Applied
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APPLIED RESEARCH AND EXTENSION PRIORITIES
Agriculture and Food Systems Priorities Sustainable Agricultural Systems that Minimize Environmental Impact and Maintain Dynamic Farm Profitability Comprehensive approaches are needed to address a full range of types and scales of operations and promote both proven and innovative technologies and production systems. Efforts to minimize environmental impacts of agricultural operations are needed such as air and water quality protection through whole farm nutrient management, integrated pest management, composting of mortalities and wastes, marketing of excess nutrients, low-input production practices, soil health enhancement and protection techniques, and the potential for biofuels, alternative energy, and energy conservation. In our increasingly urban state, positive relationships between farm and non-farm communities are essential to establishment and maintenance of a climate supportive of agriculture. Such relationships are based on responsible practices of the industry and awareness of the positive environmental, economic, and quality of life contributions of agriculture to the community. Managing Human Resources Especially Related to Identifying, Hiring, and Retaining New Workers and the Education of Middle Management and Owners The management and labor picture on New York farms has changed dramatically in recent years. There is a great need for skilled and specialized farm labor and farm owners/managers need the human resource skills and training to help recruit and retain this diverse and valuable work force. Owners and managers need to understand labor laws and how they apply to individual farms, be able to effectively communicate with local communities on issues related to farm/migrant labor, and ensure the quality of life for the labor force. In addition it is important that farm laborers feel engaged and that they are offered opportunities for professional advancement. A well-trained and professional workforce is important to the vitality of agricultural industry in New York. Identifying Value Added Products and Associated Market Channels Diversification of production and development of innovative markets will help ensure the sustainability of agriculture and related industries in New York. Producers need to be able to assess the potential of new products (e.g., consumer preferences) and markets and have access to the technologies that will add value to their products. Adding value can include improving quality or packaging, extending the season, or developing a new product. Enhancing market opportunities by encouraging agritourism is another means of adding value. Regardless of added value, marketing to expand sales to local markets and/or specialty regional and international markets would help the economic viability of agriculture in New York. Agriculture and Food Systems Responsiveness to Human Health Needs There is need to ensure that agricultural policies, and production and food processing practices are in synchrony with the country’s health goals. Example emphases include: specialty crop production, quality and diversification for balanced human nutrition addressing new dietary guidelines; food safety and concerns about BSE and other food-borne hazards, bioterrorism, farm-to-school and other community agriculture initiatives. Such efforts have the dual effect of meeting national health goals and developing greater market appeal for agricultural products. Community and Economic Vitality Priorities Overview New York State residents are living through a period of remarkable change. They face challenges and new opportunities few could have predicted even a decade ago. Agricultural and non-agricultural sectors are restructuring. New domestic and global markets, transportation and residential patterns, and communication technologies are affecting all sectors of the economy. Environmental interests and concerns are opening up consumer-driven markets and influencing policy directions. Demographic shifts are creating an increasingly diverse population and new migration patterns. These shifts are in response to community decline, stagnation, or rapid growth. Rural, suburban, and urban places are linked, rather than distinct localities. The purpose of community development is to empower communities to be in charge of giving direction to their future. A component of that process involves strategic planning. But often the strategic and operational planning framework is fragmented and disjointed. With devolution has come a complicated picture of local control and the challenges of globalization. Communities need assistance in determining what they can address at the local level so that they can allocate resources accordingly. They also need assistance in recognizing strengths in terms of local knowledge, "sense of place", and other current or historically successful practices of value for the future. There also is need to define what resources should come into play at a regional or state level to improve decision making and implementation processes. Cornell Cooperative Extension faculty, extension and research associates and educators partner with community leaders and elected officials for community capacity building (action planning processes; strategy development; implementation). CCE Associations are well positioned to emphasize community strategic planning and to encourage integrated planning. CCE’s role in regional and statewide planning should be explored. CCE as a system has both strengths and weaknesses that should be analyzed to position the system to be a key player in community capacity building (at all levels). CCE can offer a framework that integrates family well-being with community vitality with economic development. Principles for Policy and Practice Community and economic development needs to be entrepreneurial, community-driven, and anchored in local and regional assets. Practitioners and policymakers alike call for holistic approaches that simultaneously value and invest in economic opportunity, family and human capital, community vitality, infrastructure, and natural resources and environmental stewardship. Solutions share in common the need for good information and data systems, community planning systems, good decision-making processes, effective leadership, broad and inclusive civic engagement, technical assistance, new knowledge, and full communication across jurisdictions, agencies, and localities. 1) Enable Community and Government Capacity Building
