SPEAKERS 2025
Dr. Ben Edwards
Ben Edwards was born and raised in Belton, Texas. He grew up watching
both of his granddads practice “old school” country doctoring. They were
general practitioners who might be found doing anything from delivering a
baby, to amputating a leg, to sitting for an entire hour counseling a crying
patient. Early on, Ben knew that he wanted to be that kind of doctor, one
who took care of the entire family from cradle to grave. He wanted to work with the
whole body and the whole family.
He received his undergraduate degree from Baylor University, and later
graduated from UT-Houston Medical School. Then he and his wife, Jamie,
moved to Waco to complete his training at the Waco Family Practice
Residency Program where he was Chief Resident. After graduation, the Lord
directed them to West Texas and the Garza County Health Clinic in Post, TX.
There, Dr. Ben had a divine appointment that would change the course of my life.
Through witnessing an “incurable” disease in his nurse practitioner actually
be fully reversed, he was introduced to an area of medicine had never been
taught. It was time for him to move on to what the Lord designed him to be -
a physician who treats the whole patient - mind, body, and spirit.
R.N. HOPPER
R. N. is a continuous no-till farmer from Petersburg, TX. He and his wife, Lyndi, live on the farm with their children and grow sorghum, cotton, wheat, and cattle. R. N. is one of the founders of No-Till Texas. He is dedicated to continually finding ways to improve cropping practices that promote the sustainability of our farms and communities.
DARRYL BIRKENFELD, PH.D.
Darryl completed a Ph.D. in social ethics from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California in 2002. Later that same year, he began work as an OC contractor, and has served as the organization’s Executive Director since 2003. Darryl and his wife Joann live in Nazareth, Texas. On Jan.1, 2023, Darryl transitioned to OC Deputy Director and Stewarding Natural Resource Program Director.
Nick Vos
Nick Vos was born in South Africa where he grew up on a vegetable farm in the Limpopo Province. Moved to the USA in 2006, became a US citizen in 2011, and currently resides in Hugoton, Kansas, with his wife Johanna, and their two girls Gianna and Nikayla. Nick farms a multitude of row crops, cover crops and his wife Johanna raise Dorper sheep on about 900 acres that they rotate between cash crops and forages. He also owns and operate two Ag retail companies, that focuses on high yielding corn and the other one specialty inputs and cover crops.
He started using cover crops in 2010, mostly interested in the Daikon radish, and its scavenging ability to retrieve nutrients from their mostly sandy, low OM fields. Regenerative Agriculture quickly became a passion for Nick and he has been leading the charge in cover crops and better rotations in their low rainfall, arid high plains region since then, also bringing the dorper flock in to manage weeds and stimulate biology.
Nick has spoken at multiple local and National conferences including No Till on the Plains, Bottom Line Conference, No Till farmer and several podcasts where he shares his story, the struggles with the drought and the road to regenerative agriculture.
Zach Wright
Zach is the Director of the Living Soil Compost Lab in Sioux Falls South Dakota, which specializes in biological soil and compost assessment, humus testing, as well as most other traditional metrics to evaluate system function and productivity. In addition to lab services, Zach has consulted across the United States as well as several international countries. Primarily you will find Zach working across the Great Plains between the Mississippi River and the Rockies with production row cropping systems and well as pasture/range-land. Part of what Zach does is help farmers initiate their transition into a more autonomous growing system with an overarching goal of profitability. He enjoys educating and implementing even the basics of microscope work, is crucial to understanding the deep ecology within your living systems. His experience in production agriculture has demonstrated
that a multi-dimensional approach can not only boost tonnage and profits, but also promote soil health that is crucial to sustaining a future crop. Every % of organic matter increase, is an extra 16,500 gallons of water holding capacity,
largely within the top inch of your soil. Produce and Improve. Soil Farming.
Stephen Harms is a second generation farmer on the southern high plains of Texas. He grew up on the farm and was blessed to start farming on his own in 2017. After his first year he became dedicated to finding a way to sustain water and soil while still making a living on the farm. He’s grown conventional and organic peanuts, upland cotton, pima cotton, and cereals for grain and hay. He currently farms 1,300 acres in Gaines and Terry counties with his wife and three children.
