Soil Health Leadership Lab

Soil Superpower: The ability to connect people and/or projects to enable the leveraging of financial and human resources and strengthening of partnerships.

Since 2012, Lisa Holscher has been associated with Indiana’s Conservation Cropping Systems Initiative (CCSI), currently serving as Director. Raised in a farming family, many of Lisa’s family members continue to farm – and are in various stages of adoption of soil health practices, including no-till, cover crops, manure management, and grazing.  A graduate of Purdue University, Lisa was licensed in the State of Washington as a Landscape Architect. As CCSI Director, Holscher oversees robust outreach, education, and training programs across Indiana as well as numerous partnerships with farmers, researchers, government agencies, NGOs, and ag retail. CCSI’s efforts have enabled Indiana partners to provide consistent science-based, farmer-proven information on soil health that is meaningful for intended audiences.  One example of their success: approximately 1 million acres of Indiana’s 12 million acres of cropland have green, living cover throughout traditional fallow seasons – of that acreage, only 20-25% are enrolled in cost-share programs:  75-85% of Indiana farmers are using cover crops without cost-share assistance, because it makes financial sense for their farming operations.

Connect with Lisa via Email.

Soil Superpower: Seeing soil from the ground up.

Anna Teeter is a Field Manager for the Soil Health Partnership covering Minnesota, and has been with them since August 2019. The Soil Health Partnership is a research organization that focuses on farm scale soil health and conservation practices which include cover crops, reduced tillage and nutrient management trials. The growers she works with span the entire length of the state, as well as East to West, which give her a unique knowledge base for challenging growing conditions and diverse crop rotations.

Anna most recently received her Master’s degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from the Department of Soil Science. Throughout her undergrad, Anna worked with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Forage Extension Specialist and gained experience working with a diverse group of farming operations. She has a passion for agricultural science as well as science communication.

Connect with Anna through Email or on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Soil Superpower:  Microscopic vision to see all of the organisms alive in the soil.

Kristin Poley is the Research Manager for Michigan Corn. Kristin manages Michigan Corn’s contract grant and on-farm research trial program, assisting in data collection and outreach for projects related to sustainability and soil health. Kristin is the coordinator for the Great Lakes Crop Summit, a large, farmer-focused annual event, and she leads the Michigan Corn MICENT program: Michigan Corn Education, Networking, and Training program for young farmers.

Kristin and has an M.S. in Entomology from Michigan State University. Prior to this, Kristin worked in organic pest management in tree fruit and vegetables, and nematology and soil health in field crops and ornamentals. In her personal time, Kristin enjoys gardening and spending time with her pet geese.

Connect with Kristin via Email or on LinkedIn.

Soil Superpower: Teaching farmers to feed their underground herd of soil microbes.

Lisa Blazure is an experienced conservation professional who advocates for improving soil health to achieve water quality goals and enhance the economic viability of agriculture. She works for Stroud Water Research Center and serves as the coordinator for the Pennsylvania Soil Health Coalition to foster collaboration among numerous stakeholders involved in soil health education and research.  Lisa networks with a broad range of colleagues to implement conservation practices and organize educational programs.  She holds a Masters in Environmental Science with a focus on Aquatic Ecology.

Connect with Lisa through Email.

Soil Superpower: Understanding what’s most important to individual producers in order to help them be sustainable on their operations.

Soil Superpower: Not being afraid to ask questions others may be unwilling to.

Andrea Basche is an assistant professor in Cropping Systems at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Department of Agronomy and Horticulture Department. Her research focuses on developing and supporting cropping systems that address profitability, resource use efficiency and climate risks. This includes improving soil health, increasing use of cover crops and perennial crops, as well as understanding the social and policy dimensions required for change. In her role, she also teaches undergraduate courses in crop management. Basche holds a B.S. in biology from Fordham University, an M.A. in applied climate science from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in agronomy and sustainable agriculture from Iowa State University. You can learn more about her teaching, research and outreach here.

Connect with Andrea on Twitter or via Email.

Soil Superpower: Being an example in my watershed to improve soil health with cover crops and no till, and to improve water quality with edge of field practices. Through field days, podcasts, webinars, and personal visits we try to influence farmers and landowners to treat their own land with respect as well.

Connect with Lee via Email.

Soil Superpower: Sharing and amplifying stories of farm and community resilience.

Nick Ohde is the Communications and Marketing Director at PFI, overseeing all communications and marketing work for PFI, including strategy, brand, publications and our digital presence. He ensures that farmers are the voice of all PFI outreach.

Nick grew up in rural southeast Iowa, outside of Wapello. He has a BA degree from the University of Iowa in 2008, where he majored in Journalism and English, and an MS degree from Iowa State University in 2011, where he majored in Sustainable Agriculture. His research interests focused on soil erosion, water quality, and the use of conservation practices.  From 2012-2013, Nick worked for a non-profit organization in rural Ecuador, where he worked with farmers, interns, and volunteers on rural community development projects. Before joining PFI, Nick worked as the kitchen manager at Cafe Beaudelaire in Ames.

Connect with Nick via Email.

Soil Superpower: Analyzing human decisions and the impact on others through the eyes of soil fungi.

