In the last 200 years, much of Iowa's biologically diverse, self-sustaining native landscape has been transformed into agricultural lands that have lost their original resilience. How did this happen, and what can be done to restore and ensure the environmental health of both agricultural and natural lands? Tending Iowa's Land: Pathways to a Sustainable Future is the first book to consider today's multiple environmental challenges to Iowa's soils, hydrology, climate, and native biodiversity as an interacting whole. Following an introduction to the book by its editor, Connie Mutel, two of its chapter authors - Professors Lisa Schulte Moore and Tom Rosburg - will summarize the tremendous historic changes in Iowa's native soils and ecological communities. They then will propose alternatives for restoring the resilience and long-term health and functionality of both Iowa's agricultural and natural systems. Time will be allowed for discussion. Tending Iowa's Land is the recipient of the 2023 MIPA award for the Best Midwestern Nature Book.
