TLC hosts Common Ground virtual networking event for farmers and landowners
The Land Conservancy of McHenry County and Liberty Prairie Foundation are hosting the annual Common Ground networking event for farmers and landowners from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, July 23.
This year, the event will be virtual and held via Zoom conference. Participants can register at ConserveMC.org.
The Common Ground Gathering is an event that brings together farmers and farmland owners who care about producing healthy food for the community. The event was created to provide a forum for farmers and landowners to form working relationships resulting in more land being used to grow food in a regenerative way.
This year's guest presenter is Marty Travis of Spence Farm in Fairbury, Ill.
Travis is a former furniture maker who inherited an old family farm and decided to return to farming but in a sustainable way. The documentary "Sustainable" told his family's inspiring story of growing foods that the city of Chicago and its restaurant community were hungry for.
The hosts describe the event as 10 percent informational and 90 percent interactive and fun. Some participants will be giving a "nutshell" presentation which gives them two minutes to describe what they have, what they want or share their farm dream.
Examples include farmers looking for someone to transition the farm to when they retire, landowners who have land they'd like to see sustainably farmed, or a new farmer who has a plan but needs a mentor or land to get started.
The Land Conservancy of McHenry County is a member-based private nonprofit dedicated to preserving natural, scenic and agricultural land. Since 1991, The Land Conservancy has helped protect over 2,500 acres of McHenry County's prairies, wetlands and woodlands by working with private landowners, communities and other partners. They do this by accepting donated conservation easements and direct acquisition of property (through purchase or donation).
For information on the nonprofit, visit conservemc.org or www.facebook.com/ConserveMC/.