Tuesday, February 5, 2013

NACAA Activities - February, 2013

DAIReXNET (national eXtension) Webinars- Free to the Public

You can find information on accessing these webinars here. If you’re on twitter, please share our webinars using this link: http://bit.ly/8XiTaX
All of our currently planned webinars have been approved for one credit of CEU from ARPAS. To obtain the credit, you will need to apply for it on www.arpas.org after attending the session.

Better Milk Quality from Better Mastitis Therapy Decisions
Dr. Ron Erskine, Michigan State University
February 12, 2013
12:00-1:00 PM Central Time
Mastitis is one of the biggest chronic problems facing the dairy industry- it is ever present. In this session, Dr. Ron Erskine will discuss how to better identify cases of mastitis through tools such as milk culturing, somatic cell count records, and treatment records.

Upcoming Webinars
Outcome Driven Health Management
Dr. John R. Wenz, Washington State University
March 4, 2013
12:00-1:00 PM Central Time

Far Off to Fresh Cow - Opportunities to Improve Transition Performance
Dr. Mike Overton, Elanco
March 18, 2013
12:00-1:00 PM Central Time

Economic Analysis Tools for Dairy Reproduction Programs
Dr. Victor Cabrera, University of Wisconsin-Madison
April 8, 2013
12:00-1:00 PM Central Time

New Tools for Dairy Reproduction Programs
Dr. Paul Fricke, University of Wisconsin-Madison
April 22, 2013
12:00-1:00 PM Central Time

You can also view our past webinars at http://www.extension.org/pages/Archived_Dairy_Cattle_Webinars.
Feel free to email or call us with any questions you may have:
Nancy McGill
859-257-7541
Donna Amaral-Phillips
859-257-7542




Save the Date!
Join us for a dynamic dialogue designed to improve agricultural emergency and disaster preparedness from the local level all the way up to the federal level.
The EDEN Agrosecurity Symposium: Building National Networks and Partnerships will be held in Washington, DC, in April 2013. The 1.5 day symposium will explain existing agricultural preparedness measures and then interactive discussions will:
·         *  identify gaps in the system
·         *  develop potential solutions to fill the identified gaps 
The Symposium is hosted by The Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) Strengthening Community Agrosecurity Preparedness (S-CAP) program.

There is no fee to attend the symposium, but pre-registration is required. See the attached flyer for more details. Registration is now open. Partial registrations are available.
For more information or to register, visit the EDEN website: http://eden.lsu.edu/s-cap/symposium
 
What: Agrosecurity Symposium: Building National Networks and Partnerships
When: April 22 (8am – 5pm) and April 23 (8am – noon), 2013
Where: Patriots Plaza III Conference and Training Center, 355 E St. S.W., Washington, DC
Who: Federal, state, tribal, and local stakeholders and agencies; Cooperative Extension System personnel; non-governmental organizations; agricultural and food commodity/industry stakeholders and organizations; etc.
Why: To build nationwide networks and partnerships to synchronize disaster preparedness efforts affecting the food and agriculture sector through translation of federal agrosecurity initiatives to state and local levels; discussions about agricultural emergency management and whole community planning; and identification of future activities to advance agricultural disaster preparedness activities within communities.

Now Available: One-of-a-Kind, Career-Shaping Fellowship in Sustainable Agriculture

In 2007, Penn State Extension Educator Walter Bumgarner was among the first to participate in a new professional development opportunity that brings together Extension educators from diverse backgrounds to learn about sustainable agriculture. It turns out that the SARE/NACAA Sustainable Agriculture Fellows program has been one of the best experiences of Bumgarner’s career.

I want to tell my fellow NACAA members that their participation in the SARE Fellows program could possibly be the highlight of their career in Extension,” Bumgarner says. “It has been for me and it could be for you.”

New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension Educator Joran Viers, a 2009 Fellow, concurs, “This program has been one of the best professional development opportunities I’ve had, by far.”

Interested? Now is the time to take advantage: The National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA) is accepting applications for the 2013 Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Fellowsprogram. The program is open to NACAA members in good standing with their state associations and with responsibility in agricultural production systems.

The Fellows program gives participants hands-on experience with sustainable agriculture and alternative farming systems, while offering meaningful networking opportunities and memorable exposure to the great diversity of U.S. agriculture.

The program accepts four Extension educators each year to participate in seminars and tours of farms and ranches over the course of two years. Selected from each of SARE’s four geographic regions, Fellows are given the opportunity to visit farms and ranches in each of these regions.

In a three-day tour last year, eight Fellows visited 14 Colorado operations, including cattle and bison ranches, a dairy, a mushroom farm and an aquaponics farm. Participants weighed the roles minimum tillage, drip irrigation, organic soil-building, pest control, energy efficiency, balance trait selection and GPS can play in sustainable production systems.

During year one of the program, participants attend events with Fellows from the previous year, and mentor the new group of Fellows during year two, making the Fellowship an excellent opportunity to build lasting professional and personal relationships with peers from across the country.

“Since participating in this program, I have personally worked with some of the other Fellowship awardees on grant projects, articles and other educational programs,” says Stephen Komar, a Rutgers New Jersey Cooperative Extension educator and 2009 Fellow.

Read stories about the experiences of past and current Fellows; also, check out biographies of recent Fellows.

How to Apply
Applications are due March 15. The Fellows program is open to NACAA members in good standing with their state associations and with responsibility in agricultural production systems. Find complete eligibility and entry details online.

Caption: During a 2008 Fellows tour, Washington farmer John Aeschliman shows Extension agents “worm tracks” in soil taken far down in his farm’s soil profile. Aeschliman was explaining how more than 30 years of no-till had improved his soil’s quality, water-holding capacity and small grain yields. Photo by Al Kurki, National Center for Appropriate Technology
 

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