It's in Our Nature The Nature Conservancy in Missouri

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
it’s tips for finding native seeds or why anyone who hunts should be a conservationist, there are no lulls in the conversation.

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.