Posts Tagged: Barbara Allen-Diaz
VP Allen-Diaz's farewell to the ANR community
Thank you for all your efforts on behalf of the people of California, UC ANR, the University of California, and me, personally. We have had the opportunity to share our excellent research and education programming as well as initiate new and exciting programs and activities. I can't thank you enough for all the support that you have given me over the last 5 to 8 years. Never forget the incredibly invaluable role that you play in providing science-based information to decision makers, providing science-based solutions to new and/or vexing problems in agriculture, natural resources, nutrition, and youth development. Never forget that it is you who create educational programs that reach some of our most underserved communities and well as programs that improve our water quality, pest management options, conserve our natural and water resources, and serve our youth with programming in 4-H club, after-school and camp programs.
We have done a lot in the last few years, and some of the highlights include
- rebuilding our CE academic footprint by hiring some 90 new CE Advisors and Specialists with 45 new releases on the way, identifying priority positions with internal and stakeholder input.
- providing an active hub for UC ANR by purchasing 2801 Second Street, consolidating 145 of our programmatic and administrative staff into one location, and designing it for use by all of our folks across the state.
- purchasing another 10 acres adjacent to 2801 Second Street for UC ANR to expand and showcase our programs well into the future.
- insisting always that UC ANR be treated fairly within UC policies so that our academics have the same privileges as campus-professorial faculty, including access to Mortgage Origination Program loans, equivalent status, and compensation. We have different roles and foci, but we draw our academics from the same pools – only our academics make a difference working directly with Californians in communities throughout the state.
- strengthening our strategic initiatives by providing leadership and resources, through a competitive grants program and other means, to ensure that our resources are focused on sustainable agriculture, sustainable natural resources, water, endemic and invasive pests and diseases, and healthy families and communities.
- strengthening our statewide programs by ensuring excellent leadership and providing support, and strategically creating new statewide programs (IGIS, Master Food Preservers and Master Naturalist).
- creating two ANR Institutes: California Institute for Water Resources and the Nutrition Policy Institute, both directed by outstanding leaders in their fields, increasing ANR visibility as well as connections with our campus partners.
- working through the initial results of our work environment study, listening to employees and actively working to create a Staff Assembly Council to give our staff voice to administration and to the UC system.
- staying in the trenches with UC Path, continuing to work toward creating for a single unified business unit, which will increase efficiency enormously when we don't have to reconcile five different ledgers to answer even simple questions.
UC ANR has a unique role as a leader and coordinator of the Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension faculty and programs on behalf of our great California land-grant university. We conduct relevant, often cutting-edge, problem solving-focused research and education programs that make a difference to young and old across the state. UC ANR is a valuable contributor to the UC President's initiatives, bringing practical, local experience to bear on these statewide, nationwide and global issues. Our Research and Extension Centers are jewels in the crown of UC, where basic and applied research and education occurs with the guidance of highly professional and engaged staff. With a presence in every county in California, Cooperative Extension is the face of the University of California in most communities, and the programs that you deliver improve the lives of Californians every day.
Thank you for the opportunity to work with you, learn from you, and move forward with you. The future looks very bright; our partners both within UC and throughout the state are engaged with us, and together we can continue to make a difference for California and the world.
Sincerely,
Barbara Allen Diaz
Vice President
View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.
This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.
UC Berkeley honors Allen-Diaz
“I am incredibly honored to receive this special award,” said Allen-Diaz, who was visibly surprised and moved by Gilless's announcement.
The Berkeley Citation recognizes academic achievement and University service of the highest order. In addition to her contributions as a researcher, graduate student mentor and professor of range science, Allen-Diaz has served in many leadership roles for UC Berkeley and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (ANR).
“Her leadership as chair of the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, as Executive Associate Dean of the College of Natural Resources, and finally as the Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources has produced a legacy of accomplishments that few academics can match,” Gilless said. “The college would not have its remarkable Geospatial Innovation Facility without her foresight and willingness to make the necessary investment. ANR would not have the strategic plan that has guided a resurgent sense of how to implement the University's land grant mission.”
Allen-Diaz has served as a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the National Academy of Sciences and the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities. She has authored more than 170 research articles and presentations. In February, she became the first woman to receive the Society for Range Management's highest award, the Frederick G. Renner Award.
After earning her bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees at UC Berkeley, Allen-Diaz took a job with the U.S. Forest Service. In 1986, she joined the faculty at UC Berkeley faculty, where she studied the effects of livestock grazing on natural resources, oak woodlands and ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada and the effects of climate change on rangeland species and landscapes. At the end of June, she will retire as UC vice president and as Russell Rustici Chair in Rangeland in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at UC Berkeley.
The Berkeley Citation was created in 1968, when the University of California celebrated its 100th birthday, to honor individuals or organizations that had rendered distinguished or extraordinary service to the university.
