|
Edition TopicsJanuary 25, 2022
- Message from Interim Director Ed Martin
- Welcome Dr. José Dias
- Welcome Margaret Carroll
- Welcome Maritza Broce
- Congratulations Ashley Hall
- 6th Annual Southern AZ Equine Health Symposium
- SRER Discovery Friday’s Webinar
- WRRC Brown Bag Webinar
- UA-CEAC's 21st Annual Greenhouse Crop Production and Engineering Design Short Course
- New Extension Publication
- Associate/Full Extension Specialist - Nutrition
- Call for Nominations
| |
|
Message from the Interim Director of Extension
This past week seemed filled with meetings, after meetings, after meetings. I get it. I know these meetings are essential, and lucky for me, most of the meetings I attend are productive and have tangible outcomes. Given that I am not the only one that feels that much of our time is spent in meetings, I will ask that everyone take time to ensure any meeting you are leading is well thought out and that you lead to meet the meeting goals. As Extension professionals, we often like to hear ourselves talk. I know; it has happened to me too (no, really). However, when asked to move on or when I see everyone pick up their phones to review incoming emails, I take no offense. I simply conclude my sentence, and we move on. Zoom calls and online meetings have made scheduling meetings very easy. However, we should always keep in mind that it doesn’t mean we need a meeting because it is easy to do. Sometimes, just an email, or, like back in the old days, pick up a phone and have a conversation, can work just as well.
| |
|
Welcome Dr. José Dias
Dr. Dias joined the Plant Science Department at the University of Arizona in January 2022. He is based at the Maricopa Agricultural Center where he serves as an Assistant Professor and Extension Weed Scientist. Dr. Dias hopes to conduct an effective statewide extension and applied Weed Science research program, based on grower’s needs, and integrated weed management strategies.
Before he joined the UArizona, Dr. Dias worked for one year at the University of California Cooperative and Extension (UCCE), as a Field Crops Agronomy and Weed Management Farm Advisor in the Northern San Joaquin Valley. Prior to joining UCCE, Dr. Dias was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where he worked with silage corn-alfalfa interseeded systems, integrated waterhemp management in alfalfa, and weed control and clover selectivity in grass-legume mixed pastures. Dr. Dias earned a Doctoral Degree in Agronomy with a focus on Weed Science from the University of Florida, a master’s degree in Crop Protection and Bachelor's in Agronomy from São Paulo State University in Brazil. His doctoral research centered on developing and implementing integrated management practices to reduce giant smutgrass populations in bahiagrass pastures in Florida.
| |
|
Welcome Margaret Carroll
Margaret Carroll is the new Assistant in Extension, for 4-H Camping Programs. She is an Arizona native and grew up in Phoenix. As a child she attended many 4-H events and horseshows with her sister who was a member of the “Northwest Riders 4-H Club”. Camp became Margaret’s passion after taking a summer job with Camp Fire at Camp Wamatochick. After graduating from the University of Arizona with a degree in education she began a fulfilling career in not-for-profit work. Highlights include serving as the director of Camping Services for the Valley of the Sun YMCA and as the on-site director for summer and year-round programming at Chapel Rock, The AZ Church Conference Center. She holds an M.Ed. from NAU and worked as a school administrator before returning to live in Prescott.
| |
| Welcome - Our new Agriculture Apprenticeship Coordinator
We are excited that Maritza Broce will be joining our Cooperative Extension team as our new Agriculture Apprenticeship Program Manager. Maritza brings a wealth of experience working on workforce and employment issues. She has worked closely with Workforce Investment Boards, businesses and community leaders. Additionally, her father was an Extension Entomologist at Kansas State so she knows firsthand the value and impact that Extension can have across the state. Please contact her at the Extension State Office, mbroce@arizona.edu, if you are working with producers or community members who would like to learn more about the program.
| |
| Congratulations Ashley Hall
Congratulations to Ashley Hall! 2022 Arizona Section Society for Range Management (AZSRM) Professional & Technical Guidance Award Winner!!!
The Professional & Technical Guidance Award recognizes a person or persons with range management or range conservation expertise and education. Ashley Hall delivers science-based educational outreach to producers and agency professionals in the areas of Rangeland Management & Sustainability, Livestock Production & Profitability, and provides Natural Resource education to youth.
