Days are cooler and rain may be coming. Fires continue to burn. We are keeping good thoughts for our first responders and everyone in these areas living with smoke, evacuations and uncertainty.

Last week Program Council reviewed the UC Master Gardener Program.  The review encompassed 10 years of work including major budget cuts, a global pandemic, and incredible growth in volunteers. Kudos to the review committee and Kit Alviz and Leyla Marandi of Program Planning and Evaluation.  Program Council appreciated the detailed analyses and contributions of information from many sources.

Did you know the UC Master Gardener Program started in 1980? The current volunteer roster exceeds 6,000 people. Sustainable landscaping, food gardening and community well-being are key focus areas. Workshop topics cover everything from food security to water conservation. Understanding the right plant and the right place is increasingly more important with our changing climate, unpredictable precipitation and scarce water resources.  Plants improve our well-being through beauty, shade and improved soil characteristics. The Master Gardener website is a fabulous resource! It's a great resource if you need information or if you're just curious about the program.  Give it a read!

Goings and comings. As the calendar turned to September, we thanked Katherine Soule who served as Assistant Vice Provost of UC Cooperative Extension for the last two years. We appreciate all her efforts in that role. Just a few days later, we wished David Bunn a happy retirement. Both David and Katherine worked closely with County Directors. Their energies, efforts and enthusiasm were appreciated. The first Friday CD/REC Director meeting in September was informative and a great information exchange occurred.

Leadership development is important for our organization. Keith Nathaniel is working with Western Extension Leadership Development Class XI. Oli Bachie and Jennifer Heguy are interns from UC ANR. Thank you, Keith, for your leadership. Betsy Karle is on the last part of her her 17 month leadership development in the California Ag Leadership Program's Class 51. Congratulations to Anne Megaro for being accepted into Class 52! I applaud everyone for continuing their leadership journey.

We continue to grow! Welcome Hanif Robert Houston, digital communications Alameda; Chun Fung Yu and Stephen Dampier, IT services; blank assistants Maximus Mendez, Kearney and Todd Wenstrom San Diego; Jose Pax Villegas and Jackson Dias, Fresno Madera MCP; Community Education Specialists Sierra Washington, Plumas and Sierra counties; Julie Salomonson, Ventura; Braulio Rodriguez Villalobos, Ana Mora Camacho, Coral Franco, Fresno and Madera MCP; Kathleen Carter and Alfonso Mota, Sierra Nevada; Nichol Santisteven, Santa Clara; Arlene Silva, Imperial; Tara Kelly, San Mateo; and Brandon Frost, Shasta. We are happy you have all joined the ANR family!

Thank you for all you do for California!  Together we effect change for California, and beyond.

Happy New Year and welcome to my blog!

One of my goals for 2017 is to continue to learn all I can about UC ANR, the work we are doing and the impact that work has across California and share it with you through this blog. I will share, also, some of the things going on within UC ANR leadership. If you have something you would like me to know and potentially have shared in the blog, please forward to me.

I don't know about you but, even after a great holiday break with family and friends, I was eager to get back to work. It started with a day-long meeting of the Vice President's (VP) Council. Among the several topics covered was the next step for the strategic plan. The final plan was turned in to President Napolitano right before the holiday break and will be available more broadly within the next couple of weeks. VP Council discussed ideas for developing action plans around each of the 15 goals. VP Council members had some great ideas, many of which will be acted upon when a 23-member group meets January 30-31 to flesh out action steps for at least 5 of the goals. That group includes UC ANR leadership and representatives of the statewide programs, strategic initiatives, county directors, REC directors, UCCE specialists, AES faculty, campus administration, Academic Assembly, Staff Assembly, and UC ANR support units. It's a group that represents a wide array of vested interests in UC ANR. I am looking forward to the interactions and ideas that result.

Members of the VP Council gave updates on their statewide programs and/or business units. I am amazed at all of the exciting things going on and I am sure that, with only 6 months into the position, I know only a tiny piece of the work going on! For example, I had no idea there was interest in growing tea in the Central Valley (past or present) but according to Jeff Dahlberg there is renewed interest and opportunity at the Kearney REC. Clearly I have much to learn and look forward to getting out in the state more in 2017.

Well that's about it for the first day in the office in 2017. Next week Program Council meets to talk about the pending release of the request for proposal submissions to the UC ANR grants program. I hope your 2017 is off to a good start. Please check back often for updates or subscribe to my blog, ANR Adventures.