Stephen Harms
Dr Zac
Dr. Rob Shortell
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Dr. Robert Shortell is a life long plant enthusiast with a wealth of experience in managing crop stress. His degrees are in plant physiology with specialties in crop hormone interactions from Rutgers University.
Traditionally trained in commercial, cash crop agronomy and 5 years new to notill, regenerative and organic cropping systems. Current focus includes 1) elucidating the effects of fertilizers, biostimulants and micronutrients on the components of the soil food web that create healthy soil systems and 2) teaching farmers how to apply this information in their cropping systems to reduce crop inputs while increasing on farm profitability.
His experience in plant nutrition, plant hormones, amino acids and their uses will help you make the best decisions for your crops, your soils, your ROI and the longterm sustainability of your family's cropping systems.
SPEAKERS 2024
PETER BYCK
Peter Byck is leading a $10 million research project comparing Adaptive Multi-Paddock (AMP)
grazing with conventional grazing; collaborating with 20 scientists and 10 farm families, focused
on soil health & soil carbon storage, GHG cycling, microbial/bug/bird biodiversity & water
cycling. The research includes a 4-part docuseries, “Roots So Deep (you can see the devil down
there),” directed by Byck, which is about the inventive farmers and maverick scientists building
a regenerative path to solving climate. View the trailer and CNN segment.
Byck is a professor of practice at Arizona State University, in both the School of Sustainability
and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, where he teaches students to make short
documentary films about sustainability solutions. He is the director, producer and writer of
carbon nation, a documentary film about climate change solutions. In 2020, Byck completed
carbon cowboys, a 10-part documentary short film series, focused on regenerative grazing.
Peter Byck has been focused on solutions to climate for 16 years – first as a documentary
filmmaker, and over the past decade, he’s also led a large team of scientists as they study grazing
systems (regenerative vs. conventional) across the Southeast US, and the Northern Great Plains.
Byck and his team now have data that demonstrates that regenerative grazing is a climate
solution (while accounting for CO2, methane, and N2O), while it gets farmers out of debt, makes
the soils more resilient in floods & drought, and rewilds the farmland.
Starting in 2013, Byck has made 10 short films (www.carboncowboys.org) – showing
ranchers rebuilding their soils in all manner of ecosystems in North America and England; and
via these films, Byck and his team have garnered extremely high good-will with farmers across
the board.
“Roots So Deep” is his current documentary, blending the maverick grazing scientists’
and heartfelt farmers’ stories.
CRAIG BEDNARZ
Dr. Bednarz joined the department of Agricultural Sciences in 2020. He holds a joint appointment with West Texas A&M University and Texas A&M AgriLife Research. He received B.S. and M.S. degrees in 1989 and 1991 in Agricultural Education and Crop Science from Texas Tech University. In 1995 he received a Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas in Crop Physiology. Dr. Bednarz has worked for Mississippi State University, The University of Georgia, Texas Tech University, Bayer, BASF and now West Texas A&M University and Texas A&M AgriLife. He also serves as director of the Semi-Arid Agricultural Systems Institute at West Texas A&M University.
KELLY KETTNER
Kelly is a producer from Muleshoe, TX. He and his wife, Deborah, have 3 kids. He grew up on a ranch in Mason, TX and has always had a love for the land and is constantly looking for ways to improve it. He moved to Muleshoe in 2002 to start his own operation. When he first moved there, his operation was fully irrigated, and he grew high yielding row crops such as corn, cotton, sorghum and pumpkins. As the capacity of his wells has declined, he has transitioned to a livestock and forage-based system with sheep, goats, and stocker calves. As he is transitioning land from irrigated to dryland, he is planting native grasses on some of his acres.
DALE STRICKLER
Meet Dale L. Strickler, a distinguished agroecologist, renowned speaker, seasoned consultant, and accomplished author. With an illustrious career spanning over 30 years, Dale brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the table, making him a trusted name in sustainable agriculture.
🌾 Author of "The Drought Resilient Farm," "Managing Pasture," and "The Complete Guide to Restoring Your Soil."
🌱 Over 30 years of successful farming and ranching experience.
📚 15 years of teaching in higher education.
🏢 20 years of industry expertise with prominent companies like Land-o-Lakes and GreenCover Seed.