Ms. Hall has provided numerous workshops covering the topics of rangeland monitoring, toxic plants, drought, artificial insemination and pregnancy checking. She has expanded the Reading the Range Program on the Tonto National Forest to include 23 additional public land grazing allotments and established 106 new monitoring locations with nearly 100% rancher participation for one-on-one education. She is a member of the Vegetation GIS Data System (VGS) DevTeam, a rangeland monitoring software application used throughout the west, and provides multiple trainings and workshops annually, is a primary tester for software updates, and routinely answers inquiries about VGS. Ms. Hall is a Co-Director for AZSRM's Natural Resource Conservation Workshop for Arizona Youth (NRCWAY), a week-long residential natural resources camp held at James 4-H Camp. Additionally, she has provided rangeland/grazing lessons to almost 1,000 Gila County 4th Graders through their Ag Daze Program.
| |
| 6th Annual Southern AZ Equine Health Symposium, an excellent educational event!
6th Annual Southern AZ Equine Health Symposium, an excellent educational event! This event is a partnership between Cooperative Extension, local veterinary clinics, industry professionals, and local and national sponsors. Each year, it draws around 200 participants to the University of Arizona Campbell Avenue Farm. With over 20 educational opportunities covering basic to advanced horse topics, participants could “choose their own learning adventure”. SAMSAR (Southern AZ Mounted Search and Rescue) brought in people and animals to demonstrate what happens when they are called in for a horseback rescue for our “edu-tainment” session during lunch. The hands-on “Knowing What’s Normal” has been requested each year and was popular for both new horse owners and those looking for a refresher on taking equine vital signs, and participants received a new extension publication to use at home. Other presentations included Dentistry, Feeding Performance/Difficult Horses, Horse Nutrition 101: Back to Basics, Equine Allergies and Asthma, Desert Dangers, as well as panels on Horse Industry and Veterinary Careers.
A huge thank you to the Cooperative Extension faculty and staff involved in the planning and implementation of this event: Dr. Betsy Greene, Ashley Wright, Debbie Reed, and Dr. Joslyn Beard.
We are already working on next year’s event, scheduled for January 21, 2023!
| |
| SRER Discovery Friday's
Developing Regional Partnerships: Science, Conservation and Culture Santa Rita Experimental Range Lecture 1: 28 January 2022, 10:00-11:00AM
The National Ecological Observatory Network Program Please join Field Operations Manager Abraham Karam for a presentation about NEON’s Desert Southwest Domain. The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) is a 30 year-long program funded by the National Science Foundation, designed to equip researchers with tools (data) to enable ecological forecasting on a continental scale. One of the network’s 20 core terrestrial field sites is located here in our backyard at the Santa Rita Experimental Range (SRER), where NEON field scientists have been collecting samples and maintaining meteorological instrument arrays in support of the NEON mission. Join this webinar to learn more about the NEON Program, how it ties into the legacy of previous and ongoing research at SRER, and why it’s poised to change ecological forecasting.
SRER Discovery Friday’s 2022 Webinar Calendar 28 January- Abe Karam: The National Ecological Observatory Network 25 February- Julia Sittig: Altar Valley Conservation Alliance 25 March- Vanessa Prileson: Pima County Department of Natural Resources 29 April- Tyler Miller: Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Alliance
| |
| WRRC Brown Bag Webinar
Wednesday, February 2, 2022 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm Arizona Time
Speaker: Mary-Belle Cruz Ayala, 2021 PhD, Arid Lands Resource Sciences, WRRC Postdoc, US-Mexico Transboundary Aquifer Assessment Program
In Mexico, groundwater availability has been decreasing, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. One way to address this decline is using Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) to boost aquifer recharge with stormwater or treated wastewater. Considering the impact that climate change can have on natural recharge, the implementation of MAR efforts in the Northwest region of Mexico would help maintain environmental services, halt seawater intrusion, and act as a source for potable service. However, according to state and municipal water managers, implementing MAR effectively would require improvements in the Mexican legal framework, aquifer recharge policies, and financial programs. Register for and join this webinar: https://tinyurl.com/MAR-Brownbag
| |
| UA-CEAC's 21st Annual Greenhouse Crop Production and Engineering Design Short Course
Join the University of Arizona Controlled Environment Agriculture Center for the 21st Annual Greenhouse Crop Production and Engineering Design Short Course- March 7th, 8th, and 9th, 2022. This three-day event will be hosted both online and on-site at the center and will cover a variety of topics from academia experts and industry leaders in controlled environment agriculture. Limited seats are available.
