Kari Esbensen is a new member of Wisconsin Farmers Union with a lifelong love of conservation. Her family farm is located in Waupaca County outside of Ogdensburg where she cares for a herd of nine dairy goats, two horses, hay fields, bees, a large kitchen garden, and more. Kari is well known in the area for being passionate about conservation, so when the WFU Farm Climate Smart WI team paid her a visit in mid-July there was lots to talk about.
“As a kid, my brother and I spent every Sunday in Hilbert at my Grandparent’s farm where my grandmother imbued us with an appreciation for eating healthy farm-raised food,” Kari said. “Though I grew up on the north side of Appleton, every weekend and during the summers we had this entire rural experience watching the cows come and go as part of my grandfather’s cattle dealing business. As a young girl I always dreamt of being a cowgirl and loved being around animals.”
Her early experiences built a love in her for wild places that continued when she went off to college. Kari pursued a Zoology degree at UW-Madison and was inspired by the field courses she took. She also obtained a degree in political science recognizing the role that public policy plays in the implementation of conservation programs and priorities. After graduating, Kari worked for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) while her then boyfriend, now husband, was in medical school. They lived with friends in a number of different farm houses outside of Madison. Kari describes learning with and living around others who shared a love for wild places as a magical time in her life.
Kari later went on to enroll in a graduate program with the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies through the Water Resource Management Program. She had an emphasis in Ecological Restoration of Wetlands and Prairie. After she finished her graduate program and her husband finished his medical residency, Kari worked as an intern for the Nature Conservancy while the couple toured rural areas looking for land and a place to set down roots..
“We planned to go wherever I could find work because, at that time, it was hard to find a job in the conservation field, especially as a woman. The field was very skewed towards men. At the time that I was applying to be a wildlife manager with the DNR, they had just hired their first female wildlife manager.”
Eventually the couple settled on a 80 acre farm, where they’ve been for the past 34 years. Because of her husband's demanding rural family medical practice schedule, Kari became the farmer, taking care of animals, plants, and their children as they grew up. She also volunteered with the Soil Conservation Service, now known as the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and later worked under a grant on behalf of the Waupaca County Land Conservation Department, initiating its first wetland restoration program. Before starting their family, she would also serve as the UWEX Community Natural Resource and Economic Development Agent for Portage County, playing an instrumental role in securing ten year funding for groundwater protection within the Tomorrow Waupaca River Priority Watershed. She would later implement a program called the Waupaca County Environmental Education Initiative, perform contract work, and serve as a volunteer with Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust before returning to graduate school a second time. She went on to obtain a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis on the cognitive, physical, and emotional benefits of outdoor play in nature for children.
Kari knew she wanted to raise her kids on a farm because of the way her grandmother’s farm shaped her childhood.
“We wanted to pass along these important principles of conservation to our kids, and I really think we did that,” Kari said. “As a reflection of their upbringing, today our eldest daughter manages the Nature Conservancy’s newest Central Sands project area and our youngest works in the field of One Health, recognizing the interface between human and environmental health. Our middle daughter also enjoys spending time outdoors. As a healthcare provider, she too recognizes the multiple health benefits of time spent outdoors in nature.”
Kari currently manages the farm’s 20 acre hay field for rare grassland birds, including meadowlarks and bobolinks. When they purchased the farm, the front 40 acres were planted in corn. Two years after moving in, they planted an alfalfa grass mix on 20 acres that hasn’t been tilled in over 30 years and another 20 acres in prairie with help from Pheasants Forever. She also restored a small wetland which had been previously ditched and drained. A large portion of their farm serves as rotational pasture for the goats and horses.
Kari is proud of her herd of nine pasture-raised goats which she milks and sells to soap makers and other businesses.
“As a small-scale producer, I’ve found that the demand for small batches of goat’s milk outweighs the supply in recent years,” Kari said. “Small producers have been driven out of business by much larger goat farms in the area. Small scale artisans, like goat milk soap makers, can’t buy at the scale in which larger farms are looking to sell. This creates a situation in which small farmers are driven out of business and so are the small buyers that rely on them.”
Kari sees a need for more support for small farmers and those who rely on them. Local food systems and conservation efforts are intertwined, making the success of each reliant on the other. For Kari, her love of farming and love for the land go hand in hand.
In addition to the 80 acre farm, Kari and her husband own a conservation parcel in the City of Waupaca where they’ve restored a native prairie and endangered Karner Blue butterfly habitat with help from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and worked to control invasive species with cost-share support from the NRCS. The land, known as the OZ Natural Area and Center for Biodiversity Education, also includes a demonstration forest for teaching others.
Like many farmers, Kari is concerned about farm succession and ensuring that her conservation efforts will live on after she is gone. Her goal for the future is to ensure that the land she has worked so hard to protect, will be protected forever. She is also passionate about wanting to see changes made to the federal Farm Bill so that it rewards and incentivizes farmers like her who have made lifetime commitments to conservation practices that protect ground and surface water quality, promote biodiversity, and help promote climate mitigation and adaptation.
“We’ve put so much time and effort into our land, and it would be so sad for that to go to waste, Kari said. “I want the land to fall into the hands of a conservation non-profit or a conservation buyer who is as committed to responsible stewardship as I am. Part of that equation is making sustainable farming economically sustainable so that those who want to do it, can afford to do so.”
Wisconsin Farmers Union Conservation Coordinator, Erin Lenninger, visited Kari’s farm to learn more about her farm hopes, dreams, and needs. Erin works under a USDA Climate Smart Commodities grant in Northeast Wisconsin known as Farm Climate Smart WI. She is working to connect small and underserved farmers located in the Fox-Wolf Watershed with conservation incentives, resources, and support.
If you’re interested in learning more about Erin’s work or would like to schedule a farm visit, contact her at elenninger@wisconsinfarmersunion.com or by texting/calling (715)-382-0341.