Bill Wright
I am a veterinarian by vocation. I took undergrad courses in fisheries and wildlife at University of Missouri, Columbia and developed an interest in the outdoors with my college roommates who majored in wildlife and forestry. My hobby of training pointing dogs for field trials gave me exposure to gamebird management practices from Texas to Saskatchewan. We have put together adjoining acreage in Lincoln and Montgomery counties over the past 40 years that totals 700 acres. Our farm was initially 50 percent woods and 50 percent row crop and pasture. With the help of multiple federal and state programs we now manage it as restored prairie and savannah for wildlife habitat. All our acreage routinely sees fire and now several adjoining neighbors are doing the same. Our goals are to add more diversity to the prairie ground, keep a basal area of 60 or less in the woods and control any invasive species. Other hobbies include beekeeping, gardening and producing maple syrup.
Jim Richardson
Jim has built his photographic career (https://www.jimrichardsonphotography.com/index) around visual storytelling by creating groundbreaking work in documentary, resource issues, environmental photography and the critical concerns of feeding the planet. Before concentrating his working life at National Geographic for the last 35+ years he was noted for his innovative documentary narratives of rural life and adolescence that won him special recognition in the World Understanding contest three times (1975, 1976, 1977) and the Crystal AMI for best multimedia presentation in the world in 1983. For National Geographic he pioneered fresh visual narratives of water issues in the 1990’s before beginning his work on food, agricultural development, and the problems surrounding feeding our growing (and hungry) world. Since his first story in 1984 (the flooding of the Great Salt Lake) he has photographed 32 NatGeo magazine assignments and another 20 for National Geographic Traveler. Besides teaching at the Missouri Photo Workshop, Summit Workshops, Santa Fe Photo Workshops and many others, he speaks world-wide on food issues and his longtime fascination with the culture and landscape of Scotland. Among his awards he is proudest that his fellow National Geographic photographers named him their “Photographer’s Photographer” in 2014 and that the people of Cuba, Kansas (Pop. 186) named him their “Honored Citizen.” In 2017 Kansas State University bestowed an honorary doctorate for his work in cultural and environmental communications.