Productivity and conservation go together, but farmers need access to individualized tools to meet their specific needs. Land-grant institutions are uniquely situated to use the extension network to reach farmers and provide boots on the ground. 

The bipartisan and bicameral Conservation and Innovative Climate Partnership Act of 2023 (S. 900 and H.R. 2719) would bridge the divide between the innovative research taking place at land-grant institutions and those who farm for a living by helping family farms adopt climate-friendly strategies like planting cover crops and using no-till practices. 

Specifically, the Conservation and Innovative Climate Partnership Act would:

• Enable partnerships between land-grant institutions and local farmers to increase the uptake of conservation and innovative climate practices.
• Allow farmers to voluntarily adopt practices that suit their individualized needs.
• Require land-grant institutions to partner with a non-profit, state or federal entity.
• Allow the partnership to conduct a variety of activities to support farming communities like workshops, distribution of digital materials, and tests to measure the effectiveness of conservation and innovative climate practices.
• Provide $13 million in funding for four-year grants, with a maximum grant of $400,000.

“Our farmers are some of the best stewards of our lands, and despite decades of innovative land and water conservation efforts, they have only recently been brought into the climate conversation,” said Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES) President Heather Reams. “The Conservation and Innovative Climate Partnership Act will help connect farmers and ranchers with the tools they need to continue utilizing climate-smart practices, reducing carbon emissions and creating resilient environments.”

Please use our pre-drafted letter to urge your senators and representative to co-sponsor and support S. 900 and H.R. 2719. If they have already sponsored or co-sponsored the bill, you can send a message of thanks.