SINSINAWA MOUND - A group of enthusiastic volunteers has been busy pushing forward the vision of the late no-till legend and‘godfather’ of soil health David Brandt for a farmer-led, regenerative agriculture, learning center. The new center, ‘Fields of Sinsinawa,’ will be based at the Sinsinawa Mound facility in Grant County.

Following a well-attended visioning event in September of 2023, a steering committee and core team was formed, and ‘Fields of Sinsinawa’ was launched. The group is pursuing 501(c)(3) non-profit status as ‘Rural Wisconsin Health Co-op,’ and direct donations to help support the effort can be sent to P.O. Box 4, Sinsinawa, WI, 53824.

At the visioning meeting in September of 2023, Oklahoma farmer Jimmy Emmons, who had worked with Brandt prior to his untimely demise in a car accident in the spring of 2023, explained what he sees as the urgency of forming the Center.

Emmons said that “now is the time,” with the plan-et’s topsoil eroding at the rate of 1.7 billion tons-per-year. He said this is causing problems down in the Gulf of Mexico, problems with groundwater and surface water, and issues in the soil.

“We must take the opportunity and act with as much force as possible so we can bring others along,” Emmons said. “It’s not that farmers aren’t capable of caring for the health of the soils, it’s just that they haven’t heard or seen how to do it.”

Emmons said that it is his belief that the center for regenerative agriculture must have an open focus, and the group needs to en-sure that obstacles don’t pop up to deter them from the mission.

“We can’t keep losing our soil, and planting a seed isn’t enough,” Emmons said. “In order to reap our harvest, we have to nurture it and foster growth.”

Since the meeting

Since the meeting at Sinsinawa in September, the group has begun to develop ideas and a plan for the center to become “a unique, vibrant, and accessible hub where resources, demonstrations, community-building, and farmer-led learning connect healthy soil, healthy food, healthy people and a healthy planet.”

The steering committee, composed of three-to-four representatives each from Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois and Iowa, along with three sisters from the Dominicans of Sinsinawa, and four people representing national soil health groups, has developed a mission and vision statement.

Their mission statement is as follows:

“Fields of Sinsinawa is a Farmer-Led Learning Center where our mission is to demonstrate and share farming practices to promote healthy soils, protect the environment, and ensure profitability.”

Their vision statement is as follows:

“Our vision is a farmer-led learning center where dialog among peers, educators and consumers will increase the adoption of resilient agricultural production systems and ensure a legacy for the next seven generations and beyond.”

The group explains that they believe the Center should be farmer-led because farmers trust the experience of other farmers. They say that those who have a passion for caring for the land have knowledge, and their skills are essential for the future.

“This Center will facilitate genuine sharing and learning about beneficial soil care practices,” a press release for the Center explained. “This Center will be a hub for networking, connections, tools and information to promote economic and environmental health, and sustainability for the future of agriculture.”

The press release specified things that the organizers believe:

• caring for the land is sacred work

• growing healthy food begins with functioning soil

• agricultural production systems have the capacity to cycle carbon, protect and/or restore water resources, produce healthy food, and preserve productive land for future generations

• peer-to-peer networking and sharing are the best teachers

• open minds and diverse views lead to new insights and understanding

• no one has all the answers – we are all learners

• creative models of land transfer are needed to assure that farming and food production provide a profitable option for future generations.

Steering Committee members from Wisconsin include Tony Peirick, Marty Weiss, Jerry Daniels and Dani Heisler. The Core Team, which meets regularly with the Administrative Team, includes Tony Peirick and Karl Dallefeld of Iowa as co-chairs, along with Myron Sylling of Minnesota, Rick Kaesebier of Illinois, Sheila Fitzgerald of the Dominicans of Sinsinawa, and Dave Brandt’s son Jay Brandt.

Working groups

According to the press release, several working groups have been formed and meet regularly. Together, they are laying the groundwork for a launch in 2024. The working groups listed below are seeking new members, and are as follows:

• Finance/Business: working to develop a business model, budget, and fundraising plan in addition to pursuing 501(c)(3) status for the Center

• Land/Farm: have met with current farmers to understand existing operations, and are reaching out to local farmers for potential partnership on test plots and programs, and devising an operations plan for coming years. Dennis Rauen is the contact for this group at dennis@rpmfarley.com

• Facilities: requesting bids to renovate the dairy barn and equipment shed for potential use as an event center, and to re-home the bakery, and looking at options for the building that currently houses the boiler. Tony Peirick is the contact for this group at 920-390-0583

• Programming: looking at opportunities to develop ‘train-the-trainer’ programming as well as host field days and demos on site and/or at nearby farms. Jay Brandt is the contact for this group at brandtsfarm@yahoo.com

• Staffing: working to define needed staffing positions and associated job descriptions, salaries and budgets

• Administrative: scheduling meetings, keeping minutes, setting agendas, setting up a website and social media, and enabling communications.