Quality of life improvements include a wide range of economic and social development affecting individuals, families, firms, and communities. This incorporates sound-decision making systems, community-led development, partnership building, an informed and educated citizenry, inter-municipal collaboration, effective involvement of diverse community interests, community entrepreneurship, and place-based approaches. Training and resources might focus on community-building skills, planning tools, civic engagement, leadership development, local government issues, and community decision-making. Research might involve an assessment of local government strategies for reducing costs and the issue of taxation and assessment. 2) Strengthen Community Economic Development:
New measures and resources to create an entrepreneurial climate might include: human capital improvement through youth and adult workforce development and education; technical assistance and resource toolkits appropriate for diverse communities and economic diversification; and extension educators skilled in value-added entrepreneurship, economic impact analysis, e-commerce, market development, business planning, and brokering partnerships. Research might involve an assessment of the relationship between community assets and successful economic development strategies. 3) Develop land use management approaches and policies that promote sustainable communities by enhancing connections between economic and environmental dimensions of community development:
The environment is an essential basis for community prosperity over time and we need to insure environmental stewardship of the state’s natural support system of watersheds, woodlands, wildlife and habitats, open spaces, and forests. Research interests could include the need to better understand the value of natural resources and environment to communities and society in order to adequately address environmental vulnerabilities in a cost-effective and sustainable manner. Such research might include identifying local knowledge (or successful practices) that contribute to the sustainability of the community in its environment. Training and resources might focus on land use issues, identification of significant principles of local (or place-based) knowledge, farmland preservation, sprawl and growth, use of open spaces, and community decision-making. Natural Resources and Environment Priorities 1) Improving Watershed and Water Resource Protection and Management, in Agricultural, Rural and Developed Systems This priority encompasses a wide range of local and regional issues and objectives including water quantity and quality protection, watershed restoration and management, watershed or basin-wide pollution management (such as for the specification of Total Maximum Daily Loads orTMDLs), forest resource management, and, upstream impacts on estuaries and marine water quality including fish and wildlife habitat. This priority area also includes specific measures directly related to watershed and water resource protection like livestock and aquaculture waste management, pesticide use reduction, soil resource protection, threats from invasive plant and animal species, stormwater management, urban and community forestry, and growth management for watershed protection in both agricultural and non-agricultural watersheds. While emphasis is on agricultural and rural systems, it is recognized that New York is a state with significant urbanization and a variety of constituencies often interlinked within large, complex watersheds. 2) Improving Management Practices for Sustainable and Compatible Agricultural, Natural Resource, and Energy Systems Management options to address land use change and assure more sustainable patterns of population and economic growth and to respond to climate change fall under this priority area. Sustainability considerations include environmental quality, health and well-being, and economic security. Technologies or practices to reduce wastes and promote recycling, conserve energy and to reduce or eliminate agriculture’s dependency on chemical pesticides and fossil fuels, are important aspects considered in this area as is the role of alternative energy sources such as wind power and biofuels. 