By: Sarah Fielder
Washington-based National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s (NSAC) Paul Wolfe will be one of the panelists at the annual Agriculture and Environmental Law conference, hosted by the Agriculture Law Education Initiative in Annapolis, Maryland on November 17. To register visit http://go.umd.edu/aleiconf.
Wolfe will discuss NSAC’s work in the Chesapeake Bay region, including conservation stewardship programs, the agricultural conservation easement program, and the crop insurance and conservation programs.
“We want to show how the policies in D.C. affect the people on the ground,” said Wolfe.
At NSAC, Wolfe leads the farming opportunities and fair competition committee, which focuses on issues surrounding and affecting farmers. They also focus on farm credit, tax policy, and immigration, among other issues.
Wolfe moved to Washington D.C. in 2002 to work for Senator Tim Johnson of South Dakota. More recently, he spent six years working with the office of Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington state before moving to NSAC in 2014.
During Wolfe’s time on the hill, he worked on a variety of projects, including energy, financial services, agriculture, and Native American issues.
Wolfe grew up near Seattle, Washington, earning an undergraduate degree in political science from Gonzaga University in Spokane, followed by a law degree from Catholic University’s School of Law in Washington D.C.
“I did not grow up on a farm, but I have family in the Midwest, so I was exposed to it through family,” said Wolfe.
Wolfe wants to continue working to make a fair and more equitable safety net for farmers, as well as creating a fairer marketplace for farmers by consolidating the number of buyers.
“Also a more sustainable environmental farming system that supports the rural community,” added Wolfe.
NSAC’s goals for the future include strengthening the conservation program, eliminating previous cuts made to conservation efforts, better targeting their programs and improving water quality. The organization also plans to emphasize the benefits of the federal crop insurance program.
You can hear Wolfe at the annual Agriculture and Environmental Law conference, Friday, November 17, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the DoubleTree Hotel in Annapolis, Maryland. To register visit http://go.umd.edu/aleiconf