Mike McDonald is a life-long, Nebraskan who is involved in agriculture, education and rural leadership.  He and his wife farm 200 acres east of Lincoln, NE.  Through long-term demonstration farm work with SARE, NRCS and developing three NE Peer Groups, they focus on systemic education to enhance soil health steps. Mike serves on the NRCS State Technical Committee and Nemaha Natural Resource District Board in southeast NE.  Through his work as the co-chair of the NE Healthy Soils Task Force, he is helping develop statewide economic and educational hubs that foster systemic impact with projects such as PFI-SFL. Regionally, he serves on the Board of Notill of the Plains which is a guiding influence on many producers and land-owners.

He and his wife have 50+ bee-hives, 26 fruit trees, utilize dedicated pollinators, compost, biochar and grazing paddocks on 20 acres. They have converted 180 acres from traditional bean-corn rotations to incorporating cereals, value-added cover crops and forages to increase the living roots.  The overarching focus is changing the focus of economics through the “eyes of soil and water health”, carbon production (above- and below ground) and value-added systems.

After working and growing up the family farm in central NE, he taught thirty+ years  (middle-school, secondary and college, preparing future teachers oftentimes for rural NE through STEM grants). He farmed part-time but over the past nine years, he has farmed full-time while developing learning communities.  Mike completed three degrees at the Univ. of NE-Lincoln:  Ph.D., M.Ed. and B.S. (Curriculum and Instruction; Technology; Educational Psychology; Secondary Education and Social Studies).

Connect with Mike via Email or follow Mike on Twitter.

Soil Superpower: Engaging farmer perspectives in research and policy priorities.

Alissa White is an agroecologist and transdisciplinary soil scientist who works with farmers in the northeastern US. As a Postdoctoral Associate with the Gund Institute for Environment and UVM Extension, Alissa is building research collaborations to generate usable and context-specific information for farmers and policy makers about soil health, and the links between ecosystem services and soil health indicators. Over the last 20 years, Alissa has worked in program development, grassroots fundraising, education and horticulture, as well as on farms in labor and management roles. She holds a PhD in Plant and Soil Science from UVM, and earned her BA in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Cruz. Her research places farmers as central agents in creating solutions to pressing challenges facing agriculture, highlights the role of networks in supporting farmers’ adaptive capacity, and identifies tradeoffs in ecosystem services from alternative soil management strategies.

Connect with Alissa via Email or follow UVM Extension on Twitter.

Soil Superpower: Helping farmers with his in field experience of cover crops, soil fertility, and crop management.

Brian is an Agronomist for Ducks Unlimited in South Dakota, where he works with a vast array of landowners to improve their cropping practices, implementing soil health principals and education of regenerative agriculture concepts. His work focuses around practices like cover cropping, soil testing, crop rotations, and livestock integration, to name a few.

Brian graduated with his B.S. in Wildlife Management and has masters course work in Agronomy\Crop Science from Colorado State University. He has been involved with multiple aspects of agriculture over the years from the private-consulting sector, to the governmental side of things. He most recently served as farm manager on a large-scale grain farm in Nebraska and North Dakota where he ran the operations from seed to harvest.

He also owned and managed his own farm in North Carolina, where he was recognized as a finalist for the John Deere National Young farmer of the year three times, and the North Carolina Food Hero of the Year award in 2017. Brian has a strong passion for agriculture and improving cropping practices. He loves the land and watching it produce crops and wildlife. He is extremely passionate about the outdoors and can be found in his spare-time hunting, training his labs, fishing or searching for shed antlers.

Connect with Brian via Email.

Soil Superpower: Finding down-to-earth (pun-intended), engaging, and approachable ways to communicate with diverse audiences.

Mary is the Coordinator of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition and is based in Richmond, Virginia. She has experience working with collaboratives and coalitions across the country at the intersection of economic and environmental wellbeing with a focus on working lands and rural communities. Prior to working with the Virginia Soil Health Coalition, she worked at the Center for Rural Strategies where she helped coordinate the Rural Assembly, a coalition of rural stakeholders across the US. She received her Master’s degree in Fish and Wildlife Conservation from Virginia Tech and her Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies from Brown University. Through her graduate research she worked directly with agricultural producers and conservation practitioners to gain a deeper understanding of how farmers and ranchers approach conservation and land management decisions.

Connect with Mary via Email.

Soil Superpower: Using sheep to transform sunlight into protein and healthy soils on our farm in Maryland with the help of our trusty Border Collies.

Connect with Amanda via Email.

Soil Superpower:Soil Manipulation, the ability to help farmers transform their ground into healthy soil (note: superpower does not work on rocks or stones).

Mark Gutierrez joined the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition in the spring of 2021 as the Executive Director.  Mark helps carry out their mission across the state by providing soil health resources, information, education, research and mentorship to farmers. This includes behind the scenes managing grants, coordinating with partner organizations, planning soil health schools, field tours, meetings and school visits, coordinating on-farm research, and overseeing the distribution of research results and the benefits of soil health management practices through various media.

Mark majored in Agricultural Business and Agricultural Economics graduating in 2006 with an M.S. from New Mexico State University. Following graduation Mark worked for USDA as an Agricultural Statistician and a manager of the crop insurance region for Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.  Mark loves the outdoors and spends his spare time hunting, fishing, foraging and shed hunting.

Connect with Mark via Email.