Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. For America’s earliest hunters, archery equipment was a matter of survival For archery deer hunters, November is the grandest month of the year. In Iowa, as elsewhere, bow hunting has enjoyed a […]
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. Waterfowl hunters – perhaps even more so than anglers – are hopelessly susceptible to product advertising. New guns, improved ammo, quieter motors, lighter boats, warmer coats, better waders, you name it
In Search of the Perfect Decoy Read More »
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. The season is changing and white-tail bucks are beginning to shift gears. Along the edge of Iowa’s woodlands, fresh scrapes are beginning to appear as bucks mark territories and announce their presence.
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. A Year Like No Other – an early season duck hunt in Cerro Gordo County, 1979. Back row [left to right] Lowell Washburn, Earl Leaman, Sterling Washburn, Leonard Washburn, Ed Kotz, Jr.
Best Duck Season Ever Read More »
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. DULUTH, MN. — According to our calendars, autumn has officially begun. If you look to the skies, there are some undeniable signs that the season is changing. In America’s North Country,
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. We’ve all heard that “Variety is the Spice of Life”. Although generally applied to other topics, the familiar saying can certainly hold true for the outdoors as well. One of the things
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. Black Hills Bighorn Recovery Inches Forward National Wildlife Federation Aids in Securing Safe Habitat CUSTER, SD —- I saw my first wild bighorn in the summer of 1959. Feeding near a roadway
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. Iowa’s prairie wetlands are one of our richest natural treasures. Wetlands benefit everyone. They store runoff and reduce downstream flooding. Wetlands help stabilize water tables and recharge underground aquifers. Serving as
Cheeriest Bird in the Marsh Read More »
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. Blue-winged teal are as fun to eat as they are to hunt. Likewise, for fall mushrooms. Fortunately for us, both Iowa delicacies are currently in season. Iowa’s teal season runs until
Fall Flavors are Currently in Season Read More »
Photography courtesy of Lowell Washburn, all rights reserved. The 2014 reinstatement of the Iowa teal season is the best single change of waterfowl regulations in the past half century. For thousands of Iowans who participated in the September 1st teal
DNR Officers List Weekend Teal Opener As Nothing Short Of Phenomenal Read More »
Tom CopePresident and Director
Tom has served on the Johnston City Council since 2011, where he has been an advocate for investing in stormwater management practices and enhancement of opportunities to observe wildlife in Iowa’s communities. Tom has been a staff member and lobbyist at the Iowa State Capitol for over 20 years, where he lobbied for passage of Iowa’s Water and Land Legacy (IWILL) constitutional amendment.
Sue WilkinsonTreasurer and Director
Iowa Wildlife Federation Board Advisor, pre-2013 – Present, Board member since 2020. Growing up on a northeast Iowa dairy farm, I saw wildlife every day; in the timber, ponds and nearby trout streams. My participation in National Wildlife Federation Conservation Summits as a teenager reinforced my love for wildlife and the outdoors.
Susan Judkins JostenDirector
Susan Judkins Josten is Client Development Director for RDG Planning and Design, a firm with expertise in architecture, landscape architecture, planning, interiors, art, multimedia, engineering and water resources. Prior career activities involve founding and leading economic and leadership development programs, launching the state’s successful Vision Iowa program, advising communities on project financing, and guiding passage of critical legislation following Iowa’s 2008 floods. She has a BA in Business Management from Simpson College, and an MBA from the University of Iowa. Susan has also been a member of the Clive City Council since 2013, and previously served on the Indianola School Board. She is interested in water quality policy and projects, and is active with several watershed groups. She has three adult daughters: Whitney Judkins, JD, Timmer & Judkins Law Firm in Des Moines; Erin del Ninno, MD, Capital Women’s Care in Maryland; and stepdaughter Jennifer Josten, Ph.D., Assistant Professor for the University of Pittsburgh.
Rudi RoesleinDirector
Rudi Roeslein grew up in south St. Louis, after immigrating to the United States from Austria in 1956. He attended Saint Louis University where he jokes that he majored in soccer and minored in Engineering. Before founding Roeslein & Associates in 1990, Rudi started his career at Container Corporation of America, a composite can manufacturing company.
Elyssa McFarlandDirector
Elyssa McFarland farms with her family in Southeast Iowa and serves as the National Corn Growers Association’s, Soil Health Partnership Field Development Director. She attended Iowa State University where she earned a bachelor’s degree in agronomy and went on to earn dual master’s degrees in Agronomy and Soil Science from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.
Mark LangginDirector
Founding Partner, Pinpoint Digital; Mark has been an IWF Board member since 2020. “Really excited to be joining the Board of the Iowa Wildlife Federation. I’ve been an outdoor advocate since I was young. Originally, just as a kid out running around, shooting at squirrels (terrible shot).
Adam JankeDirector
An Assistant Professor in the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management at Iowa State University, Adam is also the state wildlife extension specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. He holds degrees in Wildlife Conservation from Purdue, Ohio State, and South Dakota State.
Joe HenryDirector
Joe Enriquez Henry is a graduate of Iowa State University and has worked in various capacities, from elected and appointed positions in the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to the League of United Latin American Citizens and Forward Latino. Mr. Henry was awarded the Louise Noun Award by the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.
Kristin AshenbrennerDirector
Kristin is a conservationist from Des Moines. She has a background in–and is particularly passionate about–ag and climate, conservation policy, and funding the National Resources and Outdoor Recreation Trust Fund. In her spare time, she is an avid equestrian. Kristin owns and shows American Saddlebreds and helps with her family’s breeding operation.
Joe WilkinsonSecretary and Director
Retired, Iowa DNR. IWF President pre-2013, also 2017-2020. Board member; 2013-2017. My childhood was spent exploring the woods, fields, ponds and streams of central Iowa. Then, off to college; B.A. in English, University of Dubuque, with a Journalism equivalent, Clarke College, Dubuque. I spent 11 years in radio and TV news in eastern Iowa.
Dr. Tammy MildensteinVice President and Director
Dr. Tammy Mildenstein, Vice President of IWF, is an Associate Professor of Biology at Cornell College. Tammy has a PhD in Fish and Wildlife Biology and a MS in Wildlife Biology from the University of Montana. She leads community-based conservation projects for endangered species and endangered ecosystems, both in Iowa (monarch butterflies) and in Southeast Asia (flying foxes).
Sean McMahonVice President and Director
Sean is a passionate outdoors enthusiast who loves to hike, watch wildlife, camp and fish with his family. Sean has devoted his entire career to conservation, having spent nearly three decades in senior positions at the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, The Nature Conservancy and in his current role as Executive Director of the Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance.”
