Nic Nelson

Nic (he/him) was raised in Northfield and has extensive experience in native plant management, ecological assessment, and plant identification as a second-generation ecological restorationist and native plant rescuer. Nic spends some of his days in the summer rescuing lady slipper orchids from habitat destruction with his father. Nic has worked as a contractor as well as an educator for natural lands restoration with Prairie Restorations and St. Olaf College. Nic founded his own business Heritage Habitats to provide these skills to the community. These experiences have helped Nic to learn how to execute and train others in integrated pest management techniques, controlled burns, native plant identification, installation, and maintenance. Nic is especially interested in restoring habitat alongside transformative agricultural systems and is excited to join the SOR team to do just that. 

Along with his experience with orchids, Nic is interested in sedges and the wetland species of the prairie pothole region. Nic is also an avid bonsai enthusiast, DND player, soccer player, and father.