renewing memberships and trade show attendance. Certainly the toughest time in my entire career was and continues to be the COVID-19 pandemic. Though I believe we are through the worst of it, staffing shortages and supply chain hurdles continue. Associations traditionally rely heavily on in-person events for revenue (trade shows, education classes, in-person testing), and the shutdown was particularly crushing to the IA’s budget. The good news is that in 2021, we saw returning interest in and income from these programs.


With your unique perspective of watching the irrigation industry over the years while at the IA, what do you see as the industry’s biggest challenges and opportunities heading into the future?


In agriculture, one thing that hasn’t changed is solving the problem of market acceptance. For instance, how can the association help the industry in demonstrating the return on investment for a pressurized irrigation system? And, on the landscape side, how do we get homeowners and building managers to care, when the price of water isn’t an incentive in the vast majority of our states? On top of that, there are regulations, legislation, standards and codes, from municipalities to international organizations, that impact our industry. You can imagine how difficult it can be to follow all of this activity. These are challenges that may be too big for the IA to take on alone, but there are still many ways to move that needle. The opportunities are endless. New technologies are being developed daily that make irrigation systems more efficient and easier to manage. And data is being embraced by a much larger audience than in the past. Certainly with increasing demands on water, all eyes will be on irrigation, and it’s our time to shine.


What are some of your fondest memories of your time at the IA?


When I first learned about the position at the IA 15 years ago, the phrase “water conservation through efficient irrigation” was on the website. That really drew me in. I am thankful to have had the opportunity to support an industry that is so important to society. Growing the food needed for this country and beyond would not be possible without irrigation and our industry. That makes you feel pretty good to be a part of that effort. But what I will look back on most fondly were the people that I worked with along the way. This association and industry are full of smart folks who are committed to our mission of promoting efficient irrigation. With champions like that, the IA is sure to continue to prosper, even through tough times in the future.


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