Posts Tagged: presidential chair

UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Agricultural Education formed in Orange County

UC President Janet Napolitano has approved the formation of a $1 million endowment to create the UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Agricultural Education in Orange County. Half the endowment was donated by the Orange County Farm Bureau; Napolitano matched the contribution through the presidential endowment fund.

The Orange County Farm Bureau is housed at the UC South Coast Research and Extension Center in Irvine. The two organizations have worked together closely since their formation more than 100 years ago.

The new UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Agricultural Education in Orange County will allow for more local students to be exposed to careers in agricultural science.

“What Orange County Farm Bureau and the UC president's office have created will fund agricultural education activities in Orange County and the surrounding region for decades to come,” said UC ANR vice president Glenda Humiston. “This is a way for us to make sure the resources we need are there and that they're targeted for the needs identified by individuals at their local areas.”

President of the Orange County Farm Bureau, Mark Lopez, said the formation of the endowment will help the organization meet its goals.

“In our rapidly urbanizing county, the Farm Bureau is seeking to cement a legacy of ag in Orange County, and invest in the development of future leaders for agriculture,” Lopez said. "This donation, and the formation of the Presidential Chair for Ag Education, is directly in line with the mission of Orange County Farm Bureau.”

Director of the South Coast REC, Darren Haver, who is also a UC Cooperative Extension water resources advisor, holds the chair. He and his farm bureau colleagues will initially use the funds to expand an agricultural leadership and educational program for Orange County youth.  

FARMS ( Farming, Agriculture, and Resource Management for Sustainability) Leadership, a program of the Center for Land-Based Learning implemented in Orange County by the Orange County Farm Bureau, in addition to the Orange County Farm Bureau's GROW program, offers field trips and hands-on learning over the course of a school year at locations such as the South Coast REC, acquainting students with wildlife areas, agriculture related businesses and research, colleges and universities where they gain valuable insight into the food and agriculture industry, associated careers and college opportunities. The programs have been open to ag students in Orange County for over five years promoting the importance of agriculture in their daily lives.

“The current programs serve approximately 90 students from four high schools located in Orange County that have agriculture programs,” Haver said. “With this new funding, we will be able to reach beyond the ag students and involve youth interested in math and sciences, but don't know much about agriculture.”

Humiston said she hopes that partnerships like this one can be formed across the state.

“This is a way for us to make sure the resources we need are there and that they're targeted for the needs identified by individuals at their local area,” Humiston said.

In announcing the establishment of the presidential endowment funding in 2014, Napolitano said it is imperative for UC to develop new models of philanthropy that recognize and honor the interests of donors while helping UC address its long-term funding needs.

“By supporting these endowed chairs, donors will be creating a lasting legacy at the university – one that will benefit many generations to come,” Napolitano said.

Climate change is impacting California tree crop farms

Rising temperatures appear to be reducing the number of hours tree crops in the San Joaquin Valley are subjected to chill during the winter, a critical factor in producing a profitable yield, reported Ezra David Romero on Valley Public Radio, KVPR-FM.

Pistachios, for example, require temperatures between 32 and 45 degrees for about 700 hours each winter, but for the past four years have had less than 500 chill hours.

UC Davis researcher Hyunok Lee recently published a study about climate change impacts on agriculture in UC Agriculture and Natural Resources' peer-reviewed journal California Agriculture. The study found that winter temperatures are increasing more than any other time of year. Her modeling looks at the year 2050 in Yolo County.

“Our agriculture will continue,” Lee said. “But if you look at . . . like 20 years or 30 years. The pattern may change a little bit, crops may move a little bit north.”

Insufficient chill hours can delay the opening of leaf and flower buds in crops such as walnuts, which may result in a smaller yield. (Photo: Will Suckow))

Romero spoke to UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor Craig Kallsen, who holds the UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for Tree Nut Genetics. Kallsen is conducting trials aimed at finding pistachio varieties with novel nut, tree growth and yield characteristics, and varieties that produce a high yield even under low-chill conditions.

"We're trying to use the other species of pistachios actually to see if we can come up with something that has a low chill requirement. It's pretty hypothetical at this stage,” Kallsen told Romero. “We made quite a few crosses this spring and we actually hope to put a trial in a low chill area.”

David Doll, UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor in Merced County, is studying other tactics to improve winter chill, such as using overhead sprinklers to cool the trees and painting them white with liquid clay to reflect sunlight.

"So this is something that could impact a lot of farmers over the next 10, 20, 30 to 40 years,” Doll said. “And in fact it's already impacting farmers on random given years across the state."

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