Click here to register! The last day for on-site registration is February 28th.
Speakers include: Merle Jensen- Professor Emeritus, University of Arizona Triston Hooks- Assistant Professor of Practice, University of Arizona Gene Giacomelli- Professor, University of Arizona Stacy Tollefson- Director of Cultivation, Aeriz Murat Kacira- Professor, University of Arizona Kai-Shu Ling- Research Plant Pathologist, USDA- Agricultural Research Service Eric Highfield- Founder, High Yield Horticulture Roberto Lopez- Associate Professor, Michigan State University Hope Jones- Founder & CEO, Emergent Cannabis Sciences Chieri Kubota- Professor, Ohio State University Barry Pryor- Professor, University of Arizona Matthew Recsetar- Adjunct Lecturer, Unversity of Arizona
View the 2022 Greenhouse Crop Production and Engineering Design Short Couse schedule.
For more information about attending this course, visit ceac.arizona.edu/events or email arizona.ceac@gmail.com
| |
|
New Extension Publication
Isaac K Mpanga
Cover crops are grown to cover the soil surface. They are planted between main crops or as an alternative to cash crops and provide many benefits ranging from soil erosion control, improved soil fertility, soil health (Reeves, 1994; Wang and Nolte, 2010), and increased biodiversity (Drinkwater et al., 1995). The use of cover crops among small-scale farmers can be challenging due to the limited space, resource, equipment needs, and the nature of operations. In high tunnel production systems, the use of tractors is limited, and growing cover crops requires careful crop selection, termination timing, and management for maximum benefits. High tunnels are plastic-covered structures that provide a partial controlled environment passively heated in winter and ventilated in summer. For environmental protection and control, high tunnels are between the open-field (natural environment) and completely controlled environments in a greenhouse. Compared to a standard greenhouse, a high tunnel is a low-cost structure, often with in-ground production, and low operating costs. This study determined biomass production and shoot mineral composition of mixed summer cover crops (buckwheat, cowpeas, and teff grass) to determine the optimum termination time while minimizing management inputs and obtaining maximum soil health benefits from the cover crops. Recommendations outline how small-scale farmers can grow cover crops in high tunnels.
| |
|
Associate/Full Extension Specialist - Nutrition
Job Title: Cooperative Extension Specialist (Associate/Full) Location: The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona
Job Overview: The School of Nutritional Sciences and Wellness and Cooperative Extension at the University of Arizona welcomes applicants for a continuing-track (tenure-track equivalent) Associate Specialist or Specialist (90% Extension/10% Service FTE) to begin in Fall 2022 or sooner. The incumbent will be responsible for leadership, strategic planning, and oversight of statewide nutrition and physical activity programs including, but not limited to, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – Education (SNAP-Ed) and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) delivered statewide through the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. The combined programs serve 13 of 15 counties statewide, with 11 Co-PI’s (Extension Agents and others in Lead Positions) that oversee approximately 100 staff, and total $6.5M in funding.
| |
| Call for Nominations
Each year we recognize our faculty, staff and strong contributors to Cooperative Extension with the Extension Faculty of the Year Award, the Outstanding Staff in Cooperative Extension Award, and the Extensionist of the Year Award.
The Cooperative Extension Faculty of the Year award recipient will receive $1,000 and an award. Click here for Extension Faculty of the Year Award criteria and nomination instructions. Submission deadline – February 16, 2022
The Outstanding Staff in Cooperative Extension award recipient will receive $500 and an award. Click here for award nomination criteria. Submission deadline – February 16, 2022
The Extensionist of the Year award recognizes and honors a resident of the State of Arizona who has demonstrated extraordinary contributions, through UACE, to improving the lives of people in their community and state. The award will be presented at an appropriate division-wide event. Letters of nomination from UACE or non-UACE faculty and staff and/or peers should focus on the following criteria: 1) the nature and extent of the contribution provided by the individual (35%), 2) how this contribution has benefitted people in the community (15%) and the state (15%), 3) leadership qualities (25%), and 4) support for UACE (10%). Submission deadline – February 16, 2022
All awards will be presented at an appropriate Extension or ALVSCE event. Please read the criteria carefully, submitting only the materials noted. Submit your nominations and support letters to gallardk@arizona.edu. If you have any questions, contact Kristie (520-621-7145).
| |
|