- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
UC ANR colleagues voted and chose their six favorite designs from among the 18 workplace inclusion and belonging postcard designs submitted.
“I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the creativity and artistic abilities of our UC ANR colleagues,” said Elizabeth Moon, director of workplace inclusion and belonging.
“These postcards will be used to help develop our new website focused on the work in Equity Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging, as well as being printed as logo items to provide as gifts to our external partners.”
The postcard contest winners, in random order, are:
- Thomas Harter, UC Cooperative Extension specialist, Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources. Picture: Muted colors of browns and blues
- Matthew Rodriguez, 4-H youth development advisor for Nevada, Placer, Sutter and Yuba counties. Picture: Heart with the words “Diversity, Equity & Inclusion”
- Elizabeth Bezark, customer service & project assistant, Business Operations in Davis. Picture: Two trees in yellows and blues with roots intertwined with the words “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion”
- Bridgette Alvarez, program and events specialist, Program Support Unit. Picture: Earth with many people holding hands
- Kelsey Dugan, 4-H community education specialist, UCCE San Luis Obispo. Picture: Ink drawing of crops with the words Diversity & Inclusion not just for enhancing our crops & soil
- Saoimanu Sope, digital communication specialist, Strategic Communications. Picture: A variety of hairstyles with vibrant blues, yellows, pink, brown and black
To stay current on workplace inclusion and belonging news, subscribe to Together@Work at https://ucanr.edu/blogs/Together.
- Author: Tracy Schohr
“We focused on fostering a good dialogue and facilitating co-learning among attendees,” said event co-chair Leslie Roche, assistant UC Cooperative Extension specialist in rangeland management. “We hosted university faculty, statewide CE specialists and academics, and county-based CE advisors—as well as local policymakers and leaders from non-governmental organizations and statewide programs.”
UC researchers who have successfully engaged in the public policy arena provided numerous models of linking research and policy. There were five key take-aways for scientists:
- Honest broker role – Present policymakers with various policy options, based on sound research. Have a clear understanding of the science behind your messaging. Use qualitative data to tell the story of the hard quantitative data.
- Active engagement – Be part of informational and oversight hearings. Empower communities to take action and foster community engagement.
- Build coalitions – Collaboration is imperative. Develop unexpected allies and foster long-term relationships, realizing it may take some time to bear fruit.
- Disseminate information – Share your data in user-friendly formats. Target local community, Legislature and state agencies to inform policies. Get your science into trainings and continuing education programs. Leverage your coalition to expand the circulation of your research results.
- Target messages – Develop a strong, concise message to deliver your research. Use an emotional connection – “Old-growth oak woodlands” versus “oak woodland.”
Throughout the conference, speakers highlighted the multiple levels of engagement for researchers in the policy arena, with different roles matching different needs – some take a center stage, while others play imperative behind-the-scenes roles.
Keynote speaker Jason Delborne, associate professor of science, policy and society at North Carolina State University, encouraged engaging the public. “Science is a social process,” he said, noting that community and public engagement is often key to successfully applying research to policy. Delborne also touched on the tension between expertise and democracy, commenting that we can't always resolve it and often we have to learn to live with this tension.
A diverse set of researchers shared their perspectives from experiences in engaging in policy. The panel included Thomas Harter, Robert M. Hagan Endowed Chair in Water Management and Policy and UCCE specialist in the Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources at UC Davis; Lorrene Ritchie, director of the UC ANR Nutrition Policy Institute; Mindy Romero, founder and director of California Civic Engagement Project at UC Davis Center for Regional Change; and Yana Valachovic, UCCE forest advisor and county director in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. They discussed the importance of building strong science-based programs, actively engaging local communities and building coalitions of support.
Guests from both government and non-government organizations who use research to shape policy shared their perspectives on translating science to decision-making.
