New Jersey Local Work Group Success Story
The National Conservation Planning Partnership (NCPP) continues to build on its efforts to reinvigorate conservation planning using employee and customer feedback as its guide. A Local Work Group (LWG) project team was formed and tasked with exploring the current system and providing opportunities to reengage, enhance, and improve upon the process with the goal of assisting the partnership in creating a positive and effective process. The project team reviewed feedback, provided input, and developed many useful resources. Resources include multiple YouTube videos and a guidebook that contains Local Work Group Membership and Responsibilities, Meeting Checklist, State Bulletin, Agendas, FAQ, and Training Resources. With this project’s resources, NCPP aims to bridge the gaps and provide better communication and delivery to Local Work Groups across the country.
Joseph Lomax (District Supervisor) and Michael Kent (District Manager) of the Cape Atlantic Conservation District have been engaged in NCPP and more recently have become members of the Performance, Outcomes and Accountability action team (POA), and the Project 13 (Open Source Software) team. Being part of NCPP and its subcommittees has allowed their District to develop a deeper appreciation for NCPP and the work they have done in revitalizing the LWG process. The work products of this program provided new insights and guidance into the LWG process.
As a result of the dedication and hard work of previous NCPP committees, the Cape Atlantic Conservation District agreed to serve as a pilot project testing the process, tools, and sample questions created to initiate the locally led process of conducting a LWG. In this regard, the tools outlined within the NCPP Local Working Group Guidebook were applied and the Cape Atlantic Conservation District held three separate LWG meetings with each being held in a different county (Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland) within Southern New Jersey. The Guidebook aided the District in preparing and advertising the LWG, the steps necessary to have an effective LWG, and how to collect and analyze the data. As a result, the three LWGs conducted by the District were well attended and the District was able
to collect a vast amount of data about local resource concerns that will be used by both the District and NRCS and their partners.
Being a part of the POA and Project 13 committees have made it apparent that the data collected should not only be shared at the local level but available to anyone whether it is on the local, regional, state or federal levels. This will allow for local voices to be heard and inform them that their resource concerns are being heard by a multitude of possible partners that may be able to provide technical or financial assistance. The data collected by the District is going to be utilized and analyzed by Project 13 to test a new data collection system that will be accessible to anyone. We would like to acknowledge the opportunity that NCPP has afforded the District and as a result of NCPP’s efforts, the District was able to conduct three very successful and productive Local Working Group meetings.
A link to the NCPP Local Work Group Guidebook on the website is as follows: NCPP Local Work Group Guidebook
Have You Completed a Local Work Group Meeting Recently?
The conservation delivery system is strengthened by your continued support and feedback.
If you have completed a Local Work Group meeting recently and have feedback, comments, or suggestions, please visit www.ncpp.info and complete the "Submit Your Idea" form located in the top right-hand corner.
Thank you in advance for taking the time to improve the conservation planning process.
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