Danielle Atkins’ Post

How do You Cope With Anxiety and Stress in Your Ag Legacy? https://lnkd.in/gsHr4wXg #AGLEGACY #FarmSuccession #EstatePlanning Stress factors can and often do affect everyone involved in the family farm or ranch business. To learn more see AGLEGACY.org * Farm and ranch families experience stress from a wide variety of factors, including: 1. Operational stressors, 2. Environmental influences, and 3. Family stressors. Most factors are out of the families’ control, potentially adding even more stress. * Situations where money is tight represent another case that can lead to stress for both farm families and the agricultural business. * One of the most stressful intergenerational farming issues reported is the transfer of the family farm or ranch to the next generation. Stress factors can and often do affect everyone involved in the family farm or ranch business, even if they are not directly involved in day-to-day operations. See more at: AgLegacy.org.

New on The Human Variable: Good Squirrel by Dwayne Rettinger It's remarkable how behaviors found in nature and the animal world can provide insights into our own instinctive behaviors and thinking. While much of what we observe in animal behavior is 'present'-focused – food, water, shelter and safety as examples – we clearly have many examples of forward-looking behaviors and actions that speak to a planning and preparation focus. Whether it be bears adding fat stores that will sustain them through a long winter of hibernation, birds building nests, or squirrels stuffing their cheeks with nuts in the fall to store in their winter dens, animals seem to anticipate and act on an imminent change of seasons. This 'saving for the future' sentiment can be very strong for certain people as well. My observation has been that a sacrificial saving bias found in pre-retirees is a tough switch to turn off in retirement. The very behaviors that reflect good stewardship and responsible financial management seem to cement our hard-wiring and can often get in the way of living an enriched and fulfilling life. To read more of Dwayne's observations of how many retirees adopt a gamification approach to their finances, visit The Human Variable: https://lnkd.in/gj6-5vTV #rettingergroup #rettingerandassociates #rettingerteamig #dwaynerettinger #rettinger #certifiedfinancialplanner #igwealthmanagement #igprivatewealthmanagement #financialplanning #kitchener #waterloo #guelph #milton #burlington #oakville #financialplanner #financialadvisor #wealthmanagement #wealthplanning #investments #insurance #mortgages #financialplan #personalfinance #businessowners #ontario

🌀 One Year Post Gabrielle: New Zealand's Builds Back Better! 🌱 📅 A year after Cyclone Gabrielle unleashed destruction on New Zealand's North Coast, the nation reflects on the progress and the path to rebuilding stronger communities. The cyclone, marking the Southern Hemisphere's most costly, has ignited changes in forestry management and infrastructure, highlighting the country's determination to build back better! 🔎 Key Insights: 1️⃣ Forestry Management Reform: In response to the cyclone's aftermath, which saw forestry waste exacerbate the devastation, New Zealand has implemented tighter regulations and leveraged big data to monitor and manage slash, reducing future risks significantly. 2️⃣ Community and Industrial Recovery: Central Hawke's Bay, among the hardest-hit regions, demonstrates remarkable community spirit and determination. The Pan Pac Pulp and Paper mill, the cyclone's most significant commercial casualty, is nearing a full reopening, symbolising the resilience and tenacity of the local workforce and community in the face of adversity. 3️⃣ Addressing Construction Capacity: As New Zealand faces the challenge of rebuilding, concerns arise over the availability of sufficient construction capacity. Despite a concerted overseas recruitment drive and reassignment of roles within the workforce, industry leaders call for revised immigration settings to ensure the rebuild's timely and effective completion. 🗣️ #questionforgroup: How can New Zealand's approach to post-disaster recovery and resilience inform global strategies for dealing with natural disasters? 🏗️ As New Zealand commemorates a year since Cyclone Gabrielle, the nation's journey from recovery to resilience serves as a beacon of hope and a testament to what can be achieved through unity, innovation, and a steadfast commitment to sustainability and preparedness. 🔗 Discover more about New Zealand's recovery efforts: https://lnkd.in/gzrA3hqh #sustainability #forestry #nzbusiness #nzmade #cyclone #gabrielle #bigdata #ai #woodcentralau1 #woodcentral #environmentalinnovation #newzealand #nz #forestmanagement #slash #aicommunity #drones #remotesensing #compliance #construction #reconstruction #resilience #recovery

Why are Canada’s parks so primed to burn? This article explores the environmental and historical factors that have contributed to today’s #wildfires, like the one in Jasper, and discusses how prescribed burns help prevent them. The Narwhal #prescribedburn #Indigenous #Conservation

