Fall Seminar Series

Grasslands Seminar: The History and Future of Nebraska Ranching

Nine speakers and activities will explore the history, culture, economics, and future of ranching in Nebraska.  Topics range from the story of Great Plains cattle and raising a prize-winning herding dog, to the future of Nebraska’s rangelands and cattle industry… with some music and food along the way. 

The series will also showcase The evolution of Cattle with Dr. Ronnie Green, Chancellor Emeritus & Emeritus professor, Animal Science Department.

Register for 1 credit under either NRES or GRAS. The catalog lists Junior standing as a prereq, but we welcome ALL undergrads.

GRAS/NRES 495 (1 er)
Fall 2024
School of Natural Resources
Time: Mondays 3:30-5:00
Location: East Campus Union Arbor room unless specified 

Questions? Contact: David Wedin, dwedin1@unl.edu

About the CGS Fall Seminar Series

Since 1995 the Center for Grassland Studies has offered a seminar series during the first semester of the school year. The CGS Fall Seminar Series features guest lecturers from on and off campus who speak on topics related to the Center's mission such as:

  • Future challenges in grassland stewardship
  • Reclaiming rangeland using prescribed burns
  • The impact of different grazing systems on grassland wildlife populations

Each series features a Frank and Margaret Leu Distinguished Lecturer; this is generally a person who is nationally recognized for his/her expertise in some aspect of grassland management.

Seminars will take place on Mondays during the fall semester from 3:30 to 4:30pm CT at the Hardin Hall Auditorium, on East Campus and will be streamed live to the public via Zoom. Seminar lectures are also recorded and available for viewing for those who were unable to attend a particular session. Click on the links below to watch past lectures (lectures will be uploaded within two days of the original presentation). For more information on this option, please contact the Center for Grassland Studies at 402-472-4101.

Attend a Live Seminar via Zoom

Seminars will be streamed live on Mondays from 3:30-4:30pm CT starting on September 22, 2025 and ending on December 1st, 2025. These livestreams can be accessed by clicking the button below on Mondays at 3:30pm, and recordings of the seminars will be made available within two days of the original presentations under the speaker names in the schedule. If you have any questions about accessing the virtual seminars, please email Center for Grassland Studies.

Upcoming Livestream

Nine speakers and activities will explore the history, culture, economics, and future of ranching in Nebraska.  Topics range from the story of Great Plains cattle and raising a prize-winning herding dog, to the future of Nebraska’s rangelands and cattle industry… with some music and food along the way.

2025 Fall Seminar Schedule

Fall 2025

Center for Grassland Studies - Fall 2025 Seminar Schedule
The History and Future of Nebraska Ranching. The series will feature Dr. Ronnie Green, Chancellor Emeritus, & Emeritus Professor, Animal Science Dept. We will also debut our first ever outdoor event "Leu Ranchfest" on September 22, 2025 at the East Campus Union Legacy Plaza Amphitheater. The seminar series will also be available via Zoom. The Society for Range Management has approved 1 continuing education credit (CEU) for presentations marked, “CEU Approved."

All Sessions Monday afternoons, 3:30pm, East Campus Union unless noted
 

Aug 25 – First day of class, class meeting for registered students only.
 

Sept 1 – Labor Day, No seminar
 

Sept 8 – No seminar
 

Sept 15 – No seminar, class meeting for registered students
 

Sept 22 – Leu Ranchfest - Outdoor program with music, cowboy poet RP Smith, and
student clubs. 3:30 – 5:00pm, Legacy Plaza Amphitheater (East Campus Union).
 

Sept 29 - Introduction to Ranching Livestock - Meet animals, students and staK at the
Warren Arena (Animal Science Dept).
 

Oct 6 – NCTA Stock Dog Team - Coach Leighlynn Obermiller, dogs, & students (Legacy
Plaza, East Campus Union)
 

Oct 13 -Open date, seminar TBD
 

Oct 20 – Fall Break, No seminar
 

Oct 27 - The History of Rodeo – Coach Wyatt Clark (UNL Rodeo Team, Animal Science
Dept).
 

