It's in Our Nature

Sara Parker Pauley’s path to becoming the first woman to lead the Missouri Department of Conservation didn’t start where you might expect. She earned degrees in journalism and law from the University of Missouri, but an early choice to explore her love for nature made her “come alive.”   

As she prepares to retire, she joins The Nature Conservancy’s Missouri State Director Adam McLane to talk about the rewards of a career in conservation, offer practical tips for getting started and bust some myths. 

Curiosity about people and nature has taken Kansas City-based photographer Randy Hudson around the world.

He offers practical tips for getting started and describes the methods and philosophy behind his images, including his award-winning entry in The Nature Conservancy’s 2023 Global Photo Contest. 

Keith Bennett, our candidate for the World’s Most Interesting Man, chats with Missouri State Director Adam McLane about the origins of his nickname, mushroom hunting and how he learned all those Latin plant names. Oh, and that time he was offered a spot opening for Willie Nelson.

Keith and Adam cover some ground in this episode. Whether

Wow, what a year! Missouri State Director Adam McLane recaps seven highlights from a packed twelve months.

If you want to catch up on what TNC is doing in Missouri, from new Habitat Strike Teams to hosting tarantula research, have a listen.

This was a year that will guide much of what we do in the future to reach some big goals by 2030.

So, if you want to see where TNC is going, this is the place to start.

In 2019, Missouri State Director Adam McLane and a group of Nature Conservancy supporters visited our TNC staff in Tanzania. This year, three Tanzania staffers returned the favor and visited Dunn Ranch Prairie in northwest Missouri.

Adam sat down with Tanzania’s Country Director Lucy Magembe, Alphonce Mallya and Lucy Mlagala at our Little Creek Farmhouse to talk about the budding connection between the Missouri and Tanzania programs, the power of nature and why everyone should visit Tanzania.

Episode 14: Brett Perkins is part of a younger generation of The Nature Conservancy’s staffers in Missouri, but his history runs deep. His father, Dennis Perkins, helped introduce bison at TNC’s Dunn Ranch Prairie more than a decade ago, when Brett was still in high school.

The elder Perkins is still considered TNC’s “bison whisperer” in Missouri, but he sees the time coming when his son and others will take over. TNC’s Missouri State Director Adam McLane sat down with Dennis and Brett to talk about the history of bison at Dunn Ranch Prairie, what it’s like working together now and how technology, such as drones and artificial intelligence, is shaping the future.

It’s an insider’s look at TNC’s flagship preserve in Missouri, told by a father and son who know it as well as anyone.

Ask McLane Anything. Episode 1: In the first episode of this new series, Missouri State Director Adam McLane answers questions submitted by you, our listeners.

The first question asks how far out of balance the natural world is right now. The second question came from Adam's sister and she wanted to know about his craziest animal encounter stories. Finally, we wrap this first episode with ways you can help the declining Monarch population by planting native plants in your home garden - and talk about the ways TNC is helping make an impact at our prairie in northern Missouri. 

Do you have questions for Adam? You can submit those HERE. 

In this episode, Missouri state director, Adam McLane recaps seven highlights of 2022. It is far from everything that happened, but it is a great reminder of the ways your support helps people and nature thrive.

All year, we here at The Nature Conservancy in Missouri carefully track our progress, writing down the acres of land revived by prescribed fire, miles of streambank restored, partnerships built and dozens of other metrics that guide us toward our conservation goals. And yet, the end of the year is a time to reflect on the past twelve months, which always feels like a marvel. It is our annual reminder of how much a group of dedicated people can accomplish in a short amount of time.

We hope you take pride and ownership in those accomplishments, especially after a year like 2022. It was one for the books, with new staff hired, exciting new properties saved for conservation and the close of a campaign whose success will fuel work far into the future. 

It’s in Our Nature goes on location to visit our friends at the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture.

CCUA cofounder Adam Saunders and board member Robbie Price join the podcast to talk about the power of gardening. The conversation takes place in the Columbia Agriculture Park, a 10-acre campus that is home to a sprawling urban garden, Columbia’s famed farmers market and the nerve center for CCUA’s array of food-focused programs. 

Learn how a composting program started by University of Missouri students grew into a multimillion-dollar force that teaches people to grow vegetables in public housing, connects veterans with the land and supplies tens of thousands of pounds of produce to Columbia’s food pantry each year.

We all know that nature has a unique ability to improve our health, both mentally and physically. In this episode, we’re talking with Jeanne Carbone—the supervisor of therapeutic horticulture at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Jeanne has helped create a special program in the Japanese Garden at the Missouri Botanical Garden that was designed to aid participants in experiencing the calming, restorative powers of nature. 

Hear from Jeanne how this program came to life and how it’s helped everyone from cancer patients to nurses on the frontline during COVID.