Leopold Center News
September 26, 2025
Paul W. Johnson (1941-2021) was a state legislator, state and national agency leader and champion of private lands conservation. He is also remembered as a co-creator of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University.
Goodbye to Frederick Kirschenmann, former Leopold Center Director and Sustainable Agriculture Leader
September 19, 2025
The Leopold Center is sad to report the death of Frederick L. Kirschenmann, former director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, who passed away after a long illness, Sept. 13, 2025.
August 1, 2025
This month, Adam Janke adds a new line to his job titles as the associate director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture (LCSA) at Iowa State University, where he is an associate professor in the Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management and state wildlife specialist for Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.
“I am very pleased to introduce Adam Janke in a new position with the Leopold Center,” said LCSA Interim Director Stephen Dinsmore. “I have developed great respect for Adam’s work at the intersection of water and wildlife conservation in agricultural landscapes. I look forward to working with him -- and having his support -- to keep the Leopold Center relevant and vital.”
August 1, 2025
The 2024 annual report from the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, released this week, reviews an active year of Leopold-supported activities and research. The four-page report begins with messages from Interim Director Stephen Dinsmore, and Adam Janke, who will serve the center in a new role as associate director. The relation of people to the land is highlighted in many ways in the report’s news briefs and research summaries.
Of Interest
An Iowa Learning Farms Virtual Field Field Day, Woodchips and Water Quality: Exploring Species and Chipping Methods to Maximize Bioreactor Efficiency presented by Iowa State researchers Billy Beck and Michelle Soupir highlights findings from a project supported by the LCSA and others (February 2024).
Findings from a LCSA-supported grant were reported in the article Cover crop mixtures versus single species: Water quality and cash crop yield by Emily Waring, Mark Licht, Elizabeth Ripley, Ann Staudt, Sara Carlson and Matthew Helmers, published in the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation (December 2022).
A 10-year field-scale study on the effects of winter rye cover crops on corn and soybean yields showed no significant impacts on cash crop yields attributable to cover crop use. The study by Iowa Learning Farms and Practical Farmers of Iowa was supported by state funders and LCSA.