Nov 3 – Diamond Bar Ranch: 2025 Nebraska Leopold Recipient – Natalie Jones (IANR
Communications).
 

Nov 10 – The Evolution of Cattle (Bos taurus & B. indicus): A Macro View - Ronnie Green
(Chancellor Emeritus & Emeritus Professor, Animal Science Dept).
 

Nov 17 – The Future of Nebraska Ranching - Greg Ibach (USDA Under Secretary in
Residence at UNL).
 

Nov 24 – Returning to the Ranch - Jessica Groskopf (UNL Extension Agricultural
Economist).
 

Dec 1 – Celebrate Grasslands In 2026: IYRP and a Nebraska Grassland Vision - Laura
Nelson (Statewide Grasslands Coordinator, Nebraska Grazing Lands Coalition).

Past Seminar Series

Fall 2024

The lectures in 2024 will address a variety of topics like rangelands, wildlife, grasslands, and related topics.  The series will feature Dr. Scott Stephens as this year's  Frank and Margaret Leu Distinguished Lecturer. The seminar series will also be available via Zoom. The Society for Range Management has approved 1 continuing education credit (CEU) for presentations marked, “CEU Approved."

 

August 26 – Emma Balunek, MAS Student, Platte Basin Timelapse, UNL

“You Go Over, I Go Under: a study of the coyote-badger hunting relationship”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Aug2024CGSEmmaBalunek

5min video in recording missing sound: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKUIsNzis0I

 

September 9 – John Carroll, Professor, School of Natural Resources, UNL

“Grass Acts:  Prairie Grouse in a Changing Landscape”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/sept2024johncarroll

 

September 16 – Josh Wiese, Crane Trust

 "Bison History and a Modern Conservation Strategy in Nebraska"

https://unl.yuja.com/v/sept2024cgsjoshwiese

 

September 23 – Carlton Shield Chief Gover, Anthropology, University of Kansas

“Voices from the Past: Pawnee Oral Traditions and the Arrival of Horses”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Sept2024CGSGover

 

September 30 – Field Activity OUTDOORS!

“The ecology and nutrition of grazers: an outdoor activity at Hardin Hall!”

https://news.unl.edu/article/east-campus-returns-to-its-roots-with-grazing-demonstration

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYV0DK_l_oA

 

October 7 – Katie Lamke, Conservation Biologist, Xerces Society

Nebraska Bumble Bee Atlas: Community Scientists Take Action to Conserve Pollinators

https://unl.yuja.com/v/oct2024katielamke

 

October 14 – Ann Dvorak, Sustainable Ranching initiative, World Wildlife Fund

“From Local Roots to Global Impact – Community Led Conservation”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Oct2024CGSAnnDvorak

 

October 28 – Scott Stephens, Prairie & Boreal Conservation, Ducks Unlimited

“Ducks, Dickcissels, and Dowitchers: grassland and bird conservation in the Prairie Pothole Region – challenges and opportunities

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Oct2024ScottStephens

 

November 4 – Travis Livieri, Prairie Wildlife Research

“Restoring endangered black-footed ferrets and the importance of prairie dogs”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Nov2024TravisLivieri

 

November 11 – John Benson, School of Natural Resources, UNL

“Spatial ecology and predator-prey interactions of ungulates in grasslands of the Great Plains”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Nov2024CGSJohnBenson

PBT short video shown before lecture: https://vimeo.com/444914408

 

November 18 – Michael Forsberg, Platte Basin Timelapse, UNL

“Into Whooperland - A photographer's journey with the rarest crane in the world”

Seminar Video is not available.  An interactive website for his new book:  https://whoopingcranechronicles.com

 

November 25– Ross Secord, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, Nebraska State Museum, UNL

“The Evolution of Grasslands and Mammalian Herbivores in the Central Great Plains: A Deep-Time Perspective.”

https://unl.yuja.com/v/Nov2024CGSRossSecord

 

December 2 – Katie Nieland, Center for Great Plains Studies, UNL

“Great Plains Art: Creating art from the landscape”

Seminar Video is not available.