“Science is the foundation for developing programs,” said Amrith Gunasekara, science advisor for the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
Tina Cannon Leahy, attorney with the State Water Resources Control Board, noted that policymakers and decision-makers are often looking for a clear, “black-and-white” answer, while for scientists, there is “no answer,” but rather information.
Anne Megaro, consultant to the California Senate Committee on Agriculture, and Rebecca Newhouse, consultant to the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee, both emphasized the importance of making sure science is accessible and digestible.
Juliet Sims of the Prevention Institute explained how her organization uses both published scholarly literature and community stories to effectively inform its advocacy platform.
Keynote speaker Rachel Morello-Frosch, associate professor in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at UC Berkeley, introduced the concept of moving from “translational research” to “transformational research,” a shift that requires deep community engagement in meaningful ways to effect policy change.
In the afternoon, four breakout sessions were offered: “Policy structures and opportunities for engagement” with Robert Waste, “Relational approaches to science communication and engagement” with Faith Kearns, “Putting it into practice–UC ANR case studies” with Dave Campbell, Clare Gupta and Lucas Frerichs, and “Navigating policy engagement: Education vs advocacy,” with Adrian Lopez and Kit Batten. These training modules helped participants build technical skills and analytical frameworks for successful policy engagement.
The Research to Policy Conference was a forum to exchange ideas and share perspectives, continuing to bridge the gap between science and policy communities. It challenged attendees to be open to new ways of thinking, shared innovative outreach methods and showcased how research can have an impact in the policy arena.
“The event brought cross-fertilization and co-learning between disciplines – nutrition, forest management, water quality – and there were common themes that resonated for all participants,” said event co-chair Gupta, assistant UCCE specialist in public policy and translational research.
VP Glenda Humiston wrapped up the policy conference by saying, "Good science is vital for good policy. It's great to see UC folks enhancing these skills to bring science together with policy."
For more information on applying research to policy, contact Frerichs, UC ANR government and community relations manager, at (530) 750-1218 or lfrerichs@ucanr.edu, or Research to Policy Program Team contacts Gupta at cgupta@ucdavis.edu and Roche at lmroche@ucdavis.edu.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
The article included a map of California with color coded areas indicating areas that were excellent for groundwater banking down to poor. The story was picked up widely by the news media.
California farmers will intentionally flood their fields this winter
Jane Braxton Little, Scientific American
For two months this winter, a team of scientists will flood almond orchards in the Central Valley to a depth of two feet by redirecting rainfall through a network of ditches originally designed to divert floodwater away. To measure success, they will then monitor how much water filters into the water table over the course of two years. If the method pans out, pear, plum and walnut tree orchards might also benefit from intentional flooding, according to a recent study led by UC ANR Cooperative Extension specialist Anthony O'Geen.
Map identifies farmland with greatest potential for groundwater recharge
Diane Nelson, UC Davis News Service
This December, O'Geen and a team of scientists - including Helen Dahlke, professor in integrated hydrologic sciences at UC Davis - will flood almond fields in the Central Valley, building on research that suggests that deliberately flooding farmland in winter can replenish aquifers without harming crops or drinking water. “Adding an extra few feet of water to even just 10 percent of California's cropland this winter could add an additional 3 million acre-feet of groundwater,” Dahlke said. “That could go a long way toward replenishing the 6 million acre-feet growers had to pump this year alone to cope with California's drought.”
UC scientists test inexpensive way to capture El Niño rains
Amy Graff, The San Francisco Chronicle (SFGate.com)
Researchers from UC Davis and UC Cooperative Extension are testing a new method for capturing some of that underutilized water by diverting it from rivers into the network of canals running through Central Valley farmland. "That could go a long way toward replenishing the 6 million acre-feet growers had to pump this year alone to cope with California's drought," said Dahlke, who's testing the technique in the field. UC ANR Cooperative Extension specialist O'Geen points out that this is a win-win for agriculture. "They're typically considered the bad guys. They're feeding the world yet they're considered the water hogs because they have to take all the water to grow the food. On-farm recharge offers the opportunity for them to offer two services — providing food and collecting water. That puts agriculture in a better light."