3) Improving Policy Makers’ and Individual Citizens’ Understanding of Different Planning and Management Practices to Make Natural and Agricultural Systems More Sustainable Different planning and management approaches for addressing issues like land use change, odor control of agricultural wastes, human-animal conflicts, consequences of climate change, use of consumer products, and indoor air quality are part of this priority area. Efforts to address this priority are likely to require the integration of data from biological, physical and social sciences in policy and management decisions and need to be ongoing due to the short-term tenure of many policy makers. Quality of Life for Individuals and Families Priorities Background on Developing Priority Areas 2002-03: The Quality of Life for Individuals and Families Program Council has three priority area groups: (1) Nutrition, Health and Wellness; (2) Life Course; (3) Environments and (4) Family and Consumer Economics. During 2002 and leading up to the January 2003 Program Council Conference, the council prepared descriptive information about the priority areas. In January, the council affirmed the areas, the priorities within each and the descriptions developed during the last half of 2002. In late May- June 2003, council members had the opportunity to review and again rank priorities and to provide detail on the priorities via an on-line survey. Council members were asked to provide further detail on the issues and the issues’ research and extension needs, and to identify impacts and outcomes expected from a high quality program in research and extension that addresses the issues. A total of six council members responded to the spring 2003 on-line survey. This input was augmented by data and information provided by a number of program work teams allied with the council and by the administrative liaison to the council, resulting in the attached priority briefs. The appendix to the briefs identifies and briefly describes lower priorities that the council had named for two of the four priority area groups. Finally, US 2000 Census figures for race and Hispanic origin are an example of the state’s diversity. 67% of the NY population is white and 15.9 % is black; both of these categories can include individuals of Hispanic or Latino origin. 15.1% of the population or 2,867,583 individuals are Hispanic or Latino of any race. 6.2 % are Asian. 3.1 % of the population is reported as being two or more races. A majority of council members recommend the priority of “Promoting Tolerance and Acceptance: Embracing Diversity” as an overarching priority for all program councils. One council member commented: “This should be a given. Achieving all program priorities should embrace this as a contextual issue.” Top Priority in each of Four Priority Area Groups Group
1: Nutrition, Health and Wellness Need Several recent studies have well documented the rise in obesity and overweight in the general population, and especially among children. Promoting and supporting healthy, positive health behaviors for individuals and families in communities requires both individual and collective actions. Education programs for children, youth and adults, community coalition-building and actions, public policy education, and program and policy development all can support improved well-being and better access to health care. Multi-disciplinary approaches and multi-agency collaboration are essential. Obesity and overweight are positively correlated with increased risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke, hypertension, osteoporosis and some forms of cancer. Type II Diabetes, once only found in adults, is now more frequently showing up in children, even pre-adolescent children. The number of overweight children has doubled in the past 10 years. In NYS alone, overweight two to four year olds increased from 13.3% to 16.3% in the past 10 years (WIC data, 2002). If a child is persistently obese at age six, he is 50% more likely to be an obese adult. If she is overweight as a teen, she is more than 70% more likely to be an overweight adult. If a child has one overweight parent, they are 40% more likely to be overweight, and if both parents are overweight, 80% more likely to be an overweight adult. Overweight kids age 5-10 have a cardiovascular disease risk of over 60%, nearly three times that of the normal child population. Being overweight and physical inactivity account for more premature deaths each year than anything besides tobacco use. Preventative medical care and preventative health education combined with access to a safe, secure and healthful food supply are needed. Changes in individual food consumption patterns and lifestyles are also required. Continued research should partner with existing researchers such as those at NYS Department of Health (DOH) and Bassett Hospital on what types of nutritional counseling and behavior modification are effective at preventing and reversing obesity, especially among low income minority households. Then effective interventions can be targeted at WIC clinics, emergency food sites, retail food outlets and physicians’ offices. Since obesity, food insecurity and hunger exist in the state as nutritional issues, further research could inform educational practice. Research could contribute to identifying distinguishing characteristics of persons who are food insecure, the predictors of food insecurity, risks contributing to and consequences of food insecurity. Where obesity exists among food-insecure households, how might the causes and preventive actions be addressed? As well, integrated research and extension projects focused on county health services and service providers can support improved access to and use of preventative health care that would address obesity and related chronic diseases. Desired Outcomes
