and say here you go tribe I wrote this for you Now you have to abide by it It is extremely important to have the tribes at the table to be able to develop those policies And it's a tribes will collaborate with others because I obviously you guys are doing it And we obviously need to talk because I'm totally going to send your name out to everybody. I know So it it's extremely important because it you know talking to a lot of tribes that I work with You know, that's the that's the last thing they want is not to be involved in a policy that's supposed to oversee Any lands or traditional lands that they're that they're addressing or concerns and so and then one final thing is As we start to work on these policies and plans The burden or maybe it's a conservation effort The burden now lays on the tribes shoulders Where is the funding going to come from? When the tribes are asked to Even review a document. Maybe they don't have legal counsel to even do that So that is something that has to be really considered is You may be expecting the tribe to Have a seat at the table, but Where is the funding and the expectation coming from? and Does the tribe have that capacity so tribes need assistance and funding technical assistance assistance training And capacity building to address the asks of either NGOs conservations Goals and efforts. It's extremely important. I am I have asked a couple different people and told them that was coming And the biggest thing they said is if you're going to talk to the staffers ensure that they understand to carry the message that Funding is extremely important And um capacity And to understand the structure of the individual tribe that you're working with or the individual community so Not my own time because you can cut me off anytime So I wanted to share this and um So we were extremely honored when um Representative deb holland and secretary i'm sorry secretary deb holland was um Placed at the Bureau of Indian Affairs so the comment that she says is Our community our communities deserve fresh air to breathe clean water to drink and in a livable planet, but right now in action on climate change is putting everything at risk Particularly in communities of color And so I saw that and I thought, you know, you can't help but repeat that several times the the the uh Below the the um couple paragraphs that I put in there are actually statements from the chairman of the fort mojave tribe chairman tim williams they most recently were able to establish um eviko a meh which is um a For there are people what was their beginning place and it was an it was an amazing opportunity uh to help preserve the land So um just really quickly. These are just examples of usda. I know i'm getting cut Cut for a time here and then um A couple others. There's the ute shayan Cheyenne river and then that's my name but I just wanted to add really fast I tried to when I thought about the 12 minutes. I was like holy crap But um in regards to the insurance One of the things that I wanted to make sure that people understand is that when it comes to tribal land We sometimes can't Have house insurance or flood insurance Because of the way that our land is established So when I when I share the importance of really understanding the tribes It really is important to understand each tribe and its individual uh capacity Because it's we don't have the lecturers You know not all of us are you know, um, you know at that point But again, there are a majority of us that can't afford that so So that's my name. Uh, that's my company And I'm I hope I helped out And I was gonna say that and this is the book that um, I Read all the time American indian american justice. It's by vine deloria. He writes a lot of All right. Um, we have maybe time for one or two quick questions from the audience if there is one I'm not sure if there is but we are at time unfortunately um I think since maybe since it's been a little while since we've heard samantha and I mean Uh, especially since you were our first two panelists. Let's wrap up with a quick lightning round. Um question before We end for the afternoon and that lightning round question is We've covered a lot of ground today I suspect there are lots of things we could suggest to improve when it comes to conservation programs, but You could change one thing With existing programs to improve conservation What would that one thing be samantha? We'll start with you and then we'll go down the line And really interested in what you have to say You'll hear me great Um, thanks again for all the time today. Thank you for to esi for having us I would say especially after hearing my colleagues speak Um, there's a lot of information in the white paper. Hope y'all grab a copy read it, but Our um proposal to support farmer to farmer learning Seems most relevant, especially to be moving outside of The sort of existing technical assistance really science based strategies and to provide some capacity building For communities that are historically marginalized from accessing those programs. So I would say Building up more farmer to farmer Engagement and learning providing funding for those purposes and capacity building that would be my number one thing I think we can there's probably a million different suggestions We could make about how to um make all these programs easier to work with and things like increased Sustainable funding um, but