Conservation Stories

Dusty Timmons sits down with longtime Texas fly fishing guide and conservation advocate Chuck Naiser to talk about the decades-long work of protecting the Texas Gulf Coast. From the early fight to stop commercial gill netting of redfish and trout to Chuck’s current work with FlatsWorthy and oyster reef preservation, this conversation explores what it takes to defend a natural resource before it re...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery sits down with Marshall Tolleson of HSI Water to talk about irrigation water, soil salinity, and the chemistry behind healthier fields. Marshall shares his path from ag research and extension work to helping bring sulfur-based water treatment technology to Texas, explaining how sulfurous acid systems can help reduce salt buildup, improve infiltrati...

Tillery Timmons-Sims is joined by her brother, Dusty Timmons, for a behind-the-scenes introduction to a new series of interviews recorded at a hunting and fishing lodge gathering conservation leaders, outdoor advocates, podcasters, and nonprofit voices from across the country. Dusty shares stories from his weekend of recording 11 conversations, covering everything from great white sharks in the Gu...

Leah Duzy returns to Conservation Stories for a practical conversation about the changing intersection of pesticides, endangered species protections, and EPA label requirements. Leah and Tillery discuss new herbicide, insecticide, and rodenticide strategies, what growers may start seeing on pesticide labels, and how mitigation practices like buffers, cover crops, no-till, and runoff management can...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery Timmons Sims is joined by attorney, Texas Tech professor, and renewable energy consultant Kassandra McQuillen for a conversation about the rapid development of data centers in West Texas. Together, they unpack what data centers are, why they require significant energy and water resources, and what proposed projects could mean for communities, lando...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Texas FFA state officers Madison Diezi and Kinley Hoelscher to explore the impact of FFA on students, agriculture, and future leadership. They discuss how FFA goes far beyond livestock shows and farming, helping students build communication skills, professionalism, advocacy, and lifelong community. From rural roots...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery Timmons-Sims talks with Larry Sunn of Rain Bees about rainwater harvesting as a practical water solution for drought-prone areas like West Texas. Larry breaks down how much water can be collected from a roof, what kind of tank size a family might need, how filtration works for potable and non-potable use, and why shifting away from wells and water-...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery Timmons-Sims visits with Chase Head about the connection between housing, poverty, dignity, and community care in Lubbock. Drawing from his work with the South Plains Food Bank and Yucca Properties, Chase shares how his real estate business has become a way to provide stable housing, practical support, and renewed hope for people facing homelessnes...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , the conversation stretches beyond traditional ag topics and into the growing intersection of nutrition, health, and the future of food. Host Tillerry Timmins-Sims sits down with Allison Childress, a registered dietitian, Texas Tech faculty member, and co-founder of a culinary medicine startup, to talk about how food can be used to manage chronic disease, h...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Texas Tech agricultural economist Darren Hudson to explore how decades of innovation in farming have reshaped life on the South Plains. Their conversation looks at the unintended consequences of the biotech revolution, from herbicide resistance and changing management practices to the economic pressures facing produ...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery Timmons-Sims talks with Paul Sousa, a California dairy advocate and former water-quality regulator, about what the rest of agriculture can learn from California’s intense regulatory environment. Their conversation looks at the tension between environmental compliance and agricultural viability, especially around water, groundwater nitrates, methane...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery Timmons-Sims talks with Arkansas farmer Adam Chappell about the economic pressures reshaping modern agriculture, from corporate consolidation and weakened competition to the policy choices that keep farmers trapped in an increasingly fragile commodity system. Drawing on both lived experience and hard data, Chappell explains how seed, chemical, mach...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims talks with Eric Yates of NoFence about how virtual fencing technology is changing livestock and land management. Their conversation explores how GPS-enabled collars for cattle, sheep, and goats can help producers contain animals, rotate grazing areas, protect sensitive land, respond more quickly to emergencies, and even reduce lab...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmins-Sims sits down with Erin Irwin , co-founder of The Daisy Project —a new Lubbock-based nonprofit launched in April 2025 to help families feed their household pets during tough times, with the goal of preventing rehoming and abandonment. Erin shares the personal story behind the organization—created in honor of her daughter Haley and ins...

In this episode of Conservation Stories, host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Hugh Aljoe of the Noble Research Institute to talk about the “why” behind Noble—and how the organization evolved from early soil testing and plant research into a national leader focused on regenerative ranching. Hugh shares his own journey from West Texas roots and range science at Texas A&M to three decades at...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Lee Lancaster to uncover a largely forgotten chapter of agricultural history: the 1970s farmer protests that sent tractors rolling toward state capitals and Washington, D.C. Lee shares how a passing reference to modern-day protests led him to research the American Agriculture Movement, a time when farmers organized...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Julie Hodges, Helen DeVitt Jones Endowed Director of Education at the National Ranching Heritage Center on the campus of Texas Tech University , to explore one of the South Plains’ greatest treasures. Together, they unpack what a ranch really is — not just in history books, but as a living, breathing part of life on...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Andrew Wright , an agricultural economist with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension , to unpack the real-world economics driving farm decisions on the Texas High Plains. From enterprise budgets and input costs (seed, fertilizer, chemicals, and energy) to crop insurance, price risk, and the difference between “subsidies”...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Levi Heffelfinger to explore the often-overlooked wildlife of the Texas Panhandle and the applied research shaping its future. Levi shares his work with the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute and explains why he’s based in Lubbock, diving into real-world research on mule deer, pronghorn, elk, and the changin...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , hosted by Tillery Timmons-Sims, Tillery sits down with Randy Jordan and Dr. Jim Mazurkiewicz to unpack the long road behind the proposed Lubbock County Expo Center and why it matters for West Texas. Drawing on Dr. Jim’s decades-long experience helping bring the Brazos County Expo Center to life and Randy’s leadership in guiding Lubbock’s effort, the conver...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Dr. Kathryn Simpson , Associate Professor of Urban Horticulture and Sustainability at Texas Tech, to talk about an unexpected West Texas opportunity: guayule (pronounced “why-YOO-lee”)—a desert shrub that produces natural rubber and latex . Dr. Simpson explains why guayule matters right now, from global supply-chain...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims talks with Kerry Siders, Extension Program Specialist with Texas A&M AgriLife, about the critical role applied research plays in West Texas agriculture. Drawing on decades of experience at the Barker Research Farm, Kerry shares how extension bridges the gap between university science and on-the-ground decision-making for produ...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , host Tillery Timmons-Sims sits down with Brandon Lipps to unpack the realities of hunger, food insecurity, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) through the lens of Brandon’s extensive experience in agricultural policy and public service. Drawing from his work on the U.S. House Agriculture Committee, leadership at USDA’s Food and Nutriti...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery sits down with Dr. Jason Headrick, a Kentucky-born farm kid turned leadership professor in Texas Tech’s Department of Agricultural Education & Communications. From growing up on a tobacco and timber farm to researching civic leadership in rural communities, Jason shares how his roots shaped his passion for people, place, and the “social side” o...

In this episode of Conservation Stories , Tillery Timmins-Sims sits down with Chase Head, Chief Development Officer of the South Plains Food Bank, to unpack what hunger really looks like across their 19-county service area. Chase shares his journey from cotton R&D and agribusiness into professional fundraising, and explains how the food bank leverages the national Feeding America network and i...