- Author: Pamela S Kan-Rice
To increase awareness of how UC ANR research and extension is improving life for Californians, Strategic Communications has been posting about UC Cooperative Extension activities across social media.
Inspired in 2022 by the state government boosting ANR's budget to allow the hiring of more than 100 academics and support staff, Doralicia Garay, social media strategist, wanted to show legislators and other Californians how they benefit from ANR.
“The ‘Improving Lives in California' campaign is designed to showcase ANR research as well as those who deliver it by featuring compelling content and UC Cooperative Extension advisors and specialists,” Garay said.
She targeted Californians who were interested in agriculture, pests, environment, wildfire, water, youth development, and nutrition with paid campaigns as well as regular posts on Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter) and LinkedIn.
Between March 2022 and December 2023, UC ANR's “Improving Lives in California” campaign has reached more than 600,000 people and more than 21,000 people have engaged with the posts by sharing, liking or commenting across all platforms.
“The per-post engagement rate averaged 3.5% across all social media channels, which is almost twice the average rate per post,” Garay said.
Key elements of the campaign:
- Employee spotlights: Through a series of engaging profiles, we highlight our extension experts' unique journeys and expertise. By featuring their skills and contributions to research projects, we humanize our staff and inspire a sense of connection with our online community.
Examples:
tinyurl.com/23bjz4xr Brooke Latack
tinyurl.com/yxbmybp5 Ian Grettenberger
tinyurl.com/rndcn6uz AtefSwelam
- Short videos: Bite-sized videos featuring Cooperative Extension advisors are intended to simplify complex research projects and explain their relevance to all Californians. It's also a great opportunity for our audiences to get a sense of our researchers' personality.
Examples:
tinyurl.com/mr46w65s Srabani Das
tinyurl.com/bdf68sh5 Ramiro Lobo
Series of videos: instagram.com/ucanr/reels/?hl=en
- Social media takeovers: We take our audience on a virtual tour behind the scenes of our research facilities. Through carefully crafted multimedia content, we share what makes research and extension centers and county office locations unique, and how the infrastructure enables scientists to bring innovation to life.
Example:
tinyurl.com/272xh9h7 South Coast REC
- Research impact stories: We bring our research to life by illustrating its real-world impact on California communities. Through compelling narratives, we demonstrate how the dedication of UC ANR employees to research translates into positive change with advancements in agriculture, wildfire mitigation, water issues and more.
Examples:
tinyurl.com/5y2vn4rs Hamutahl Cohen
tinyurl.com/2e3bafh3 Houston Wilson, Jhalendra Rijal and David Haviland
- Interactive Q&A sessions: Live Q&A sessions on social media platforms encourage direct interaction between our experts and online audiences. Although social media reach has recently dipped for this type of content on Facebook, we successfully engaged with our Facebook audience in 2022 during a nutrition Q&A by retaining 80% of our live audience from start to finish.
Example:
tinyurl.com/52e7jy6s Mary Blackburn, JavierMiramontes andAba Ramirez
- Employee-generated content: Encouraging employees to share their own perspectives, experiences and insights on social media platforms promotes a sense of ownership and inclusivity. It also creates a vibrant online community that encourages our audiences to participate in conversations about research initiatives.
Example:
tinyurl.com/587jcxvf GerrySpinelli
- Hashtag campaign: "#ImprovingLivesinCA is a unique campaign hashtag that serves as a unifying element, allowing us to gather user-generated content and track the campaign's reach and engagement.
“By strategically highlighting our employees in the narrative of our research efforts, #ImprovingLivesinCA strengthens the UC ANR brand identity and positions our organization as a collaborative partner at the forefront of innovation,” Garay said. “This campaign represents a comprehensive approach to leveraging the power of social media to drive reach and engagement and serve our online community.”
You can follow UC ANR on Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter),LinkedIn and YouTube.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Cattle ranchers have a new source for cattle research news from UC Cooperative Extension. CattleCal podcast is produced by Pedro Carvalho, UC Cooperative Extension feedlot management specialist; Brooke Latack, UC Cooperative Extension livestock advisor for Imperial, Riverside and San Bernardino counties; and Richard Zinn, UC Davis professor in the Department of Animal Science.
Released on Wednesdays, CattleCal varies the focus each week of the month. The first two weeks they interview a guest who works in the cattle business – the first week they discuss the guest's career path and the second week they discuss specific research. The third week of the month, Carvalho and Latack discuss feedlot research. The last week of the month features “Quiz Zinn,” with Zinn answering listeners' questions related to feedlot nutrition and management.
