Fresh Dirt: Scoop #6

📔 Editor's Note: The Weight of the Soil

If you’ve been reading Fresh Dirt for a while, you know I usually try to deliver insights you can use—practical, field-tested nuggets of soil wisdom. This month, I’m breaking format. This note is personal, because the weight of what’s happening in our watersheds is too heavy to carry alone.

A few weeks ago, as I returned from Arizona back to ABQ, a good friend asked me a simple question standing in line for a drink: “Is everything okay?”

I gave the tight smile, the nod. The expected answer. But the truth was, no.

I wasn’t.

The images from Kerrville were on a loop in my mind. The devastating floods. The lives lost. And all I could see were the faces of the kids here in New Mexico and the West I’ve taught, the camps I’ve visited, and the years of conversations where I’ve asked, pleaded, for basic emergency preparedness: insurance, evacuation plans, communication protocols, something.

Now, the testimony from bereft parents is making headlines, and politicians are realizing the catastrophic day we’ve warned about for 20+ years is here. And yet, the response too often remains a deer-in-the-headlights freeze, while funding flows to racetracks instead of life-saving facilities. The disconnect between the urgency of the crisis and the pace of action is enough to make you want to scream.

But I’ve learned that screaming into the void is less effective than building a table and inviting the right people to sit at it.

So, this is my invitation. My bat signal. 🦇 🚨 

I am seeking the others. The professionals, the landowners, the quietly determined ones who are also not alright with the status quo. The ones who want to:

• Dig pits and have tail-gate picnics, understanding soil the old-fashioned way—with hands, eyes, and ears.

• Advocate for real change: safer outdoor education, transparent Emergency Action Plans for dams, and performance-based erosion control standards.

• Tackle weird, vital challenges, like how wildfire smoke taint affects our specialty crops (chile, grapes) and what we can do about it.

This is the work that matters. The gritty, unglamorous, foundational work that makes everything else—like large-scale programs for crop/disaster payments—actually function on the ground.

And for those of you ready to move from frustration to action, I have two immediate ways to engage:

1. Funding Action: I am currently helping a limited number of clients apply for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Partners for Wildlife Program. This is a massive, no-match-required opportunity (up to $750k per project) for habitat restoration on private/local lands. The deadline is September 30th. If you have a project, let's talk.

2. Join the Conversation: If this note resonates with you, if you’re also “not alright” and ready to build, hit reply. Tell me what you’re passionate about fixing. Let’s connect and get our hands dirty together.

The best solutions are built not by shouting into the wind, but by finding your crew and getting to work.

Yours in dirt,

Gabriella Coughlin 

P.S. My books are open for September for consulting in New Mexico and Nevada. If you have a project that needs a soil scientist’s perspective, from watershed assessments, teaching, to grant support, reach out.

🔍 Quick Links:

• Field Notes: Why I'm Budgeting Our Mission: After an audit revealed $27k in pro bono work last quarter, we're implementing a formal "Impact Budget" to strategically allocate our time. This model protects quality, maximizes our community impact, and advocates for a healthier conservation ecosystem by valuing technical expertise.

• Roots in the Community: Santa Fe's 400-year water legacy relies on protecting its watershed. The city's $40M dam investment safeguards soil, prevents erosion, and secures ~40% of its clean water supply. #WatershedProtection

• Real Dirt: Honor Hugh Hammond Bennett's legacy: Champion performance-based erosion control. Modern conservation funding demands proven, data-driven practices that protect soil and communities. #WWHHBD

• Seeds of Knowledge: 💸 Don’t Let “Free” Grants Cost You Time & Soil
  Waiting months (or years) for NRCS/NMDA funding can mean lost seasons of productivity and increased erosion. Start small now—like one buffer strip or rain catchment—to capture water and build soil sooner. Use grants to expand later, not begin.