- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Last month, UC ANR approved the creation of a new Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice (DEIJ) Program Team. The aim of this program team is to provide a forum for networking and cross-program/cross-disciplinary dialogue on DEIJ issues that promotes learning, collaboration, and improvement in UC ANR's capacity to engage and serve diverse (in terms of race, ethnicity, ability, gender, and sexual orientation) clientele across the state, and engage all clientele in embracing the benefits diversity brings to the state as a whole. California is a multicultural state rich with a population of diverse ancestry, and as a publicly funded institution, UC ANR has the responsibility to ensure we are effectively reaching all our California communities equitably.
“We envision that the program team will serve as a formal venue for individuals and workgroups committed to integrating DEIJ into their programmatic work to connect and learn from each others' experience,” said Clare Gupta, UCCE specialist, who is leading the effort with Sonja Brodt, Academic Coordinator for the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. “It will also provide a means for colleagues new to this work to increase DEIJ capacity across ANR.”
“We anticipate that the DEIJ Program Team will complement rather than supplant participation in other program teams, given that the topic of DEIJ cuts across disciplines,” she said. “Beyond convening an annual meeting, we intend for this Program Team to serve as a vehicle for a number of other DEIJ engagement activities, training, and ‘network-smart extension' opportunities. The DEIJ Program Team will follow a collaborative leadership model, led by a rotating steering committee, with mutually agreed upon roles and responsibilities.”
If you would like to join the DEIJ Program Team, please contact Gupta at cgupta@ucdavis.edu.
Bringing DEIJ considerations to bear across the wide range of research and extension activities that take place within ANR will require a sustained, multidisciplinary, statewide effort that connects and builds on the work of those across the larger UC system who are already integrating DEIJ into their programmatic work.
The DEIJ Program Team will work together with the DEI Alliance, DEI Advisory Council, and newly formed Employment Resources Groups (ERGs) to provide a comprehensive framework for learning, collaboration, and organizational and programmatic change to improve ANR's impact in traditionally underserved communities around the state.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
UC ANR employees are invited to engage informally with UC ANR senior leadership and to discuss what's on your mind. The first Open Conversation session is 1-2 p.m., Wednesday, June 23, with AVP Wendy Powers and AVP-Business Operations Tu Tran.
To allow for open dialog, we are hoping to limit enrollment to 20 people per session so please register early if you are interested. Participants may submit specific questions and topics of interest when they complete the interest form.
We're also holding the dates below for future sessions. Dates and times may be adjusted as needed.
Sept. 21, 1-2 p.m. with Vice President Glenda Humiston and Powers
Dec. 15, 1-2 p.m. with Humiston and Tran
Open Conversation sessions will be announced about one month prior to each session.
For more information, contact the ANR Program Support Unit at anrprogramsupport@ucanr.edu or 530-750-1361 (messages only).
- Author: Mark Bell
Unify-Communicate-Advocate
The Strategic Initiatives offer a home for strategic thought, drawing on members of the wider UC ANR community and beyond to 1) help people connect and 2) to help them identify and address issues of current and emerging importance.
1. Virtual lessons learned: Capturing the positives from COVID
When shelter-in-place orders were issued, many ANR people quickly pivoted their programs, successfully using a range of virtual options to deliver them. A recent example was the Dairy Program Team, who creatively delivered their webinar series; speakers developed their messages as five-minute videos. These videos focused on major points and were then used as the introduction for panel discussions and Q&A. Feedback on the sessions was very positive (including an observation from a facilitator who noted that for the first time they didn't have to worry about speakers going over time!).
See the Virtual delivery page on our Learning and Development site for tips on how to better deliver virtually.
The way of the future? Many people have indicated they will continue to use many of the virtual delivery methods, noting they often ended up reaching more people than with their traditional approaches. Please visit the site and share new lessons learned to help your colleagues.
For more on the SIs and their activities, contact:
Jim Farrar: Pests (EIPD)
OPEN: Natural Ecosystems (SNE) (Let us know if you are interested in making sure SNE has a voice)
David Lewis: (Water)
Deanne Meyer: Food Systems (SFS)
Lynn Schmitt-McQuitty: Families and Communities (HFC)
Mark Bell: Vice Provost (Strategic Initiatives and Statewide Programs)
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
ANR will host a special staff recognition event on Thursday, June 17, from 2 to 4 p.m. via Zoom. We will be celebrating our ANR colleagues who are retiring in June, and we will also recognize the 2020-2021 ANR Staff Appreciation and Recognition program (STAR) Award winners.
Please register by Friday, June 11, at https://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=34993. Prior to the event, registrants will receive a formal confirmation email that includes the Zoom link.
Attention: STAR awardees, nominators and supervisors of awardees should register using the STAR registration form at https://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=34986, not the link above.
For more information contact, Kellie McFarland at ANR Program Support Unit or (530) 750-1361. STAR Award winners will also be announced in the next ANR Employee News.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
ANR offers online training on how to make videos. To further hone video-production techniques, Jeff Mitchell, UCCE specialist, is wondering if ANR colleagues would be interested in an informal way to exchange ideas.
“I am talking about an active, quick-fire workgroup of similarly interested folks who could share tips and skills,” Mitchell said. While he doesn't have a specific communications mechanism in mind, Mitchell would like to hear from others who would like to share techniques about video production. If you're interested, please contact Mitchell at jpmitchell@ucdavis.edu.
In the Frontiers in Communication article “Why Should Scientists be on YouTube? It's all About Bamboo, Oil and Ice Cream,” USDA-ARS scientist Eric Brennan writes, “DIY videos are not a silver bullet that will automatically improve science communication, but they can help scientists to 1) reflect on and improve their communications skills, 2) tell stories about their research with interesting visuals that augment their peer-reviewed papers, 3) efficiently connect with and inspire broad audiences including future scientists, 4) increase scientific literacy, and 5) reduce misinformation.”
Brennan and Douglas Gayeton, creative leader of The Lexicon of Sustainability, recently joined Mitchell to give a presentation to ANR communicators on the use of video in science communication. Brennan, a research horticulturist in organic systems, noted that while his peer-reviewed journal articles may get a couple dozen citations, videos about his research get as many as 200,000 views. To view a recording of the presentations, visit https://youtu.be/FXxvbHV7Ois.