Dale's innovative solutions have transformed the landscapes of countless farms and ranches, even in the face of challenging climates and soil conditions. His consultancy services have left a mark across the United States, Europe, and Africa, earning him international recognition.
You can find Dale in a plethora of educational YouTube videos and insightful podcasts, as well as in esteemed publications such as Mother Earth News, Acres USA, Stockman Grass Farmer, and Grit. His dedication to optimal land management has been recognized with prestigious awards, including the 2013 Water and Energy Progress Award Model of Innovation and the 2021 Kansas Farm Bureau Natural Friend of Agriculture Award.
ELIZABETH HEILMAN
Dr. Elizabeth Heilman is a dedicated proponent of sustainable human flourishing through regenerative practices that nurture both land and spirit. With three decades of expertise in soil science, agronomy, health, and civic education, her journey has been a testament to her unwavering commitment to positive change.
Elizabeth's impact extends across distinguished institutions such as Purdue, Michigan State, and Wichita State Universities. As a keynote speaker for prestigious organizations like the Soil and Water Conservation Society and NCAT (National Center for Appropriate Technology), she passionately addresses the obstacles hindering the growth of regenerative agriculture, the importance of ecologically sound agronomy, the cultivation of emotional resilience, and the creation of resilient local food systems.
In her consultancy role, Elizabeth frequently collaborates with Dale on field visits, capturing essential insights through meticulous field notes. She assesses the intricacies of the water cycle and insect populations, offering invaluable guidance to ensure the continued success of your operation. Her emphasis on daily and weekly motivation is key to sustaining progress.
BARRY EVANS
Barry is the 4th generation to farm in Swisher County, Texas. This part of the great plains was in the heart of the Dust Bowl in the 1930’s and because of dirt storms and the declining Ogallala Aquifer he converted all of his farms to no-till in 1996. Today the farm is rotated between cotton, grain sorghum and winter wheat emphasizing water use efficiency, capturing and utilizing rainfall, reducing erosion and building soil health.
DAVID PARKER
Dr. Parker first joined WTAMU in 1997, spending 16 years in the Department of Agricultural Sciences and Department of Life, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, with the final rank of Full Professor. After working for the USDA-Agricultural Research Service in Clay Center, Nebraska (2010-2012) and Bushland, Texas (2015-2021) with the final rank GS-15, he re-joined the university in 2021 in the College of Engineering. He received a B.S. in Agricultural Engineering from New Mexico State University in 1985, M.S. in Agricultural Engineering from University of Wyoming in 1987, and Ph.D. in Biological Systems Engineering from University of Nebraska in 1996. He is a Registered Professional Engineer, holding current or prior licenses in seven states. His work experience includes 9 years in private industry as a consulting engineer. Dr. Parker is a recognized expert in odor and air quality, soil and water engineering, greenhouse gas emissions, manure management, and statistics.
TIM STEFFENS
Dr. Steffens has a joint appointment with the Agriculture Sciences Department at West Texas A&M and with Texas AgriLife Extension in the field of rangeland resource management. His experience also includes working directly with producers on rangeland issues including grazing management, prescribed fire, livestock nutrition and Threatened &Endangered species as a Rangeland Management Specialist with the USDA-NRCS in southeastern Colorado. Previously, he was a rangeland management specialist with Colorado Cooperative Extension and instructor with the Colorado State University Western Center for Integrated Resource Management. He has also managed a 1300 cow ranch for the Mescalero Apaches in the mountains of southern New Mexico. He also worked as the extension project manager for the nationally recognized Seco Creek Water Quality Demonstration Project. His current research and extension interests include managing ecological succession using targeted grazing management, developing integrated livestock-rangeland-cropping systems to improve soil quality and improve conservation as well as brush and weed management.
R.N. HOPPER
R. N. is a continuous no-till farmer from Petersburg, TX. He and his wife, Lyndi, live on the farm with their three children and grow corn, cotton, and wheat. R. N. is one of the founders and current President of No-Till Texas. His no-till cropping systems have also been the subject of a long term research project funded by Cotton, Inc. and overseen by the Department of Biological Sciences at Texas Tech University to quantify the effects of no-till and crop rotation on soil microbial populations, carbon levels, water infiltration, fertility, and general soil health.
