Story County Conservation News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dr. James (Jim) Colbert, an Ames resident, was recently appointed as the newest Story County Conservation Board member.  

Jim was born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. After earning a bachelor’s degree in biology from Iowa State University, he completed a master’s degree and a doctorate in plant biology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He began his faculty career at Colorado State University. In 1998, he returned to Iowa as a faculty member at Iowa State University, first in the Department of Botany and later in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology.  

During his time at ISU, Dr. Colbert did research in various aspects of biology including studying the diversity and distribution of lichens in the state. (Lichens are not simply moss with a PR problem). He leads public educational programs about lichens from time to time. He taught a range of classes including introductory biology, and for twenty years led the “Skunk River Navy” river biodiversity and trash removal effort in the South Skunk River.  

Jim strongly believes in the importance of natural areas that are accessible to the public. While on the Board, he hopes to connect SCC’s mission and help add to Story County’s public lands for all to enjoy. 

An avid outdoors person who hikes, canoes, hunts and fishes, Jim enjoys exploring Iowa’s biodiversity. He has shared his love of the outdoors with family, friends and students, including leading 18 groups of ISU students on wilderness biology field trip classes in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area of northern Minnesota. Over the years, he has mentored numerous young people in the skills required to be a safe, ethical and successful hunter. 

Jim is a biologist by trade, and in his retirement, he has become both a storyteller and a local leader. His nature-focused memoir, In Your Nature, published last fall recounts his life outdoors and is “a field guide to a life lived in close conversation with the natural world.” In addition to SCC, Jim is involved with Story County Pheasants Forever, Outdoor Alliance of Story County and Prairie Rivers of Iowa.  

-

Jim serves as one of five volunteer members appointed by the Story County Board of Supervisors. His five-year term will expire in 2030. 

The SCC Board is responsible for acquiring and managing property for conservation and recreational purposes and for development of conservation and recreation programs. The Board meets the second Monday of each month at 5:30 p.m. at the Story County Conservation Center at McFarland Park. The public is encouraged to attend.  

Any legal resident of Story County interested in serving on the SCC Board is invited to complete an application form and submit it to the Board of Supervisors Office where it will remain on file for one year. Vacancies are publicized as they occur. Scheduled vacancies are those created by the scheduled expiration of a term, and are publicized annually by August, with applications due in early fall.