How California could get smarter about droughts and flooding
Nathaneal Johnson, Grist.org
Land suitable for flooding should be flat, free of contamination and clear of structures. O'Geen estimates that leaves 3.6 million acres. “A preliminary calculation based only on soil properties and crop type shows that landscapes rated Excellent or Good could be used to bank as much as 1.2 million acre feet of water per day.” UC ANR groundwater hydrologist Thomas Harter was also a source in the article. He said there are additional challenges to overcome, including reluctant farmers, variations in soil profile, red tape and a lack of infrastructure, especially on farms that now use micro sprinklers or drip irrigation systems, rather than flood.
California farmers hope to capture El Niño rains
David Dienick, KCRA 3 News
Researchers have been looking for ways to capture more runoff without relying on reservoirs. "We've never actually managed our agriculture landscapes for groundwater recharge to my knowledge," O'Geen said.
Farmers urged to flood their fields with any upcoming rain
KFBK News Radio
A soil map has been developed that will allow farmers to take advantage of every opportunity to recharge the groundwater. "Is it a managed event where we are giving a couple extra irrigations in the winter time and the wet crops can tolerate a few extra irrigations when they don't really use the water," O'Geen said.
Another study suggests flooding farmland to recharge aquifers
Tim Hearden, Capital Press
A study in Merced, Madera and Fresno counties will determine whether diverting excess river flows from winter storms to farmland successfully. In addition, O'Geen and Dahlke plan to use some of the state's 3.6 million acres of farms and ranches with suitable topography and soil conditions to recharge aquifers during winter months. Dahlke is still conducting field experiments to evaluate how much water can be recharged in a couple of weeks.
UC maps farmland that can 'bank' groundwater during El Niño rains
KPCC 89.3
In response to California's withering drought and a dwindling water supply, researchers at UC Davis have identified farmland that could potentially "bank" groundwater during what is predicted to be an unusually wet winter. "A lot of growers are interested in learning how they can help improve the groundwater situation in California," O'Geen said. "The index provides details on the groundwater-recharge potential for any parcel, which you can search for by address or access using your device's GPS."
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Wee sought comment from UC Agriculture and Natural Resources groundwater hydrologist Thomas Harter, a Cooperative Extension specialist based at UC Davis.
"The mentality among landowners is, 'This is really my water,'" Harter said. "'It's part of my property and I don't want anybody to look over my shoulder.'"
Farmers typically use groundwater as a water savings account to draw upon when surface water is unavailable for irrigation. However, after four years of drought and dramatic cuts in surface water allocations, those with more money are drilling deeper wells, often leaving shallower wells high and dry. Removal of the undergound water is also causing land subsidence.
"There are large parts of the southern Central Valley that last year alone have sunk between six inches and a foot," Harter said.
The CNBC report said a recent update on California's drought had gaps in groundwater monitoring. Among the reasons for the data gap: Reluctance of private well owners to grant permission to monitoring entities. Other well owners were hesitant to release well construction details.
Harter said he believes compliance with new groundwater regulations will be challenging.
"People are used to turning on their faucets without thinking about how much they're using," Harter said. "It's a painful process."
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
The aquifer accumulated over thousands of years, but is now dropping as much as two feet per year in some parts of the Central Valley. As the water is pumped, the ground sinks down too, said Thomas Harter, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources Cooperative Extension hydrologist based at UC Davis. When the soil compresses, groundwater can never be fully recharged again.
Harter said the state's groundwater reserve reached historic lows last year.
“With little recharge, many areas are currently at the lowest recorded levels ever,” Harter said. “It's worrisome.”
Last year, state lawmakers passed California's first extensive groundwater regulation, allowing for the creation of local boards to oversee how the water is used. But it will take up to two decades before the new law takes full effect.