CARET delegation discusses Farm Bill in nation’s capitol

CARET representatives visited Congressman Jim Costa's office. From left: Loressa Uson, UC Santa Cruz associate director of Federal Relations; Alexa Fox, Costa's senior legislative assistant; Mike Mellano, CARET delegate and Mellano & Company president/CEO; and Ish Herrera, CARET delegate and director of regional stewardship for California Forward.

UC ANR leaders and supporters met with congressional members and staff in Washington, D.C. during the CARET (Council for Agricultural Extension, Research and Teaching) meetings, March 12–15. They discussed the benefits of investing in research and extension for agriculture, natural resources and nutrition.

The CARET meetings centered on global food, agriculture and resource challenges.

UC ANR's CARET delegation included Deanne Meyer, interim associate vice president; Karmjot Randhawa, director of UC Cooperative Extension in Madera Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties; Missy Gable, UC Master Gardener Program director; and Ryan Tompkins, forester and natural resources advisor for Plumas, Sierra and Lassen counties; as well as Ish Herrera and Mike Mellano of the President's Advisory Commission.

Dean DavidAckerly of UC Berkeley, Divisional DeanIsgouhiKaloshian of UC Riverside, Kathy Eiler ofUCR Government Relations, andLoressa Uson of UC Santa Cruz Government Relations, Brandon Minto of UC Davis Government Relations, and Gina Daly of UCB Government Relations joined the delegation, demonstrating UC's unified support for UC ANR's work.

During the CARET visits, UC's advocacy network ran a social media campaign featuring UC ANR

The delegates visited congressional offices to underscore UC's priorities for FY24 agricultural appropriations and the 2023 Farm Bill, which is renewed by Congress every five years.  The CARET representatives gave examples of how UC ANR's work is improving people's lives and businesses across California.

CARET also presented a moving tribute to the late Jean-Mari Peltier, who served as a UC ANR CARET representative and on the UC President's Advisory Commission on Agriculture and Natural Resources (PAC) until her death in 2021. At the CARET gathering, Peltier was honored with a lifetime achievement award for her contributions to agriculture. The PAC has created the Jean-Mari Peltier Endowment in support of UC ANR Strategic Priorities to carry on her commitment to UC ANR, science and solving problems.

“We visited 24 offices including the Senate and House Ag Committees,” wrote Meyer in her ANR Adventures blog. “We shared our priorities for this year's appropriations as well as Farm Bill items. The conversations were filled with how valuable ANR is to communities. We discussed impacts from trained citizen scientists to identify spotted lanternfly and the importance of prescribed burn associations.”

Read more about the CARET visits at https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=56478.

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