About Us
Let The Sun Shine In – Indiana (LSSI) is a collaboration focused on recovering and maintaining Oak-Hickory Ecosystems across southern Indiana. This public/private collaboration consists of partners with a mutual interest in healthy, sustainable forests and watersheds, and improved wildlife habitat. We focus on communication, outreach and education, and science based implementation aimed at recovering and maintaining healthy oak-hickory ecosystems across the landscape.
Why Let the Sun Shine In?
When walking in an Indiana forest, look up. You see mature oak and hickory trees. Now look around. Where are the young oak and hickory trees? Our native oak-hickory forests are slowly being replaced by trees that thrive in the shade. Because of this, our forests are becoming shady and dark.
Oak Trees Are the Tree of Life
Historically, oak-hickory woodlands were common in southern Indiana. They supported rich plant and animal communities. Early-successional, woodland birds such as Red-headed Woodpecker and Eastern Whip-poor-will find homes in oak-hickory woodlands. Acorns and hickory nuts are important, nutrient-dense foods for species such as wild turkey, white-tailed deer, black bear, and small mammals. Hundreds of species of insects, particularly caterpillars of many moth and butterfly species, depend on oaks for survival and reproduction. In fact, oaks support more life forms than any other tree genus in the United States. Additionally, the open-canopy, sunny nature of oak-hickory woodlands enables a diverse ground layer of grasses, forbs, and shrubs to flourish. For all these reasons, oaks are considered keystone species – species critical to an ecosystem’s function and persistence. Oak trees truly ARE the tree of life.
Let the Sun Shine In – Indiana works to recover and maintain southern Indiana’s Oak-Hickory Ecosystem.
Let the Sun Shine In (LSSI) began in Indiana in 2021, under the guidance of the Central Hardwoods Joint Venture. Forest land managers were alarmed by the decline in the Oak-Hickory Ecosystem across southern Indiana, and the loss of forest birds. They began working together, and developed Let the Sun Shine In – Indiana, modeled after the successful Let the Sun Shine In, Illinois program. LSSI Indiana addresses the threats to the Oak-Hickory Ecosystem, and strives to maintain biodiversity across the landscape. Our goal is healthy, sustainable forests and watersheds, and improved wildlife habitat.
A key component of the LSSI strategy for restoring and maintaining landscape-scale Oak-Hickory Ecosystems is working collaboratively in focal areas called Forest Stewardship Collaboratives (FSC). A stewardship plan was developed to facilitate and guide management of Let the Sun Shine In – Indiana FSC across southern Indiana.
Introducing the team
Judi Brown is Coordinator for Let the Sun Shine In-Indiana, since January, 2023. Judi leads education and outreach opportunities detailing the value of Oak-Hickory Ecosystems. She collaborates with LSSI partners on landscape level planning, and management methods necessary for restoring and maintaining the ecosystem across southern Indiana.
Judi comes to LSSI with experience in building partnerships, and implementing projects that promote forest management, soil health, and water quality. After earning a BS in Forestry at Purdue University, she served as Executive Director for the Dubois County (Indiana) Soil and Water Conservation District for more than two decades. As Director, Judi was responsible for all programs and projects of the SWCD, and collaborated with the Indiana Conservation Partnership to develop innovative outreach and education programs.
Judi Brown
LSSI Indiana Coordinator
Our Partners
LSSI partners include state and federal government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private landowners, all with a mutual interest in sustainable, healthy oak-hickory forests. The partnership educates the public about the benefits of active, science-based forest management, identifies priority areas in need of management, and combines resources to increase regional forest management aimed at restoring oak-hickory ecosystems.
Click on the logos to learn more about our partners.