for for me and um for american rivers. I think one of the the Key changes that we Would love to see within many of the conservation programs within nrcs Is to align them to be To work with rivers and recognize Rivers as a dynamic part of our ecosystem and the land around them the flood plains and the riparian areas as being Really critical to the health of our society and our clean water So doing things like enhancing the flood plain easement program and improving that And making sure that all of our other conservation programs work with rivers and help to protect and restore them as valuable ecosystems that they are hello, okay, so um, I want to mention Because of the gentrification and displacement that I mentioned before this is usually caused by Americans coming from the united states as well as the jones act that was imposed by our colonial Imposed well colonial status so I feel like Conservation programs should prioritize on create a type of census that prioritizes Farmers that are from Puerto Rico live in in Puerto Rico as a type of preparation because we are a little bit behind Then other farmers in the u.s. Because we have struggles We have to go like through a couple of struggles before we get to even knowing about these conservation programs So create an accurate census of who because basically if I am from an American that moves to Puerto Rico and creates an Aerocological project I can benefit from a usda conservation program Just like a humble family from the middle from a rural part of the country so creating that reparation and that type of responsibility towards the people that have been In basically marginalized in these programs is important and Also understanding that is equity and not equality when it comes to Puerto Rico in relations to us Bene you put a lot of things on the table that we could euphemistically call opportunities for improvement Uh, but like to give you the last word of our briefing today Thank you. I would ask that it take a grassroots effect with in conservation efforts because because of what it creates which is opportunity equity and Growth but it also causes a riff And so you have large farmers who Are looking at it in a different way and it's affecting their their bottom line But there has to be an understanding so I would ask For that holistic approach to be a main point Thank you very much. Um, we had a tremendous panel today. I think our panelists deserve a round of applause for their contribution I'd like to say once again special. Thanks to representatives mace and davids for joining us with the pre-recorded video intro remarks introductory remarks big Thanks to senator welch and his great staff for helping us get the room today Although next time maybe we'll try to get ourselves to work. Well, that was like a pretty nice place to be today Also, there are two people in our online audience who helped us assemble the panel today big. Thanks to shana and nathan You know who you are Great friends of the organization and we really appreciate your assistance also, um, there's a really significant size the team at esi who pulls these briefings off I'd like to say big. Thanks to dan o' brian ommery alice and anna molly and the coal As well as erin who is our newest member of team esi He is hopefully watching on the live cast because he hasn't quite relocated to dc yet But uh, erin welcome aboard and we have four tremendous summer interns, uh, georgia merico Parthov and sydney Thank you for joining us and all your help Parthov was just Taking the most studious notes. I've ever seen of the of the briefing today and all the live tweeting and everything that goes done So thanks very much. I know that because I was sitting next to you. I wasn't I'm not spying This is our last briefing for a little while, but we'll be back on july 18th. That's a tuesday all day Ninth floor of the senate heart building for the renewable energy and energy efficiency expo We'll have six great panels Tremendous speakers executives from across the clean energy sector and the climate advocacy space It's going to be something you don't want to miss And at five o'clock the lights will turn blue and there'll be a reception So even if you're a little bit too busy to stop by during the day, that's okay You can still come by and network. It's fun to network on capitol hill, uh, and we'll help you with that. Um, Let's see there it is right there. Uh, this is a survey link Um, at the end of every briefing if you've come to our briefing before we always post this survey link Uh, if you have a moment to take that survey Provide your feedback was there stuff that you like today didn't like today Did you have any audio problems video problems? Uh, anything like that ideas for future topics Please um, take a moment. We read every response and it means a lot to us when people take the time to participate in our survey We'll go ahead and wrap sorry for going a few minutes over but, uh, really really great panel today Learned a ton about conservation programs in the farm bill and uh, can't wait to um to keep learning about all sorts of great stuff when we get to the expo and When we get back after labor day, we've got a really excellent slate of congressional programming that will Get underway. So hope everyone has a great rest of your wednesday and we'll see you on july 18th Hopefully for the clean energy and energy efficiency expo. Thanks