We Welcome our New Executive Director!

Elizabeth Summers

Since her childhood in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Beth Summers has held a deep passion for preserving biological diversity. After receiving a B.S. in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, she worked as an itinerant biologist, following her love of avian ecology to Australia, Nevada, California, Northern Wisconsin, South Carolina, and Florida. She earned an M.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Science
from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she developed assessment models for bottomland hardwood forest restorations using avian and amphibian community metrics. She was employed by the US Army Corps of Engineers, where her work focused on assessment tools for headwater streams in
Appalachia. In 2016, Beth returned to Wisconsin with her family to start a small vegetable business called Birdsong Ridge Farm, where she and her husband have worked to build soil composition and habitat on land previously planted with conventional corn and soybeans. In her spare time, Beth enjoys playing piano and fiddle, gardening, and paddling.

Plant Native for Biodiversity

Start Today!

Photo by Matthew Simmonds – Pexels

In her New York Times article about creating a meadow in her yard, Margaret Renkl conjures up visions of back yard life between invited and welcomed visitor plant life.  Bees and birds, Monarchs and moles, play amongst her mostly native plantings.  She pays minimal attention to the yard but reaps great rewards with a great diversity of plant and animal life.  Follow the link below to read her whole article.

One Way to Do More for the Environment: Do Less With Your Yard

Driftless Clean Energy Grant

Apply Today!

This grant provides cost-shares of up to $25,000 to install energy-efficient equipment or a solar-electric system on your farm.

This grant is a partnership between CROPP and Valley Stewardship Network (VSN). Administration is
conducted by CROPP, and VSN distributes the funding to the farmers.

Farms in the following Wisconsin counties are eligible: Vernon, La Crosse, Monroe, Richland, Crawford.

Follow link below for application and additional information.

Driftless Clean Energy Grant Application

Connect to Protect Your Watershed!

These shirts make ideal gifts!  They were designed by local artists and depict local watersheds.  They are 100% organic cotton!

Visit our online shop to take a look at all five of our Valley Stewardship Network Watershed T-shirts!

We’re encouraging everyone to get to know their own watershed and all the people, plants and animals that are a part of it.

We have T-shirts for the Kickapoo, Bad Axe, Tainter Creek, Coon Creek, and West Fork of the Kickapoo watersheds.

Don’t know which watershed you’re in?  Try finding yourself on this map, or contact us at info@valleystewardshipnetwork.org.