2024 Annual Conference
CONFERENCE DATES
Day 1: August 19th, 2024
Day 2: August 20th, 2024
LOCATION
The Gateway Hotel and Conference Center
2100 Green Hills Drive Ames, IA 50014
RESERVE HOTEL OPTIONS
Reminder IDALS will cover the cost of hotel accommodation and scheduled lunches for commissioners and assistant commissioners. Rooms can be reserved after completing online registration (above), or by clicking here:
2024 Annual Conference Agenda
Sunday, August 18, 2024
Noon Registration Table Opens
3:00 pm CDI Board Meeting
Monday, August 19, 2024
8:00 am Registration and Credentials Tables Open
Exhibits Open – Silent Auction Items Accepted
9:00 am Guest Tour Departs
Welcome from CDI and SSCWQC
Welcome from Secretary of Ag Mike Naig
CDI Business Meeting
12:30 pm Lunch and Awards Presentation
1:30 pm Afternoon session – Presentation by Justin Glisan, State of Iowa Climatologist: “Resiliency: Intersection of Water Quality, Soil Health & Changing Weather”
2:00 pm Ice Cream Social served by CDI Board – Break and Exhibits
3:00 pm Conservation Potpourri Moderated by Joe Hayes, CDI Communications Coordinator
- “Leveraging Partnerships to Drive Conservation Adoption—Iowa Soybean Association’s RCPPs” presented by Ben Porepp, ISA Agronomist
- “Cattle and Working Lands RCPP in Northwest Iowa” presented by Colton Barnes, Project Coordinator and John Nitz, NW Iowa Farmer
- 5 Year Plans—Highlighting Four SWCDs: Cedar, East Pott, Sioux, Winneshiek
- What’s on Commissioners’ Minds? Questions from commissioners—Open Discussion
4:30 pm Social Hour, Exhibits, Silent Auction
5: 30 pm Awards Banquet – Speaker Mitchell Hora, Continuum AG: “Embracing Regenerative Agriculture: Proactive Strategies”
Tuesday, August 20, 2024
7:00 am Breakfast Buffet – Discussion with specific Regional Directors
7:45 am Visit Exhibits
8:30 am Panel Discussion – Partners: IDALS, NRCS, FSA, IDNR
10:00 am “Enriching Commissioner’s Knowledge: Legal Primer for Commissioners’ Roles & Responsibilities” presented by Eric Dirth, State of Iowa Assistant Attorney General
11:00 am Concurrent Breakout Sessions
- Watershed Structures (PL 566)
- A Future Look at Ethanol Industry and What it Means to Iowa Farmers
- Lessons Learned Working with Underserved Urban Farmers and Gardeners
12:00 pm Lunch and District Awards
1:15 pm Annual Conference Wrap-up