- Author: Pamela S Kan-Rice
In its sixth year as UC ANR's independent online giving campaign, UC ANR Giving Day will take place from noon to noon on May 16-17, 2024.
Gifts from past campaigns have supported a variety of program needs including UC Master Gardener demonstration gardens, and pop-up tents and collateral materials for outreach events. Contributions have also helped provide 4-H scholarships for registration fees or special events, and the purchase of materials and supplies for projects to engage members.
When you click “GIVE” on our website or go directly to donate.ucanr.edu, your gift fund choices appear in the drop-down menus. If you would like to add or change a gift fund, please submit requests to gifts@ucanr.edu by May 1.
Tune in to Development Services' webinar on Thursday, April 4, at 10 a.m. for campaign updates, resources and prize challenge details.
How to participate:
- Tune in to the webinar on Thursday, April 4, at 10 a.m. “UC ANR Giving Day: Creating Your Strategy For Success”
- Register your participation and receive gift notifications by May 1: Register here
- Send your edits to gift funds to gifts@ucanr.edu by May 1.
- Look for the Campaign-In-A-Box Toolkit in the next issue of The Scoop.
For more information or to subscribe to The Scoop, please contact Emily Delk, director of Annual Giving & Donor Stewardship at eddelk@ucanr.edu or (916) 564-4862.
- Author: Pamela S Kan-Rice
UC ANR has launched a new website for Workplace Inclusion and Belonging: https://ucanr.edu/sites/Workplace_Inclusion_Belonging.
“The website is a central place to connect with information, learning and groups on issues of equity, diversity, inclusion and accountability,” said Elizabeth Moon (she/her), director of Workplace Inclusion and Belonging. “The purpose of the webpage is to be a place of communication and connection.”
Visitors will find links to UC ANR's Principles of Community, DEI Advisory Council, employee groups, definitions of terms, upcoming EDI events and additional resources.
If you have suggestions for the website, please contact Moon at emoon@ucanr.edu.
- Author: Pamela S Kan-Rice
Legislators, agency staff and other policymakers celebrated Ag Day at the Capitol in Sacramento with UC ANR leaders, UC Cooperative Extension advisors, The VINE, UC Master Gardeners and 4-H members on March 19.
Under a warm sun, hundreds of Ag Day participants visited UC ANR booths to maneuver a farm robot, encounter 4-H rabbits and a lamb, ask gardening questions and view nearly 20 varieties of citrus grown at the UC Lindcove Research and Extension Center.
State Senator Anna Caballero, speaking about Ag Day on camera to Miguel Sanchez of News and Information Outreach in Spanish, said: “Este es un asunto muy importante para el estado y muchas veces los que viven en las ciudades no saben nada de agricultura. Este nos da la oportunidad de enseñar el producto, de enseñar cómo hacemos el trabajo y de celebrar también que dependemos bastante en la comida que se cosecha aquí en California con el esfuerzo de los trabajadores que mantienen la economía.” [This is a very important issue for the state and many times those who live in the cities know nothing about agriculture. It gives us the opportunity to show the product, to show how we do the work, and to also celebrate that we rely heavily on the food that is harvested here in California with the efforts of the workers who sustain the economy.]
Vice President GlendaHumiston; Associate Vice President Brent Hales; Margaret Lloyd,UCCE small farmsadvisor; Sarah Light,UCCE agronomy farmadvisor; Clarissa Reyes,UCCE orchard systemsadvisor; andUCCE Capitol Corridor Director Susan Ellsworth were on hand to greet visitors and answer questions.
“We're talking about food, fiber, economic development, jobs, national security with food security and really celebrating the historical legacy of food in the state of California,” said Hales, who was participating for the first time. (See his blog post in ANR Adventures.)
Tammy Majcherek, community educator at UC South Coast Research and Extension Center, traveled to Sacramento to answer questions about avocados and citrus. The team from The VINE – Hanif Houston, Lucie Cahierre and Terri White – discussed UC ANR's role in helping entrepreneurs advance robotics and other innovations to keep California agriculture competitive.
Laurelyn Roeser of Orange County, one of our 4-H State Ambassadors, was honored to serve as co-emcee with a member of FFA for the ceremony. First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, California Secretary of Food and Agriculture Karen Ross, State Senator Melissa Hurtado, Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria and ag education leader Judy Culbertson spoke about “Next-Gen Tools, Talent and Tech,” this year's theme for Ag Day. They emphasized the importance of accessible, healthful food – and the people who produce it – for the health and prosperity of Californians.
Members of the Sheldon and Sloughhouse 4-H clubs brought rabbits and a lamb and described for visitors what they have learned from their 4-H experiences.
Anne Megaro and Sheron Violini of government and community relations worked with Ag Day at the Capitol co-hosts – California Department of Food and Agriculture, California Women for Agriculture, and the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom – to coordinate UC ANR's presence at Ag Day.
“Legislators and their staff see, smell, touch and taste actual produce grown at our RECs; they hear directly from our 4-H youth and Master Gardener volunteers about their personal experiences; they meet real scientists who work in soil and agricultural production; and they get to control a live, working robot. It's these first-hand experiences that stick in the memories of legislators and their staff and build appreciation and awareness for UC ANR.”
To see more photos of the event, see @ucanr social media posts for March 19 and 20 and #CAAgDay24. UC ANR Global Food Initiative fellow and UC Davis student Mia Reyes made an video of Ag Day for Instagram and the News and Information in Spanish team made a video for YouTube.
On April 10, Megaro and Violini will be coordinating visits for legislators to meet with UC ANR academics to learn about wildfire preparation, economic development and other research and extension projects.