The podcast episodes range in length from 8 to 30 minutes. Ranchers can listen to the cattle research updates on Spotify on demand on their computers or mobile devices.
Carvalho did a Q&A, answering questions such as “Why did you name it CattleCal instead of Cattle Call?” at https://bit.ly/3dLbNzm.
CattleCal joins other ANR podcasts including Water Talk, Growing the Valley and Sheep Stuff Ewe Should Know.
Water Talk is hosted by Faith Kearns, academic coordinator for the California Institute for Water Resources, and UC Cooperative Extension specialists Mallika Nocco and Samuel Sandoval, both in the UC Davis Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources.
Growing the Valley is hosted by Phoebe Gordon, UCCE orchards systems advisor for Madera and Merced counties, and Luke Milliron, UCCE Orchard System Advisor for Butte, Tehama, and Glenn counties.
Sheep Stuff Ewe Should Know is hosted by Dan Macon, UCCE livestock and natural resources advisor for Placer, Nevada, Sutter and Yuba counties, and rancher Ryan Mahoney.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Tracy Schohr joined UCCE on Oct. 16, 2017, as an area livestock and natural resources advisor in Plumas, Sierra and Butte counties.
Prior to joining UCCE, Schohr worked for the Department of Plant Sciences, UC Davis (2012-2014), where she co-led research projects on working rangelands focused on irrigated pasture, mountain meadows, livestock predation, annual rangelands and invasive species. She is a managing partner for Schohr Ranch (rice, cattle, walnuts and wetland management) where she is engaged in all facets of the operation from livestock production, financial accounting, equipment operation, human resources and marketing. From 2015 to 2017, Schohr also worked as a farmer outreach specialist for K-COE Isom, a national agricultural accounting and consulting firm, where she was a scientific and agricultural advisor on conservation initiatives. From 2006 to 2012, Schohr was the director of rangeland conservation for the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition. From 2004 to 2006, she served as director of industry affairs for the California Cattlemen's Association.
She completed an M.S. in horticulture and agronomy (rangeland focus) from UC Davis and a B.S. in agricultural business from CSU Chico.
Based in Quincy, Schohr can be reached at (530) 283-6262, cell (916) 716-2643 and tkschohr@ucanr.edu. Follow her on Twitter @BeefnSushi.
Mary Bonaparte-Saller joined UCCE on Oct. 9 as a 4-H youth development advisor in Orange County.
Prior to joining UCCE, Bonaparte-Saller taught third- to fifth-grade classroom and field lessons at Sierra Nevada Journeys, a science and environmental education nonprofit. From 2011 to 2016, Bonaparte-Saller was a graduate student researcher at UC Davis, where she studied the social behavior and welfare of zoo elephants and mentored and supervised undergraduate research volunteers. During this time, she also engaged in youth education and outreach activities as a volunteer for the Kids into Discovering Science (KiDS) Program at UCD, Sacramento's Powerhouse Science Center, and the Sacramento Zoo.
She earned a Ph.D. in animal behavior at UC Davis and a B.S. biological sciences at UC Irvine.
Bonaparte-Saller is based in Irvine and can be reached at (949) 653-1814 and kmbonaparte@ucanr.edu.
Black joins UCCE as dairy advisor
Randi Black joined UCCE on Oct. 2 as an area dairy systems advisor in Sonoma, Marin and Mendocino counties.
Prior to joining UCCE, Black was a graduate research assistant at University of Tennessee (2013-2016) and University of Kentucky (2010-2012), leading and supervising dairy cow behavior research projects.
Born and raised in Versailles, Ky., Black ventured into agriculture working with thoroughbred race horses, but realized her passion for the dairy industry as an undergraduate.
She earned a B.S. and an M.S. in animal science at the University of Kentucky. Her thesis focused on the management of compost bedded pack barns within Kentucky dairy farms. She earned a Ph.D. in animal science from University of Tennessee. Her dissertation focused on the use of exercise during late gestation to improve postpartum health in dairy cows.
Black is based in Santa Rosa and can be reached at (707) 565-2648 and rablack@ucanr.edu.
Brooke Latack joined UCCE on Oct. 2 as an area desert livestock advisor in Imperial, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
Prior to joining UCCE, Latack worked in multiple positions at the Michigan State University Animal Air Quality Research Facility. As an undergraduate research assistant, professional aid, and graduate research assistant, Latack worked with beef, swine and poultry evaluating and addressing the environmental impact of management decisions in animal agriculture. Her primary research integrated systems dynamics feedback into understanding the environmental sustainability of animal protein production.