ON THE MOVE THE OVERHEATING EARTH AND THE UPROOTING OF AMERICA BY  Abrahm Lustgarten Global warming on the home front. As climate change begins to bite, long-predicted upheavals are underway. Journalist Lustgarten, author of Run to Failure and China’s Great Train, begins with the usual bad news. Today, less than 1% of the planet is too hot to support civilization. By 2070, it will be 20%. Where will those people go? Tolerable living conditions in the U.S. “will jump dramatically northward,” with states along the Canadian border suffering the least damage. Sea levels have risen more than nine inches since 1960—and two feet in Louisiana, the worse-affected state, drowning a coastal area bigger than Delaware. Rapid global heating produces hot but also extremely unpredictable weather, and hurricanes, forest fires, and droughts have become routine. Traveling the nation, Lustgarten interviews experts and victims to paint a grim but fact-based picture. Responding to catastrophic losses, insurers who have not gone bankrupt have raised premiums or stopped issuing policies in certain areas. Responding to pleas from property owners, elected officials have exacerbated the problem by introducing subsidized taxpayer-financed insurance. Lustgarten is not the first to point out that this “sends the wrong message,” encouraging Americans to remain in dangerous areas. Census data show that Americans continue to move toward heat, coastlines, and drought. These trends have burdened state budgets, especially in places like Florida; since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, five million people have moved to coastal counties, assured of cheap insurance. When Ron DeSantis decided to stem the money hemorrhage, angry homeowners quickly changed his mind. Lustgarten finishes with the traditional gloom (“We’ve failed for a generation already”) but adds that aggressive action can still mitigate the damage and even revive neglected regions such as the Rust Belt. This means building sea walls but also investing in housing, infrastructure, and social programs to accommodate those already on the move. The author will be interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR "Fresh Air' tomorrow, 26th March regarding his new book.

Do you live and work in the West? Read this then consider how you can incorporate this knowledge into your business!

In the American Southeast, owning a forest means having a mailbox full of offers to buy it. For townhomes. Businesses. Cropland. But the land would suffer. Natural biodiversity would fall to urbanization. And an essential region for long-term reforestation could be cleared away. For landowners, the money doesn’t matter. Even when disastrous hurricanes tear through the area, the work gets challenging, or money starts to run low. When faced with a world of challenges that could tempt anyone to cut their losses and move on, they’re staying rooted. We're grateful that we get to work with local, thoroughly vetted partners who give landowners in the Southeast the financial boost they need to keep forestland, forestland. It allows landowners to hold true to their values, and the forests to survive for generations more. “The money doesn’t matter to me. I’m not interested in selling anything. God’s not going to make any more land, so if you got something, you better hold onto it. Just keep it in its natural habitat and pass it on down to your children.” https://lnkd.in/gBDCbh4P

Are you just a landowner or are you a land steward?! Anyone can own land… But it takes special character and grit to steward it. It means being decisive, making tough decisions, and following through with action on the ground. Being a land steward is a great responsibility- not only to uphold this generational asset and legacy… But also to take responsibility of God’s great creation. When we look at our land through the lens of Godly stewardship… it changes the importance and how we make decisions. Because in the end, we all want to be called “good and faithful servants!” (Matthew 14:21, 23) If youre ready to grow in your stewardship walk, I provide weekly devotions called Enrooted Wisdom sharing landownership and management insights based in scripture! Start feeding yourself management information which grows you closer in your stewardship role. Enrooted Wisdom here: https://lnkd.in/ek-smsvJ If youre ready to dive in, my Landowner to Steward program is just what you need to embrace true sustainability! Join the waitlist now! Landowner to Steward here: https://lnkd.in/enN4iGtc #landandladies #youronlineforester #faithfamilyforest #landstewardship #christianity #christianbusiness #stewardship #inheritance #generationalwealth #estateplanning #land #forest #landmanagement #landowner #rurallife #scripture

Homeowners are often concerned that retrofitting their homes to protect them against wildfires will be too expensive. This excellent report breaks down the different home hardening and property management strategies with their associated costs. This information helps them understand what mitigation provides the biggest bang for the buck and prioritize steps to better protect their homes. Thanks for sharing Seth Schalet!

Harvesting is ugly. Theres no other way to say it… Which is why it is so important to be SURE you have a solid purpose for it! You must have a strong goal and why the harvest was done (and this can be for many reasons, including profit BUT it must be true for you.) You must also have a strong purpose for the land: WHAT management practices are meant to work and create towards! Because forest management is a long term game… 25 years on the SHORT side of things! Which is why 2 Corinthians 4:18 speaks to me so much: So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. As landowners, you continue to work towards what is not seen right now… but our management have long-lasting, impacts. So tell me, what part of timber harvesting do you focus on: the ugliness of now or the potential purposes of tomorrows… #landandladies #faithfamilyforest #womenempoweringwomen #youronlineforester #generationalwealth #land #landownership #timber #trees #logging #regrets #christian