by DALC Staff | Mar 17, 2025 | Advocacy, Staff Updates
“How are you doing… with all this… you know… everything, government, stuff like that?” This is a question I get a lot these days – my friends and colleagues are checking in with me, and with DALC.
Since he took office just two months ago, President Trump has issued an unprecedented number of executive orders and administrative actions that touch on almost every part of the federal government. And those actions trickle down to all of us, creating real and potentially long-lasting uncertainty and challenges for land trusts
DALC does have federal funding, and it’s been frozen and unfrozen. We have no idea what will happen to the farm bill, which provides a lot of dollars for land protection and conservation practices. DALC collaborates with many agencies and organizations where workforce reductions have been devastating. Individually, we all have friends and colleagues who have lost their jobs in the last two months.
In a word, it’s brutal. So what do we do? Well, there is only so much we have control over.
We’re building financial resilience by diversifying our funding streams. We rely on annual fundraising from individuals (thank you!); foundation grants; federal, state, and local grants and programs; and we have a healthy operating reserve. We’ve used generous bequests to establish sustaining reserve funds for land management, the Driftless Trail, and land protection.
We are advocating for nonprofits and the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. Nonprofits can and do lobby our legislators (though there are strict limits on how much of that we can do). I’m working to get to know our legislators, make sure they know how chaos in the federal government affects local livelihoods, and make sure they know how important state funds for conservation are in Wisconsin. You can help too – visit knowlesnelson.org and let your representatives know how you’ve benefited from this program!
We are staying educated – the Land Trust Alliance has been a great resource in keeping us up to date on what’s happening in the federal landscape and how it affects us. We talk to our peers at other land trusts to learn how they are handling this new landscape. And we talk to you through personal calls, events, and field trips, to understand how our community is impacted.
Finally, we’re just trying to stay calm and focus on the long game. DALC is in the business of forever. We will make it through this crisis and others to come. We will lean into our communities, and we will adapt and stay flexible. This could be painful, and it’s already stressful. But here’s what else we’ll be doing: watching families enjoy the Driftless Trail, gathering with neighbors at sunset to learn about the night sky, watching hoary puccoon flowers and bird’s foot violets carpet a freshly burned prairie, and getting a hug from a landowner that just completed a conservation easement. I love our work, even during the hard times, and I know you do too!
Written by Jen Filipiak, Executive Director
by DALC Staff | Feb 10, 2025 | Staff Updates
I have always been drawn to the first 15 minutes of a movie. That is when everything starts to unfold — you meet the characters, get a glimpse of the world they’re in, and start to feel the excitement of what’s to come. There is a sense of possibility, surprise, and discovery in those moments.
Starting a new job is a lot like that opening scene in a movie. You choose your new location, redefine who you are, and start building the relationships that will shape your journey ahead.
In my first three months as the Program Manager of the Southern Driftless Grasslands program, I have been inspired by the diverse beauty of Wisconsin’s Southern Driftless landscape, learned more about my own leadership style and values, and worked alongside amazing conservation partners. All this has been possible thanks to the incredible conservation foundation laid by those who came before me. It has been a truly exciting first 15 minutes.
Spring is nature’s page- or scene-break — a chance to edit your own story. An opportunity to identify new places
to explore, remind yourself of your values, and choose to surround yourself with people who you would like to define your future ‘you.’
So, what do you want your next first 15 minutes to look like?
Andy Bingle, Southern Driftless Grasslands Program Manager
Photos courtesy of Andy Bingle – furthest left in both.
by DALC Staff | Jan 3, 2025 | Conservation, Land Management, Land Protection
January is a month for introspection and planning. If you are a gardener like me, you spend the depths of winter perusing seed catalogs dreaming of the smell of green and growing things to come. At the Driftless Area Land Conservancy, we also spend time in January planning our work in the year to come.
Including the recently announced Wintergreen project, we are actively working with 18 landowners to protect approximately 2500 acres. In addition, we are reviewing new inquiries from over 40 landowners interested in permanently protecting over 4700 acres in the Driftless Area.
