BOARD OF TRUSTEES Beth Alm, Kansas City Michele M. Risdal-Barnes, Springfield Rick Boeshaar, Shawnee Mission, Kansas Jeanne Steinberg Bolinger, Kansas City John Brands, St. Louis Carl Freiling, Ashland Debra Filla, Kansas City Jeanette Hartshorn, Kansas City Diane Herndon, St. Louis Ben Kniola, St. Louis Steve Mahfood, St. Louis Steve McMillan, St. Louis Abby Moreland, St. Louis Jon T. Moses, Kansas City Carolyn K. Polk, St. Louis Robbie Price, Columbia Fritz Riesmeyer, Kansas City Jon M. Risdal, Springfield Sharon Shahid, Washington D.C./St. Louis Jean Wagner, Kansas City Wallis W. Warren, Beaufort Nancy Ylvisaker, St. Louis
We talk a lot about the urgency of our mission—a driving force I’ve previously explained in these pages as the difference between having a mission and being on a mission. There has never been more work to do and less time to do it. Thankfully, we live in an era of rapid advances in science and technology. Our team in Missouri is leaning in. A big part of The Nature Conservancy’s role in conservation is to take those first, sometimes scary steps forward. We take risks so that everyone can reap the rewards.
As technology evolves, we are in a research-and-development phase. We are testing, improving and assessing cutting-edge applications for conservation. You can read about a handful of examples—our drone at Dunn Ranch Prairie, monitors in streams, high-tech digital tools everywhere—in this edition of Missouri Action and Impact . Some tests will fail. Some will be wildly successful. We need to keep investing because several could be game changers. I cannot tell you how much pride I feel watching our staff embrace this work. Testing new technologies in new applications can be rewarding but also frustrating. It requires dedication to continuous learning and refinement, and it requires tenacity. It’s easier to do things the way we’ve always done them. I’m proud of our team’s tenacity, their creativity and their constant quest for “even better.” If you want to know why this is such an urgent issue for us, it’s because we’re losing. We’re still losing species at rapid rates and landscapes we’ll never get back. That motivates us every day, because we are a team that never settles for losing by less. We want to win the game. That will undoubtedly require new technologies and new tactics. I’m confident they’re out there, and I know our team will find them and add them to our game plan. We are going to win.
Adam McLane Missouri State Director
Printed on 100% PCW recycled, process chlorine-free paper, creating the following benefits: 27.5 trees preserved for the future 2,128.8 gallons of water not used 4,133.7 pounds of CO 2 prevented The Nature Conservancy is a private, nonprofit 501(c)(3) international membership organization. Its mission is to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends. The Nature Conservancy meets all of the Standards for Charity Accountability established by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. The BBB Wise Giving Alliance is a national charity watchdog affiliated with the Better Business Bureau.
THIS PAGE Adam McLane © Kristy Stoyer/TNC COVER The setting sun bursts into the semi gloom of a small forest in Gray Summit. © David DeNagel
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