She earned a B.S. and an M.S. in animal science from Michigan State University.
Latack is based in Holtville and can be reached at (442) 265-7700 and bclatack@ucanr.edu.
Matthew Shapero joined UC ANR as a UCCE livestock and range advisor serving Ventura and Santa Barbara counties on Sept. 5. Prior to starting as an advisor, Matthew worked for the Rangeland Planning & Policy and the Rangeland Ecology labs at UC Berkeley and worked as a graduate student researcher at Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center. Shapero also has experience in small-scale, grass-fed meat production, working as rancher in the Sierra Nevada foothills between 2010 and 2016.
As one of ANR's Global Food Initiative fellows and Graduate Students in Extension in 2015-16, Shapero led a group of UC Berkeley graduate students in organizing seminars and workshops about careers with Cooperative Extension, including the Cooperative Extension Showcase, which brings UC Cooperative Extension advisors and specialists to the Berkeley campus to discuss their work and to network with graduate students.
He completed an M.S. in range management from UC Berkeley and a B.A. in religion and pre-med from Columbia University.
Shapero is based in Ventura and can be reached at (805) 645-1475 and mwkshapero@ucanr.edu.
Keith Taylor joined UCCE as a community economic development specialist in the Department of Human Ecology at UC Davis on July 1, 2017.
Taylor earned a Ph.D. in human and community development from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, an M.S. in public sdministration from the University of Illinois, and a B.A. in political science from Eastern Illinois University.
Prior to joining UC, Taylor worked as a research associate and visiting scholar with the Ostrom Workshop at Indiana University Bloomington, where his research focused on the community economic development spillovers from renewable energy and food systems development. Taylor has worked extensively with co-operative businesses and marginalized communities to identify sustainable community economic development strategies that enhance the well-being of the local population. His forthcoming book, “Governing the Wind Energy Commons,” analyzes the community economic differentials of community and investor-owned wind energy, a culmination of three years of research in rural North Dakota and Illinois. Taylor has served in governance capacities for Common Ground Food Cooperative and as chair of the board for Indiana Cooperative Development Center, and We Own It, “the national network for cooperative members' rights, education, and organizing.” He also has experience in public policy, having worked as a legislative aide for former Congressman David Phelps.
Taylor is based at UC Davis and can be reached at keitaylor@ucdavis.edu.
Scott Brayton and Kelly Scott have joined Development Services as major gifts officers, raising philanthropic support and building relationships that serve to advance ANR's programs.
Brayton has been with the UC system for 27 years primarily with UC Davis Athletics as the assistant athletics director responsible for marketing and corporate relations. Most recently he has served as a contract negotiation consultant with UC Davis accounting and financial services. In his roles, Brayton has raised over $25 million in funds for UC Davis programs, facilities and students.
A 2001 graduate of California State University, Chico, Scott has a degree in business administration, with an emphasis in marketing. He has worked in higher education at UC Davis for more than 14 years. He has held previous fundraising positions at UC Davis with the COSMOS program (California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science), the College of Engineering, and the Cal Aggie Alumni Association.
Brayton and Scott are based in the UCANR building in Davis. Scott Brayton can be reached at (530) 750-1210 and sabrayton@ucanr.edu. Kelly Scott can be reached at (530) 750-1307 and kdscott@ucanr.edu.
Lorrene D. Ritchie, Nutrition Policy Institute director, received the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation's 34th annual Huddleson Award for the article “School Breakfast Policy Is Associated with Dietary Intake of Fourth- and Fifth-Grade Students” published in the March 2016 issue of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (2016;116(3):449-457).
The coauthors for the article include Lauren E. Au, PhD, RD, assistant researcher; Lauren H. Goldstein, PhD, director of operations, Nutrition Policy Institute, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California; Nila J. Rosen, MPH, senior associate, Informing Change, Berkeley, CA; at the time of the study, she was a research associate, Atkins Center for Weight and Health, University of California, Berkeley; Keenan Fenton, MA, biostatistician, Seattle Genetics, Bothell, WA; at the time of the study, he was a research data analyst, Atkins Center for Weight and Health, University of California, Berkeley; and Tia Shimada, MPH, managing director nutrition policy advocate, California Food Policy Advocates, Oakland, CA.
The prestigious Huddleson Award honors a registered dietitian nutritionist who was the lead author of a peer-reviewed article that made an important contribution to the dietetics profession and that was published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics during the previous calendar year.
The award, named for Mary Pascoe Huddleson, editor of the Journal from 1927 to 1946, carries a $1,000 honorarium, and the winner is invited to attend the foundation dinner at the Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo.