The Women in Agriculture Conference: Improving Agriculture, Improving Lives will feature information and advice on a range of subjects, including: coping with stress, preserving food, creating sustainable landscapes, setting priorities, and preparing for disasters.

This year’s conference will be Friday, April 7, at Sidney. It will run from 8:15 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. MT at the Country Inn & Suites, 664 Chase Blvd.

The conference is intended to help women in agriculture improve their decision-making, increase understanding, and enhance their well-being in relation to their farm, ranch or agriculture-related business.

The $35 registration fee covers conference materials, breaks, and lunch. Advance registration is due by March 31, after which the fee is $45. Registration forms and more information are available on the county Nebraska Extension website, the Nebraska Extension office at 920 Jackson St. in Sidney, (308) 254-4455; or by emailing Nebraska Extension Educator Karen DeBoer at kdeboer1@unl.edu.

Program topics will include:

Stress, Overload, and the Road Back to Balance – Presenter Kim Wolinski, “Dr. DeClutter,” author of “Letting Go with all Your Might,” has been a speaker, trainer and priority coach for over 35 years. Whether in everyday personal life, or at work, stress is a constant companion. Everybody needs good stress, but the effects of unhealthy and negative stress cause more problems than most people realize.

From Garden to Table – Preserving nutritious, safe food from the garden is one way to stretch your food dollar. Learn helpful tips on how to preserve homegrown produce. Jamie Goffena, Nebraska Extension Educator, helps clientele live healthier lives with improved nutrition and fitness activities.

Creating a Landscape that will Thirst No More – A beautiful landscape with less water? Learn key landscape design principles and which plants to use to enhance landscape efforts. Amy Seiler is a Community Forestry Specialist with the Nebraska Forest Service who assists with tree resources, sustainable landscape design, and environmental education programs.

Life is Bigger than a Bus! Create the Life You Really Want – Kim Wolinski, presenter, will teach participants the keys to listen to and follow their ideas, dreams, and yearnings even in the smallest things to gain momentum to focus on the big things in life.

Preparing Yourself and Your Business for Disaster – Emergencies and disasters can happen anywhere, no matter the time of year. Whether natural or man-made, these events can affect food production, how families function, and how businesses operate. Ashley Mueller, Nebraska Extension Educator, will share easy-to-implement, low-cost strategies to prepare yourself and your business for a disaster.

Farm Finance Update and Outlook – What does the preliminary data from the 2016 Farm Average Study tell us? How do you prepare a farm or ranch operation for 2017? Presenter Tina Barrett is the Executive Director of Nebraska Farm Business Inc. and works with farmers and ranchers to improve profitability through financial management, tax preparation, financial analysis, cash flow preparation, and more.