BY TIMOTHY EGGERT
Illinois Farm Bureau’s Governmental Affairs Leadership Conference returns Feb. 15 as a one-day, in-person event to provide members with updates on issues ranging from the livestock industry and water quality to carbon markets and fertilizer prices.
This year’s theme is “Shaping the Future.” The event will be held at the Bank of Springfield Center, Springfield. The popular legislative reception will be at 6:15 p.m. at the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel.
“This is an opportunity not only for members to hear what IFB’s legislative and regulatory focus will be in 2022, but for them to be part of that process, learn from experts and staff and provide their input on what our approach should be,” said Mark Gebhards, IFB executive director of governmental affairs and commodities.
Governmental Affairs & Commodities staff will lead three, 55-minute workshop sessions, while two guest speakers will each host one-hour talks.
Keynote speakers include Chris Stirewalt, an American politics editor for The Dispatch and a former Fox News digital politics editor, and Gregg Doud, who served as the chief agricultural negotiator in the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) during the Trump Administration.
Meanwhile, the first workshop session will focus on the Illinois General Assembly, livestock issues faced by the state, rules and tips about road safety and developments in conservation, climate change and carbon markets.
The second workshop session will feature strategies for communication, energy’s impact on agriculture and ways county Farm Bureaus can partner with local government.
The third workshop session will cover updates from the IFB ACTIVATOR, programs and services aiding the livestock industry, the Adopt-a-Legislator program, water policy and the American Rescue Plan Act.
An additional session will include a presentation about fertilizer and input prices from a panel of American Farm Bureau Federation staff.
“The event ends with the state legislative reception, which is a unique opportunity for our members to speak directly to their elected representatives and to tell their story. That’s the power of Farm Bureau,” Gebhards said.
Members can register for the conference by contacting their county Farm Bureau.
This story was provided by FarmWeekNow.com.