Conservation Drainage Network Organizing Committee 2023
*Organizing Committee Chair: Jeppe Kjaersgaard
**Organizing Committee Vice-Chair: Keegan Kult
Name | Institution | Committee Member Representation |
Jeppe Kjaersgaard* | Minnesota Department of Agriculture | NCERA-217 Past Chair |
Keegan Kult** | Ag Drainage Management Coalition | Industry representative |
Lindsay Pease | University of Minnesota | CDN Past Chair |
Jane Frankenberger | Purdue University | NCERA-217 Vice Chair |
Abigail Tomasek | Oregon State University | NCERA-217 Chair |
Chris Hay | Iowa Soybean Association | Non-profit organization representative |
John McMaine | South Dakota State University | At-large |
Tom Christensen | Ecosystem Services Exchange | CDN Growth Committee Chair |
Vinayak Shedekar | The Ohio State University | Education/Extension Chair |
Advisors | | |
Alan Gillespie | P.E. National Water Management Engineer, USDA-NRCS | NRCS representative |
Kevin King | USDA-ARS, Ohio | ARS representative |
Katie Flahive | U.S. EPA | EPA representative |
Brittany Hanrahan | USGS, Indiana | USGS representative |
The Organizing Committee guides the Conservation Drainage Network, including planning the annual meeting, organizing any other events or projects, and communicating with the network. The Organizing Committee consists of the 6 or 7 members listed below, 4 of whom are selected through specific stakeholders and projects (NCERA-217, affiliated projects, the drainage industry) and others who are selected by the current Committee based on nominations from network members. A Chair, who is normally the past Chair of NCERA-217, ensures that the Committee meets and plans the meeting.
- NCERA-217 Chair
- NCERA-217 Past Chair (CDN Chair)
- Industry representative, selected by ADMC
- Affiliated project(s)
- Non-profit organization representative
- Other agency representative (state or local)
- At large member
- CDN Past Chair
Advisors
Representatives from NRCS, USGS, EPA, and ARS serve with the Organizing Committee as Advisors or Liaisons. The Organizing Committee may choose to appoint Advisors or Liaisons from other organizations as well.
Organizing Committee member responsibilities:
- Be responsible for moving the Conservation Drainage Network and its goals forward. Strategize about new people to engage, issues to address, and activities to undertake.
- Be a public face for the organization so people seeking information can find someone to contact.
- Plan the annual meeting, including suggesting speakers to invite or issues that should be discussed to move agricultural drainage management forward.
- Propose changes to the structure or the organization when needed, which will be brought to the larger group if broader input is appropriate.
Organizing Committee organization and terms:
- Terms are generally 2 years, with multiple terms allowed. NCERA-217 Chair and Past-Chair are 1-year positions.
- New Organizing Committee members will be selected by the current Organizing Committee based on nominations from network members. A goal is broad representation and ensuring that Organizing Committee members are engaged and actively contributing to the Task Force. The first Organizing Committee members were selected in 2019 by vote of participants at the Agricultural Drainage Management Systems Task Force – NCERA-217 annual meeting in Moorhead, Minnesota.
- NRCS, ARS, and other advisory representatives will be listed on the website and participate in all Organizing Committee activities.
- The Organizing Committee will meet in person immediately after each annual meeting, and by web meeting or conference call at other times. Meeting frequency will be irregular, becoming more frequent as required to plan the annual meeting.
- The Past Chair of NCERA-217 will be the Organizing Committee Chair and is responsible for convening Organizing Committee meetings. The Vice Chair will be selected by Committee members, and is responsible for written communication as well as supporting Organizing Committee functioning together with the Chair.
Past Chairs of CDN Organizing Committee
2022-2023: Linsdsay Pease, University on Minnesota
2021-2022: Kelly Nelson, University of Missouri
2020-2021: Ehsan Ghane, Michigan State University
2019-2020: Jeff Strock, University of Minnesota