To read more about Allen-Diaz's career, see the latest issue of California Agriculture journal.
Cousins, McNicol named UC Sustainability Fellows
UC ANR has chosen Gavin McNicol and Stella Cousins, both UC Berkeley Ph.D. candidates, to receive UC President's Sustainability Student Fellowships.
“Our search for new ways to reduce UC's and California's carbon footprint is sure to benefit from the creativity and innovative ideas brought by these two exceptional student fellows,” said Barbara Allen-Diaz, UC vice president for Agriculture and Natural Resources.
McNicol, a native of Scotland, is studying how much methane is released from restored wetlands in the Sacramento Delta region. The results of his research will inform the development of future wetland restoration plans, encouraging more effective efforts to minimize emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change.
The UC Office of the President is providing $7,500 to each of UC's 10 campuses and to the Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, earmarked to fund student awards in support of the UC Carbon Neutrality Initiative and other UC-based sustainability efforts.
An initiative to enhance competitive and sustainable food systems is part of UC Agriculture and Natural Resources Strategic Vision 2025.
Allen-Diaz honored by range management professionals
The premier award is given annually to SRM members who have sustained accomplishments or contributions to rangeland management during the last ten years.
“Barbara has a record of outstanding research productivity that has affected the understanding and management of California rangelands and has had global impacts,” said Amy Ganguli, assistant professor of range science at New Mexico State University.
“Barbara is also a well-regarded educator who has mentored several graduate students and young professionals who are making significant contributions to rangeland and natural resource management,” said Ganguli, who, along with Fee Busby, Utah State University wildland resources professor, nominated her for the award.
This is not the first time Allen-Diaz has been recognized by her peers for her research on the effects of livestock grazing on natural resources, oak woodlands and ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada. The national society honored her with its Outstanding Achievement Award in 2001, and the following year the California chapter named her Range Manager of the Year.
In 2007, Allen-Diaz was among 2,000 scientists recognized for their work on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change when the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded jointly to the IPCC and Vice President Al Gore. Allen-Diaz's contributions focused on the effects of climate change on rangeland species and landscapes. She has authored more than 170 research articles and presentations. She has been an active member of the Society for Range Management, serving on its board of directors and on various government panels.
Allen-Diaz, who has served as UC ANR's vice president since 2011, is also a tenured UC Berkeley faculty member in the College of Natural Resources and currently holds the prestigious Russell Rustici Chair in Rangeland Management. She has been with the University of California since 1986. She earned her bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees at UC Berkeley.
VP announces 2015 competitive grants program RFP
Dear Colleagues,
I am pleased to announce that the request for proposals for ANR's 2015 competitive grants program is now released and can be found at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/Divisionwide_Programs/2015_ANR_Competitive_Grants_Program.
The purpose of this grants program is to address high-priority issues identified by at least one of the strategic initiatives: Endemic and Invasive Pests and Diseases (EIPD), Healthy Families and Communities (HFC), Sustainable Food Systems (SFS), Sustainable Natural Ecosystems (SNE), and Water Quality, Quantity and Security (Water).
2015 competitive grants cycle:
Call released: January 22
Application submission cycle
- Letter of Intent (LOI) due March 16
- LOI decisions April 24
- Full proposals due June 22
Technical peer review: late June – early September 2015
Strategic Initiative review and recommendations: September 2015
Program Council review and recommendations: October/November 2015
Announcement of funded grants:November/December 2015
Through the 2015 grant cycle, ANR will continue to invest in short-term, high-impact research, education and outreach projects that address priority issues consistent with the Strategic Vision; encourage collaboration among academics; strengthen the research-extension network; and demonstrate relevance and likelihood of impact on significant agricultural, economic, environmental, and social issues in California.
During the previous three competitive grant cycles, 52 projects have been approved for funding for a total investment of close to $12 million. These projects have yielded significant deliverables and outcomes. Examples are highlighted in the recent assessment summary at http://ucanr.edu/grants_assessment_summary. I continue to be excited by the high level of engagement across the ANR network, including many students, and with many of our external partners. The assessment summary also includes specific information about how the program is reaching collaboration goals.
While the funds available for the competitive grants program will depend on a number of factors, we anticipate funding to be roughly the same as in past cycles. We are committed to providing as much support as feasible to address high-priority issues.
Taking into consideration the findings from the 2014 grants program formative assessment, we have made a few small changes to this year's call. Most notably, grant applicants will now be asked to identify the specific priority issue area their proposals address. The priority issue areas are highlighted in the RFP and include links to the Strategic Initiative plans for further information. In this way, we will be better able to track and communicate efforts and impact.
Sincerely,
Barbara Allen-Diaz
Vice President
View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.
This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.