Saturday, August 8-10a

MASER MONARCH LODGE - 22785 Nature Center Road, Spirit Lake

10:00 AM[MORNING WELCOME] Coffee & Social

Gather for morning coffee, refreshments, and informal networking prior to the main presentations.

10:30 AM[KEYNOTE PRESENTATION] Environmental Monitoring: The Foundation for a Healthier and More Resilient Iowa

Speaker:Dr. Larry Weber — Edwin B. Green Chair in Hydraulics & Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Director, IIHR – Hydroscience & Engineering, University of Iowa.

About the Speaker:

Larry Weber serves as the Director of IIHR – Hydroscience and Engineering, the nation’s oldest academic research program focused on hydraulics, hydrology, and fluid mechanics. He is the co-founder of the Iowa Flood Center (2009) and co-founded the Iowa Nutrient Research Center (2013). More recently, in 2026, Weber co-founded the Iowa INSIGHT program aimed at linking environmental pollution to human health.

Presentation Overview:

In his talk, Dr. Weber will discuss efforts to expand environmental monitoring and forecast systems throughout Iowa, with an emphasis on Northwest Iowa, to improve community resiliency and the health of the people who live and work here.

11:30 AM Break

11:45 AM [DISCUSSION] Fixing Water Quality Starts on the Farm

Presenters: The Lobe Rangers (Founded by James Hepp, Zack Smith, and Matt Bormann).

The Lobe Rangers are a non-partisan collective of Iowa farmers named after the Des Moines Lobe geological region. They advocate for sustainable agriculture, soil health, and proactive water quality solutions—arguing that voluntary conservation incentives alone are insufficient to address nutrient runoff.

12:45 PM Break

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

Community Partner Discussion and Next Steps

Discussion with those in attendance on next steps for future Boji Clean Water Jams and associated events focusing on improving water quality in the State of Iowa.

2:00 PM[WRAP-UP] Concluding Remarks

Closing summary for the daytime informational sessions.