New Extension program teaches land stewardship in Cook County
The University of Minnesota Extension is offering a new summer program called “Northwoods Neighbors” to educate residents about land stewardship practices that improve the health of woodland and shoreline properties.
The six-week class will run in July and August. Participants will spend time outdoors during hands-on learning sessions, take excursions throughout Grand Marais and hear from guest speakers representing local natural resource agencies.
“The idea is to gather together people who have moved here in the recent past, or maybe who’ve just always wanted to know a bit more about how to take care of the land or the property that they own in the area,” Extension educator Sarah Waddle told WTIP. “Each week we’ll have kind of a different theme connected to land stewardship.”
Topics will include invasive species management, septic system care, gardening and growing practices, and the effects of climate change. The program is designed primarily for people living on at least one acre of land, though anyone may register.
“Whether you have a really small kind of backyard wood situation all the way up to maybe 80 or 100 acres that you’re taking care of, this will have practical information that’s helpful for all of those folks,” Waddle said.
Waddle acknowledged that caring for large plots of land can feel overwhelming, especially for people who recently moved to Cook County. While woodlands may appear untouched, many properties have been shaped by outside influences over time. Forested areas may have been clear-cut in the past or could now be experiencing spruce budworm outbreaks.
Waddle also noted that ecosystems extend beyond property lines and that stewardship practices can affect neighboring landowners and public lands.
“All of our land is part of a larger ecosystem and part of a larger system and community of plants and animals,” Waddle said. “And a lot of land up here is also right next to public land, too. So we’re caring for our land in this sort of larger lens.”
In addition to teaching stewardship techniques, the program aims to connect landowners with local resources that can help them manage their property in the future.
Northwoods Neighbors is intended to support a range of stewardship goals, from planting trees to developing formal woodland stewardship plans.
Waddle said the program is designed to help people get started “so that you’re not just in that state of, ‘Well, I don’t really know what’s out there, and I don’t really know what to do about it, so I’m just going to do nothing,’” which she said is “probably the least effective management approach.”
WTIP spoke to Sarah Waddle about the Northwoods Neighbors program. Audio of that conversation can be found below.
Josh Hinke June 11, 2026