Fall 2023

August 28, 2023 
How Groundwater feeds the unique and steady streams in the Nebraska Sandhills
Troy Gilmore, Professor, School of Natural Resources

Video – https://unl.yuja.com/v/Aug2023TroyGilmore

September 11, 2023
Grassland Conservation in Nebraska 
TJ Walker, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

Video – https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023NGPCconservationTJWalker

September 18, 2023
A plea for scale, why it matters for invasive species management, biodiversity, and conservation
Nic McMillian, Assistant Professor Agronomy & Horticulture

Video- https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023NicMcMillan

September 25, 2023
Social-Ecological Rangeland
Gwendwr Meredith, Assistant Professor, School of Natural Resources

Video – https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023GwendwrMeredith

October 2, 2023
Distinguished Leu Speaker: Protecting and Sustaining South Dakota Grasslands
Alexander Smart, SDSU Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Senior Program Leader / Professor of Department of Natural Resource Management

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023LeuLectureSandySmart

October 9, 2023
Resilience Spatial Scientist and Grasslands
Dan Uden, Assistant Professor, Range and Forage Sciences

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023bartadanuden

October 23, 2023
Introducing Network of Integrated Agricultural Resilience Research
Craig Allen, Director of Center for Resilience in Agricultural Working Landscapes (CRAWL)

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023resiliencecraigallen

October 30, 2023
Prescribed Fire and Grassland Conservation 
Brian Teeter, Prescribed Fire Coordinator, Nebraska Pheasants Forever

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/Oct2023BrianTeeter

November 6, 2023
Ranch and rangeland production systems
Jay Parsons, Biosystems and Agricultural Economist Extension Specialist, UNL

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2023jayparsons

November 27, 2023

An Ever-Changing Landscape: How Do We Find the Balance Between Production Ag and Conservation in the 21st Century?

Andrew Little, Extension Specialist, School of Natural Resources, UNL

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/Nov2023AndyLittle

December 4, 2023
Keeping Grasslands Grass
Julie Bain, Bessey District Ranger, USDA 

Video – https://unl.yuja.com/v/Dec2023JulieBainUSForestService

Website - https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/27dfb6b1e6eb47a8aaf7ae1290e4a396/

Fall 2021

August 30, 2021

Dave Wedin, UNL School of Natural Resources, 

Nebraska’s Grasslands & Global Change: Key Questions for the Next Decade 

Video – https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021GrasslandsGlobalChangeDaveWedin

 

September 13, 2021

Greg Ibach, USDA Under Secretary of Agriculture

Carbon Sequestration: Government Policy
vs Reality – Is There Common Ground? 

Video – https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021CarbonSequesterationGregIbach

 

September 20, 2021

Martha Shulski, Nebraska State Climatologist

Climate Change & Grassland Ecosystem Services 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021GrasslandsClimateMarthaShulski

 

September 27, 2021

Rob Mitchell, USDA Agricultural Research Service

Seeded Perennial Grasslands: Opportunities for Marginal Cropland in the Great Plains & Midwest 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021SeededGrasslandsRobMitchell

 

October 4, 2021 

Dave Aiken, UNL Agricultural Economics

Carbon Markets & Carbon Banks: What Do They Mean for Nebraska Agriculture? 

