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What makes your soul sing? For rancher Mimi Hillenbrand, it seems to be a life filled with herding bison, regenerating grasslands on two continents, pursuing and sharing knowledge of the natural world, raising cattle and sheep, and understanding fish? Mimi won’t back down…well, unless cornered by her nemesis. Tune in for a refreshing conversation with Mimi and a refresher course on Public Law 114-152.

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Be Prepared! Twenty-first century Girl Scouts are. Jennifer Hoesing, Chief Development Officer for Girl Scouts – Dakota Horizons, fills us in on traditional GS activities with new twists and modern skill-building opportunities that instill courage, confidence, and character in youthful girls. Jennifer is the center of attention in today’s episode, but she’s used to that role. After all, she was Little Miss Marcus 1987 and later performed with a chorus of coonhounds.

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We cover soil issues and cover crops with Valeree DeVine, USDA-NRCS’ Resource Unit Conservationist for the Upper James Region. She explores solutions with farmers and ranchers, including the right combination of brassicas and grasses, as well as having cattle lend helping hooves. As Mentor of the Year, Valeree helps young conservationists realize their potential for success. Her key to mentoring? Listening and observing. What a great observation! Take a listen.

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Raised on a Missouri row crop and cow/calf farm, Dr. Lisa Elliott developed a passion for supporting ag producers. Now an ag economist and Co-founder & CEO of AgriVaR, she empowers farmers with cutting-edge tech for real-time risk management. Tune in as Dr. Elliott explains AgriVar’s ability to analyze production and marketing variables to quantify risk and guide decisions—from planting to sales contracts. Ag economics won’t be Greek to you after this episode.

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Embracing Lakota traditions, Acre, Inc. CEO Donita spearheads food security and sovereignty efforts for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe’s ag coop. Her words are a feast for your soul that will rekindle your appreciation and relationship with Mother Earth. At Donita’s Wóyute grocery and Wóyute2Go, her Big Mac Bowls are a feast for your belly. Donita left us in “Aah.”

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Jennifer Schmidtbauer learned to drive a John Deere 620 straight through corn rows, but her career has taken successful reinvention turns. Today, she deftly develops leadership skills for clients (and podcast hosts) through her own business, Crestcom South Dakota. Jennifer’s appreciation of ag and conservation, which factored into her career path and volunteer work, trace back to the comforting sounds of swamp frogs and red-winged blackbirds out her bedroom window on her parents’ farm. Tune in for leadership tips.

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It doesn’t take a mathematician to compute that working with Erin Yost, Developing Markets Officer at Farm Credit Services of America, adds to the prospects of success for motivated, young and beginning ag producers. Erin is in love and engaged…in love with beef and cattle and engaged with organizations including the South Dakota Beef Industry Council and South Dakota Cattlewomen. It’s a refreshing episode topped off with a Pepsi.

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rī-ˈper-ē-ən or rə-ˈper-ē-ən? Range ecologist Dr. Krista Ehlert works with SD producers to maintain and restore their riparian land. As an SDSU Extension specialist, Dr. Ehlert collaborates with NRCS and an alphabet soup of partners to implement pilot projects on SD working lands. Have a ♫ home on the range ♫ ? Sign up for SDSU Extension's "Women on the Range" program, spearheaded by Krista Ehlert that aims to educate and empower women in agriculture, particularly those involved in range management. Invasive grass issues? Dr. Ehlert has some neighborly advice.