Duane Friend is a natural resources management educator. He is responsible for providing leadership in natural resource programming for a 23 county area in west central Illinois, and has been in his current position since 1997. Prior to that, Duane was a unit based educator, and has been with University of Illinois Extension since 1993. He has also been a County Executive Director for the Farm Services Agency, and a Resource Conservationist for a Soil and Water Conservation District.

Duane is a member of the Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS), and served as president of the Illinois chapter in 1998. He is also a member of the Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals (ANREP).

Some of Duane's professional awards include the Honor Award from SWCS, gold and bronze awards from ANREP, and an Excellence in Extension Award for educational programming.

Soil and Water Management

Duane provides programming to many groups and individuals in soil and water management. This includes information to Master Gardeners, Certified Crop Advisors, and homeowners. A few specific topics are in the areas of soil quality, soil organic matter management, and septic system information for homeowners.

Website Development

Several websites on natural resource topics have been developed with content provided by Duane. These include youth websites such as the All Star River Explorers and Weather One. An on line study guide to assist those wishing to pass the Illinois exam for septic system installation and maintenance was another site Duane helped develop. He is also assisting in development of online modules for Illinois Certified Crop Advisors.

Youth Programs

In the spring and fall, Duane is extensively involved in youth conservation day events. These events provide students in K-6 grades an outdoor learning experience involving multiple natural resource topics. His educational focus typically involves the use of a stream table to demonstrate basic stream processes such as stream formation, development of oxbow lakes, deltas, and floodplains, and what happens when humans change or modify streams.