the focus of my role at the nature conservancy was building out the strategy and timeline of a novel, large-scale program, The Minnesota jurisdictional initiative (MNJI).
this grant-funded initiative is aiming to gather all of the main players in Minnesota agriculture including MFU, MDA, UMN, banks, insurance companies, conservation nonprofits, and more.
these were all members of our core partner group, our immediate stakeholders, and our steering committee.

for the first time ever,  these organizations convened over days to coordinate and compile all the efforts made so far, how they can be streamlined, how we can best serve our growers in terms of resiliency, peer learning, mental and physical health resources, workshops, pathways to regenerative farming, and all the other ways we can assist minnesota farms of all sizes. 

inclusion, specifically of marginalized communities, was a core focus for our learnings, and how we could best support these farms and families find pathways to a sustainable future. these communities are essential and make up many of the partners and stakeholders.