KOSCIUSKO COUNTY — Women, Food and Agriculture Network (WFAN) has developed a program called Women Caring for the Land℠ (WCL), designed to serve female non-operator landowners who are interested in learning more about conservation. “Learning Circles” are peer-to-peer meetings in which every woman’s knowledge and expertise is of value. You are the expert on your own farmland — even if you don’t have all the answers yet!

The first Women’s Learning Circle in Kosciusko County was held in June of 2015.  The women attending enjoyed the experience so much, they asked for another one to be held in 2016.  The Kosciusko County Soil and Water Conservation District was pleased to respond to this request and are currently planning another event for June 29, at Koinonia Nature Preserve, just south of Pierceton. The event will start at 9 a.m. and end at 2 p.m. 

The program is successful, popular and in increasing demand among both women landowners and agency partners, such as NRCS and state departments of natural resources.  At these gatherings, time is spent asking women to tell the story of her farmland, and her goals and dreams for managing and passing it on. This is followed by demonstrations and information sharing about taking care of the land for future generations.  This morning portion of the day is for women only. We find that many women are more likely to feel most comfortable sharing in a group of peers. 

After a provided lunch, the ladies will be given a tour of local farms, where they will see practices in place that are protecting the land and other natural resources.  Many of last year’s participants found this to be very interesting and informative. 

For additional information, please contact the SWCD office at (574) 267-7445, ext. 3 or send an email to [email protected].