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Originally Published July 7, 2025

The National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD)'s 2025 Summer Conservation Forum & Tours  will be held in Milwaukee, Wis., from July 25-29, 2025 to explore the theme "Forward Together."

The Luncheon will feature keynote speaker Mike Lessiter, President of Lessiter Media, an ag media company whose brands are recognized as a trusted source for conservation districts and the producers they serve. Mike will speak Monday, July 28, on the key elements of no-till history and why it’s a blueprint for future change. He will also examine critical success factors needed to sustain and grow the practices, and the key role of conservation districts in making successful transitions and adoption a reality.

View the full speaker agenda and topics here.

Reserve your spot at nacdnet.org.

Mike Lessiter, a second-generation ag journalist, worked in trade media in Illinois for 12 years before returning to his parents’ family publishing company, Lessiter Media, Brookfield, Wis.. His father, Frank, who produced the first edition of No-Till Farmer in 1972, has been called the “Johnny Appleseed of Conservation Ag practices.” Since No-Till Farmer was launched around a mission of sharing knowledge of how to make no-till farming work, the number of U.S. acres under the practice has grown 33-fold to 110 million acres.

Mike joined his dad in 2003 and oversaw the expansion of its Ag Division, including the acquisition of 5 ag properties and the launch of several niche media and events to complement its No-Till Farmer flagship title. He was named president of Lessiter Media in 2007.

Today, Lessiter Media offers myriad brands to the ag community: No-Till Farmer, Conservation Tillage Guide, Strip-Till Farmer, Cover Crop Strategies, Farm Equipment, Farm Innovations and Precision Farming Dealer. Meanwhile, its grassroots and farmer-to-farmer conferences include: the 34th Annual National No-Tillage Conference, 11th Annual Farm Equipment Dealership Minds Summit, 11th Annual Precision Farming Dealer Summit, 6th Annual Ag Equipment Intelligence’s Executive Briefing, 12th Annual National Strip-Tillage Conference and 7th Annual National Cover Crop Summit. The company also produces two video broadcast shows, On the Record and Conservation Ag Update.

In 2024, Mike was named president of The Conservation Ag Foundation, a newly formed not-for-profit group created to further advance farmer-to-farmer sharing and education on the transitions to conservation ag practices. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.