Just as you consider many factors such as sunlight, soil type, productivity, and space to narrow down which varieties to grow in your garden, we consider many factors when determining which conservation opportunities to pursue each year. Some considerations that impact our planning include the size of the property, relationship to other protected lands, presence of threatened habitats and endangered species, and other unique features.
Size of the Property
Large properties can support more diversity and are at higher risk of being subdivided than smaller properties. But this doesn’t mean that small properties are ineligible for a conservation easement, especially if that smaller property has other features making it unique.
Relationship to Other Protected Lands
Connectivity makes plant and animal communities more resilient to change. For this reason, we prioritize projects that are adjacent to lands that are already protected or that could create corridors connecting protected lands to one another.
Presence of Threatened Habitats and Endangered Species
Prairies and oak savannas are some of the rarest community types in the world, and the Driftless Area is a patchwork containing many small prairie and oak savanna remnants. Protecting these remnants is of high importance in order to protect the remaining natural diversity of plants and animals. Furthermore, documented evidence of threatened, endangered, or special concern species adds impact to a conservation project.
Other Unique Features
Trout streams, wetlands, caves and rock outcroppings, and prime agricultural soils are just a few of the additional unique features we consider when prioritizing conservation projects.
Careful planning in the winter can lead to a beautiful flowering of conservation projects throughout the year, ensuring we spend our limited garden of time on those areas that will make the biggest impact on our mission: maintaining and enhancing the health, diversity and beauty of Southwest Wisconsin’s natural and agricultural landscape through permanent land protection and restoration.
Written by Shannon Roznoski, Conservation Coordinator
by DALC Staff | Aug 29, 2024 | Conservation, Land Protection, Preserves
In early August, 2024 we welcomed a brand-new Nature Preserve: Dragon Woods! This beautiful oak woodland in New Glarus is a cooperative project of DALC and the BadgerLand Foundation, which jointly co-manage the nearby Wild Oaks Preserve. We are grateful to the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program and Dane County’s Conservation Fund Grant Program for making this purchase possible. Find more details about Dragon Woods in the sidebar below, and read on for former landowner Alice Berlow’s reflections on this magical place.
About Dragon Woods
- Location: Near New Glarus, off of County Road U, is less than half a mile away from Wild Oaks Preserve.
- Size: 31 acres
- Land acknowledgement: According to Native Land Digital, Dragon Woods and the surrounding land was historically inhabited by the indigenous people of the Fox, Ho-Chunk, Sauk, Kickapoo, and more.
- Highlights: This lovely oak woodland has a resilient understory of native plants with limited invasive brush – historically common in the Driftless, but a rarity today! This ecosystem supports a wide diversity of birds and insects. In an area with increasing development pressure from nearby cities and towns, Dragon Woods adds another piece to a matrix of protected land, creating a vital corridor of sustainably managed habitat and green space.
- Visitor guidelines: This is a very recent acquisition, and we are working on signage, trails, and access considerations. Please keep an eye on DALC’s website, social media, and e-news for updates. If you are interested in hearing about volunteer opportunities, please contact Fil Sanna at filsanna@yahoo.com.
Here are three things to know about Dragon Woods:
- For eons, countless sentient beings, including animals and people I love, have walked these lands. And now, countless more, like you, will be able to enjoy Dragon Woods because Driftless Area Land Conservancy (DALC) is stewarding this land according to the organization’s three pillars: conserve, care, and connect.
- Every time you tread lightly here, you will never walk the same path twice. Every being you walk with, will always experience the land in their own unique ways. Let them.
- A dragon lives here, there’s no need to fear them. This dragon is generous, compassionate, adventurous, benevolent and is as curious about you, as you are about them. If you catch a glimmer of even their shadow, consider yourself lucky. Hold that gift close and share it with someone who’ll cherish it too.
And now here are somethings to know about me:
Selling these acres into permanent conservation was my only option because active, responsible land stewardship aligns with my core values.
The land ethic I live by was instilled and informed by my parents (Paul and Emy Gartzke, may their memories be a blessing). It’s one that is based in love for the beauty of this part of Wisconsin and being able to share it inclusively with the community. Holding onto these acres as a private owner had begun to feel selfish, entitled, and short-sighted. But now, with DALC’s permanent public access, many more people can enjoy the land, and I can always return to visit and appreciate the gift that was given to me and the gift it is now for you.
