&
2026
speakers
sessions
TUESDAY, DEC. 1
9:00 am - 10:00 am
Keynote Speaker - Clay Jenkinson
Historian and humanities scholar Clay Jenkinson will help us celebrate MASWCD’s 90th Annual Convention through the lens of a well-known historical figure. Participants will get inspiration from leaders of the past, as we look to the future of building on our long legacy of conservation stewardship in Minnesota.
Clay Jenkinson is a public humanities scholar, a writer, a master interviewer and moderator, documentary filmmaker, and a historical impersonator (a Chautauquan). He is the author of 13 books spanning topics from Thomas Jefferson, the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Theodore Roosevelt, the literature of pandemics, and his beloved North Dakota. He is frequently featured as an expert commentator on historical documentaries, collaborating with the likes of Ken Burns and Doris Kearns Goodwin.
TUESDAY, DEC. 1
Plenary Session - 2027 Legislative Outlook: A Panel Discussion with Retiring Minnesota Legislative Leaders
Hear from a bipartisan panel of retiring legislative leaders as they reflect on their service in the legislature and the outcomes of the November elections. Panelists will also discuss the state’s budget outlook and share advice for SWCDs going into the 2027 legislative session.
10:30 am - 11:15 am
Moderator: Paul Marquart, Commissioner of Revenue
Senator Ann Rest
Senator Carla Nelson
Rep. Paul Torkelson
