- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
UC ANR's statewide facilities – including nine Research and Extension Centers, the Elkus Ranch Environmental Education Center and an administrative building – made strides in sustainable practices in fiscal year 2020–21.
For example, Hansen REC gleaned 9,300 pounds of fruit from orchards typically used for agricultural literacy school field trips. With youth programs shut down due to COVID-19, HAREC partnered with Food Forward and Ventura Unified School District to redistribute fresh produce to students and families.
West Side REC, meanwhile, leveraged COVID-19 site closures to redesign two buildings into laboratories with energy-efficient air systems, lighting, windows and insulation, demonstrating how older facility conversions can increase UC ANR's sustainability.
The RECs reduced carbon dioxide emissions from 1,766 to 1,596 metric tons from 2014 to 2019 and further cut emissions by 711 metric tons during pandemic-related closures in fiscal year 2020–21. UC ANR's water consumption remained stable in 2020–21 due to ongoing agricultural research.
Additionally, it is often not feasible for UC ANR to use zero-emission vehicles or hybrid vehicles given the need for trucks and farm equipment, which are often unavailable in these models. When possible, UC ANR purchases or leases flex-fuel vehicles.
UC ANR's LEED-certified administrative building – the offices at 2801 Second Street in Davis – reduced electricity use by 22% and natural gas use by 50% from 2014 to 2019.
Read more at https://sustainabilityreport.ucop.edu/2021/locations/agriculture-and-natural-resources.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Mark Lubell, professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at UC Davis, will host a web chat to discuss social network analysis from 10 a.m. to noon on Sept. 12. Please register for “Extension 3.0: Agricultural Outreach & Education in the Age of Connectivity” at http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=11163.
Lubell will cover
- 21st century agricultural knowledge networks
- Social relationships—participation, belief change, and practice
- Accelerating knowledge networks with information technology and social media
- Illustrating importance of boundary-spanning social networks in sustainable viticulture
- Cooperative Extension—Leveraging knowledge networks for sustainable food systems
The webinar will be on AdobeConnect and a ReadyTalk line will be set up for audio. Links will be emailed to registrants. On Twitter, follow #SustAgUC.
The sustainability webinar series is sponsored by the UC ANR Sustainable Food Systems Initiative, UC ANR Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program and Agricultural Sustainability Institute at UC Davis.
Tom Tomich, professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at UC Davis, W.K. Kellogg Endowed Chair in Sustainable Food Systems and director ASI and SAREP, kicked off the series with sustainability science. Neil McRoberts, assistant professor in the Department of Plant Pathology at UC Davis, discussed “Sustainability: Linking Theory to Practice.” Ermias Kebreab, professor in the Department of Animal Science at UC Davis and Sesnon Endowed Chair in Sustainable Agriculture, discussed "Environmental Sustainability of Animal Agriculture."
If you missed any of these webinars, recordings can be viewed at http://ucanr.edu/sites/StrategicInitiatives/Sustainable_Food_Systems/Outreach_814.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Neil McRoberts, assistant professor in the Department of Plant Pathology at UC Davis, will present the webinar “Sustainability: Linking Theory to Practice” from 10 a.m. to noon on May 31.
McRoberts will discuss
- Using formal models for strategic planning of extension and outreach efforts
- Cross-linking of interdisciplinary scientists
- Sustainability theory Web resources
Online registration for the free webinar is required at http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=10668.
On June 13, Ermias Kebreab, professor in the Department of Animal Science at UC Davis and Sesnon Endowed Chair in Sustainable Agriculture, will discuss "Environmental Sustainability of Animal Agriculture." The Kebreab webinar will also run from 10 a.m. to noon.
Kebreab will discuss
- Sustainability as a “wicked problem”
- Water quality and livestock production
- Mitigation of air emissions from livestock operation
Register for Kebreab’s free webinar at http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=10669.
The webinar series is sponsored by the UC ANR Sustainable Food Systems Initiative, UC ANR Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program, and Agricultural Sustainability Institute at UC Davis.
Tom Tomich, professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at UC Davis, W.K. Kellogg Endowed Chair in Sustainable Food Systems and director ASI and SAREP, kicked off the series with sustainability science. If you missed Tomich’s webinar, a recording can be viewed at http://asi.ucdavis.edu/newsroom/blog/preview-video-for-the-upcoming-webinar-is-there-a-sustainability-science.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Tom Tomich, professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at UC Davis, W.K. Kellogg Endowed Chair in Sustainable Food Systems and director of the UC Davis Agriculture Sustainability Institute (ASI) and ANR Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SAREP), will present a webinar to discuss sustainability science on Feb. 15.
This webinar will be the first of a series sponsored by the Sustainable Food Systems Initiative, SAREP and ASI. The 2-hour webinar will start at 10 a.m. and participants will be able to write in questions and comments.
Registration is free. Please register at http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=10001.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
The Agricultural Sustainability Institute at UC Davis is calling for nominations for the 2012 Eric Bradford and Charlie Rominger Agricultural Sustainability Leadership Award.
The award is meant to recognize and honor individuals who exhibit the leadership, work ethic and integrity epitomized by the late Eric Bradford, a livestock geneticist who gave 50 years of service to UC Davis, and the late Charlie Rominger, a fifth-generation Yolo County farmer and land preservationist.
Nominations are welcome for UC Cooperative Extension farm advisors and specialists as well as UC Davis graduate students, faculty members, and in special cases, alumni, for their work toward agricultural sustainability.
Award recipients will receive a cash prize and may be invited to give a lecture sponsored by ASI, which manages the award and selection process. Letters of nomination should be submitted to the chair of the selection committee by Jan. 2, 2012.
To nominate someone or for more information, visit http://www.asi.ucdavis.edu/awards/br-award/br-award.