For me, conserving green spaces today in the Driftless is critical because of the rapid and encroaching building development of Madison, Fitchburg, and Verona. I grew up in the area and have seen how fast farmlands, waterways, and wooded lots are being turned into developments and large-scale industrial agricultural operations.
It’s important to me that people of all ages have access to green spaces in order to have the kinds of outdoor opportunities and experiences that I had. It’s here in Dragon Woods where my younger self wandered in exploration, physical activity, wonder, awe, curiosity, and connection.
That’s still what the outdoors does for me. These are places where I can get lost, turn off my phone, take deep breaths, dream, think clearly, amble shod or barefoot over the roots, through the grasses and on snowy trails. To feel how the air smells and listen to how light plays on any given day, in any given season over time.
Even though forever conservation was the clear path for me in this land transaction, it wasn’t always easy. But with time and grace, ease and excitement grew. DALC, with its stellar professional reputation and network, secured funds to help support the purchase of Dragon Woods. I’m very grateful to Wisconsin’s Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, the Department of Natural Resources, and Dane County for their contributions. And, of course, to the board and staff at DALC, the BadgerLand Foundation, and all their collective supporters and community members who made this transfer possible, fair, and secure.
But by far, I am most grateful to my parents, who purchased this land in the 1960s and, in doing so, ended up paying it forward, as these parcels have turned out to be pivotal in DALC’s effort to create a green necklace in this area. Dragon Woods, I think, is a name worthy of such a pendant in a necklace of conservation.
And the mythical dragon of Dragon Woods? The story begins when the dragon was memorialized as a sculpture. A likeness and a gift handed down to me from my mom; they have the right to live in these woods forever, though they’re rarely, if ever, seen.
This dragon has many things to say–wisdom and stories to share about the land. About glaciers, constellations, fire, rust, footsteps, sledding, and climbing trees. Owls in hollows, mushrooms, moss and thorns, snakes in the grass, bats in roost, deer trails, lone fox, and circling red-tailed hawks. And there will be many more stories to come in many more shapes, sizes, and languages, only and all because of you and for you. That’s the true legacy of Dragon Woods.
Written by Alice Berlow (née Gartzke)
by DALC Staff | Aug 3, 2024 | Conservation, Land Protection, Preserves
Sometimes it’s easy to imagine that the best parts of nature are far away, hidden on high mountaintops or secret valleys, only reachable after a trek and a scramble. But our favorite wild places are often right in our own backyards – and having nature so close to us makes it that much easier to take the initiative to head out and care for it. That’s exactly what DALC has seen with Erickson Conservation Area.
Nestled within the village of Argyle, bordered by the high school on one side and the Pecatonica River on the other, Erickon’s 220 acres of wetland, prairie, and oak savanna has long been a fixture in the community. Volunteer Neale Tollakson says his history with the land goes back over 60 years.
“I used to come out here when I was 8, 9, 10 years old, birdwatching,” Neale describes. “The wetland, the sloughs, the river were places to go duck hunting.”
Interested in local history from a young age, Neale would also search for Native American artifacts. Nearby archeological sites like burial mounds and rock shelters show millennia of human use in these parts. Historic Argyle, an organization that Neale is a part of, is working on an updated history of the region including glacial records and information on the indigenous people of the area – stay tuned!
Neale wasn’t alone in his adventures out at Erickson. Community members would cross-country ski in winter, picnic under the shade of oak trees in the summer, and hike out along the railroad bed – the train stopped running around the 1930s. A series of farmers had rented the property, but periodic flooding made for poor crops. Neale recalls beef cattle grazing there and corn being planted in dry years, but gradually the unproductive fields were abandoned.
Then the land was purchased by Alex and Mary Erickson. Alex was an enthusiastic conservationist who planted tamaracks, swamp white oaks, and perennial shrubs to provide food for wildlife. “Seeing this land protected so that it will inspire kids and the Argyle community has always been a dream of Alex’s,” Mary shared.
That dream was realized in 2012, when Alex and Mary sold the land that would become Erickson Conservation Area to DALC in a generous bargain sale. The funding balance was made up by a grant from the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program .