Seminar Video Unavailable

 

October 11, 2021

Leu Lecture – M. Francesca Cotrufo, Colorado State University

Advancing Understanding of Soil Organic Matter to Address XXI Century Wicked Challenges 

Seminar Video Unavailable

 

October 25, 2021

Judy Wu Smart

Roadsides, Pivot Corners, & Prairie Corridors: Pollinator Responses to Restoration Efforts in Public and Private Spaces 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021JudyWuSmart

 

November 1, 2021

STEVE MERKEL 

ArborLinks: Collaboration from Start to Finish & Beyond 

Seminar Video Unavailable
 

November 8, 2021

TALA AWADA 

Juniperus virginiana Ecology and Impact on Ecosystem Services in the Nebraska Sandhills 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021JuniperusTalaAwada

 

November 1, 2021

HAILEY WILMER 

Hope on the Hardgrass: Social-ecological Lessons from the Collaborative Adaptive Rangeland Management Project in Colorado 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/HopeHardgrassHaileyWilmer

 

November  22, 2021

MARK A. LIEBIG 

Climate Mitigation Services from Northern Plains Grasslands 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021ClimateMitigationMarkLiebig

 

November 29, 2021

MARTHA MAMO 

Soil Carbon & Nitrogen Dynamics on Sandhills Wet Meadows 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021SoilCNMarthaMamo

 

December 6, 2021

DAREN REDFEARN 

Grassland Management in a Changing Climate 

Video - https://unl.yuja.com/v/2021GrasslandManagementClimateDarenRedfearn

Fall 2020

A Watershed in Motion, Ethan Freese, Platte Basin Timelapse, School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. https://unl.yuja.com/v/aug2020ethanfreese

Why Plant a Prairie? Restoration Versus Conservation, Dave Wedin, School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. https://unl.yuja.com/v/wedinplantingprairies2020lecture

Keeping Prairie Grouse on the Prairie, Danielle Berger, Wildland Resources, Utah State University.   https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020DanielleBerger

Hidden Prairie: A Year Photographing a ingle Square Meter of Prairie, Chris Helzer, The Nature Conservancy.   https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020ChrisHelzerHiddenPrairie

Precision Conservation: Increase Farm Profitability While Conserving Soil, Water, and Wildlife, Andrew Little, School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020AndrewLittle

 Prairie Corridor on Haines Branch, Nicole Fleck-Tooze, Solidago Conservancy.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020nicoleflecktooze

Rangeland Analysis Platform: A Web-based Monitoring Tool for Rangelands, Nadine Bishop, NOWCC / Nebraska NRCS. https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020NadineBishopRAPhttps://unl.yuja.com/v/2020NadineBishopRAP

Tracking Cattle Grazing: GPS and Diet Selection, Mitchell Stephenson, Panhandle Research & Extension Center, University of Nebraska.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020MitchStephenson

Evaluating Soil Responses to Mob Grazing System on Sandhills Sub-irrigated Meadow, Elnaz Hosseiniaghdam, Agronomy & Horticulture, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020ElnazHosseiniaghdam

Using New Technology on the Ranch (CEU Approved), Travis Mulliniks, Nebraska Extension. https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020TravisMulliniks

Putting Monitoring into Practice: Strategies for Large-Scale Conservation, Dirac Twidwell, Agronomy & Horticulture, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020DiracTwidwell

LEU LECTURE. Anthropocene: Should we look to Aldo Leopold or George Jetson? (CEU Approved), Sam Fuhlendorf, Natural Resource Ecology & Management, Oklahoma State University.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020LeuLectureSamFuhlendorf

Down the RaBET Hole: The Journey to Develop the Rangeland Brush Estimation Toolbox (CEU Approved), Chandra Holifield Collins, USDA ARS Southwest Watershed Research Center.   https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020chandraholifieldcollins

Rancher Decision-Making and Climate Risk Management (CEU Approved), Tonya Haigh, School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020TonyaHaigh

Forage Production Models and Predictions for Semi-arid Grasslands, Markéta Podebradská, School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020marketapodebradska

Legislation in Invasive Species Management, Conor Barnes, School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://unl.yuja.com/v/2020ConorBarnes