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"Beyond the Bylines": Conversation and community at SEJ 2025 |
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The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk team at SEJ 2025 in Arizona. |
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Hi ,
What an exciting couple of weeks it's been here at the Desk! After we published our big collaborative wetlands series at the start of April, "Down the Drain," most of our team jetted off to Arizona this weekend for the annual gathering of the Society of Environmental Journalists (SEJ). It's a whirlwind conference that brings together beat reporters and editors from across the country for sessions, field tours and networking, and we're immensely glad to have SEJ as a founding partner of the Desk.
As part of that collaboration and our core commitment to training journalists, the Desk hosts an annual all-day workshop at SEJ. The session this year, "Reporting on Ag & Water: Scarcity and Solutions Amid Changing Times," featured an interactive data training and two expert panels. The first was "Conservation, Solutions and Novel Approaches to Managing Water Use in Agriculture," moderated by Desk reporter Delaney Dryfoos of The Lens. The second was "Ag Policy Issues Under the New Trump Administration," led by Kristoffer Tigue of the Minnesota Star Tribune.
Kristoffer shared a few thoughts on the conference and panel:
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Desk expert journalist Kristoffer Tigue, Minnesota Star Tribune |
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"If you’re unfamiliar with the Society of Environmental Journalists’ annual conference, it’s a time when the diaspora of environmental journalists from across the nation come together to share best practices, workshop new skills or ideas and interact with one another beyond the bylines. The event is an important resource for veteran and fledgling journalists alike.
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On Wednesday, I moderated a panel to discuss the ways the new Trump Administration is affecting the agriculture industry and how journalists can best cover this moment. I was joined by the president of the Arizona Farmers Bureau, a senior environmental attorney for the state’s Office of the Attorney General, the former chief operating officer of the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the Obama administration, and the executive director of the Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative at the University of Arkansas School of Law.
The conversation spanned a host of important issues impacting farmers today, including President Trump’s tariffs on agricultural products from South America and farming equipment from China, the political tensions preventing Congress from passing a much-needed Farm Bill this year, and the feeling of uncertainty among farmers over the future of federal aid and popular government programs.
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Tigue hosting the SEJ panel "Ag Policy Issues Under the New Trump Administration."
Courtesy Sara Shipley Hiles |
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Ultimately, the panel — which was part of a larger day-long workshop hosted by the Ag & Water Desk — served as a guidepost for journalists covering the new administration’s unprecedented cuts to federal spending in recent months and challenged them to explore how this issue is playing out in their own communities.
It’s just one of the ways that both SEJ and the Ag & Water Desk are working to support journalists who work diligently to keep their communities informed on the matters that affect them."
Thanks, Kris, for your hard work putting that panel together. Beyond our workshop, the Desk hosted a "beat dinner" to bring journalists together. Executive Director Sara Shipley Hiles explains:
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Sara Shipley Hiles
Desk Executive Director |
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"Our team closed our time at the SEJ conference with a dinner celebrating Indigenous foodways Friday night. We met at the Salt River Project's Heritage Museum, recognizing the ancient Hohokam irrigation canals that supported as many as 50,000 people in the region a millennium ago.
Navajo Chef Denella Belin of Nella’s Innovative Kreations created a delicious menu featuring bison-cranberry meatballs, a red beet spring mix salad, kale chili, and Sonoran wheat berry compote for dessert.
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Dr. Melissa K. Nelson, professor of Indigenous Sustainability at Arizona State University (Turtle Mountain Chippewa), gave an inspiring talk about the Native foodways revitalization movement in North America. She shared how Native farming, seed-saving, and agricultural education are helping to strengthen Indigenous connections and restore the land. In a moment when people can feel so divided and disconnected, Dr. Nelson's talk was a call for community, health and healing.
We are thankful for the Society of Environmental Journalists and our primary funder, the Walton Family Foundation, for enabling us to gather for learning and fellowship. Watch this space as we take these lessons and make them tangible in our work.
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Indigenous fare by Navajo chef Denella Belin.
Courtesy Julia Sklar |
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Desk journalists enjoy an SEJ field trip to the deserts of Arizona. Courtesy Tegan Wendland |
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Finally, I'd like to recognize our outgoing editorial director, Tegan Wendland, as she takes a new job with Colorado Public Radio. Tegan, thank you for all you've done to make the Ag & Water Desk the thriving network it is today, and we'll see you in the West!"
Michael here again. An exciting month to be sure, and now we're all getting back to some sort of routine. Already this week, Desk reporters are getting their wheels spinning on new reporting projects. Exciting things ahead for the Desk, and we're glad to share them with you.
More next week from across the Basin!
(P.S. – check out our first-ever photo contest below. The deadline is fast approaching, and we'd love to see your wetlands photography!)
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Sincerely,
Michael Crowe
Operations Manager,
Ag & Water Desk |
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Submit to the Desk's first photo contest!
The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk has launched its first-ever photo contest. The theme of the contest is wetlands.
As our team reported on wetlands for the "Down the Drain" series, we learned about their utility, resilience, recreational import, and, yes, beauty. In fact, we liked looking at wetlands so much that we decided to launch a photo contest to see wetlands through our readers' eyes, too.
You can submit to three categories: wildlife, landscape and people/recreation. Winners could receive up to $200. The deadline is May 5, 2025. Find more details in the contest rules. We can't wait to see your best wetlands photos! |
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An aerial view of the Wax Lake Delta on the coast of Louisiana. The delta is one of the few places along Louisiana’s coast that is building land instead of losing it. Elise Plunk/Louisiana Illuminator
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| Contest rules and submission guide |
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