A significant reason DALC decided to take the plunge and own a nature preserve was due to the steadfast support of the local community. From the start, Erickson has had a dedicated crew of volunteers carrying out projects and welcoming the community to explore this Ambassador Property.
Over the past twelve years, stewardship and access projects have ticked steadily along. An AmeriCorps crew built a boardwalk through the wetland. A kiosk was designed and installed. Trails were diligently mowed. A few areas that had still been in agriculture were planted into prairie, and prescribed fire returned to the landscape.
Today, with a strong foundation of stewardship in place, restoration is progressing rapidly.
Visitors might be surprised by some of the work. Intensive forestry clearing is planned across several units of the property, which will result in the removal of many native shrubs and stands of trees.
Opening up these areas will make for much more expansive vistas for hikers and skiers to admire. But that’s not the main reason for the work. “Visual line of sight goes beyond the visitor experience,” explains Zach Pacana, DALC’s Land Management Specialist. “If you’re a bird or an insect, you can’t necessarily see beyond a wall of trees,” so reducing density will allow animals to move more freely between areas of habitat. In addition, thinning shrubs and trees will create better conditions for prescribed fire, a vital tool for suppressing invasive species and encouraging native plants.
And behind the scenes, we’re ramping up even more.
“The changes that are happening are not always something you can see,” Neale notes. “There are changes in DALC – to obtain more funding, acquire more properties, hire more people, and get more work done.”
In 2012, Erickson was our first-ever Nature Preserve and one of the biggest, most challenging projects we had ever done. It was the start of something new – something that would never have been possible without the support of an incredible community. We’re so grateful for volunteers past and present (and future!) who care for this wonderful place, and make it possible for us to protect and steward more land across the Driftless.
by DALC Staff | Jun 3, 2024 | Conservation Easements, Legacy Society
Judy and John Lovaas embarked on a mission to find land in the Driftless Area in 1988, driven by Judy’s deep-rooted passion for land preservation. This passion was ignited when the farmland adjacent to their home in McHenry, Illinois, was sold and earmarked for a sprawling subdivision. Before they departed, Judy valiantly fought to safeguard their property in McHenry County, which housed the historic Holcombville School, a quaint one-roomed schoolhouse dating back to 1858.
“Judy grew up helping on her grandparents’ farm in the summers, developing a love of horses, rural life, and preserving the past,” shared Nancy Nichols and Lisa Cvengros, the current owners of the former Lovaas property.
“They were intentional about the land they wanted to purchase and preserve forever. Blackhawk Lake Recreation Area is across the road, and there had been talk about sectioning up the land around here into smaller lots,” the new caretakers explained.
Nancy grew up just down the road, and the couple knew the Lovaas’s for years, helping out at times and enjoying the company of their neighbors. After John’s passing and Judy’s health declined, they offered to purchase the land from Judy in 2023. Judy knew their shared passion for conservation and that Nancy and Lisa would love and care for this land the way she had.
“Judy loved her flowers and bluebirds. She worked at preserving the oak savannas and had a lovely prairie,” Lisa shared, underscoring Judy’s deep connection to the land.
Nancy and Lisa are slowly but surely trying to regain the trail system and continue with the preservation that Judy started. “Judy and John had seen what was happening off of 18 West with the development and the windmills along with their fight in McHenry County, so there was no question that they would put their land in a conservation easement with DALC to protect it from development forever.”
A Lasting Legacy
Judy passed away on March 25, 2024, at Crest Ridge Assisted Living in Dodgeville. She left a generous bequest to the Driftless Area Land Conservancy, cementing her legacy as a conservationist dedicated to their cherished Driftless Region.
Judy’s bequest, a testament to her unwavering commitment to land preservation, has significantly strengthened the financial health of DALC. Judy’s legacy is not just a financial boost, but a beacon of hope, helping DALC to protect land forever.
We are profoundly grateful to everyone who has preserved their land through conservation easements. We are humbled by those like Judy, who have entrusted the Driftless Area Land Conservancy with their legacy. Your support ensures the enduring impact of our work, with the most meaningful gifts being made through bequests after passing. Your contributions are the lifeblood of our mission, and we are honored to be the custodians of your trust.