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2: Life Course Need Policies, programs and care giving practices affect the quality of life for children and elders. Early childhood care issues and parenting of young children are of high priority. Working poor families spend a large proportion of their income on childcare. Among the 22% of working poor families headed by single mothers in the US who paid for childcare, 40% spent at least half of their cash income on child care; another 25% spent between 40 and 50%. Among the 9% of working poor families headed by married couples that paid for childcare, 23% spent more than half of their cash income on childcare, 21% spent between 40 and 50% (Child Trends, 2003 analysis). Early childhood care and family support are universal family and community needs. Parenting skills, childcare provider knowledge and skills, and parent information about childcare quality are key aspects of quality care giving that supports development. “Developmental psychologists consider interactions between parent and child to be central to the child’s development of many competencies…(and) from a comparative perspective, early childhood intervention (such as pre-K programs) has larger effects than interventions begun later in childhood and adolescence” (Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, in a policy brief of Society for Research on Children, 2003). Research can inform public policies that enable parents to provide care giving to their own children and that increase the availability of affordable, quality childcare. Education can promote research-based best practices in parenting and childcare. The US society is aging. Social support and involvement in meaningful roles are important to enhancing the physical and mental well being of older adults. Research should address issues of isolation, gaps in formal services and network deficits of family caregivers to impaired elderly persons. Families need information on elder care quality. Collaborations on applied gerontological issues that involve researchers, practitioners and policy makers are needed. These efforts will lead to interventions, supported by education, which can improve social integration among older persons (Cornell Gerontology Institute). Desired Outcomes
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3: Environments Need Indoor environmental quality is related to maintaining good health. Air and water quality, the presence of chemicals and microbiologicals and materials are important factors in the quality of the indoor environment. Families and individuals are concerned about the safety of their drinking water and of household products. They are making decisions about bottled water, water treatment, household waste water, choice and use of household products and protection of their water supply. Research populations and educational program participants include homeowners and renters, families, communities, and professionals in fields related to housing, childcare facilities, facility planners and health care providers. Education is needed for adults to create a safe environment for themselves and their children. Public policies, supported by research and education, can provide incentives for landlords and homeowners to take steps to improve environmental quality. Indoor environments at home, in daycare settings and in work or school settings need to be assessed for health safety. Measures need to be taken to mitigate for health risks of indoor environmental quality for poor households. Landscapes at homes and in public neighborhood areas make communities more livable and improve the mental and physical health of residents. Education about good horticultural practices enables homeowners to improve their quality of life and can influence communities to upgrade landscapes. Research on the personal and community benefits of horticulture can promote its practice. Science and technology literacy of the population, an identified societal need, can also be enhanced through community horticulture programs. Desired Outcomes
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4: Family and Consumer Economics Need Fifty percent of American households have less than $1,000 in financial assets and less than $35,000 in net wealth (Lundquist Consulting, 2001). The Federal Reserve reported that in 2001 there was $1.65 trillion in consumer debt outstanding. Families and individuals are faced with food insecurity, job insecurity, escalating health care bills, increasing taxes and financial stress. Financial planning for retirement, saving money, and investing money wisely are money management issues and needs in a changing economy along with job training programs and the basics of money management. 38% of civilian wage and salaried workers have no access to pension plans (Department of Labor, 1998). Research is needed on effective financial management education practices, programs and policies for diverse populations within a changing economy. Integrated education and research can evaluate strategies such as behavior modification and social marketing techniques. The aging population combined with a sluggish economy and economic uncertainty point to a growing need for personal financial management for financial stability and security in the later years. Desired Outcomes
____________________ APPENDIX QUALITY OF LIFE FOR INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES Additional priorities Group
1--Nutrition, Health, and Wellness Improving availability of and access to nutritious foods at reasonable cost for all New Yorkers, particularly low income and other socially- and economically-disadvantaged Helping families use their financial and food resources most efficiently. Emphasis is on both policies and programs, and includes preparation and training for stakeholders in the agriculture, food, and nutrition systems. Priority 3: Enhancing competence in practice of nutrition Providing continuing education to assure a work force of highly trained, competent nutrition professionals and paraprofessionals who can carry out the nutrition programming that is a part advancing healthy lifestyles, safety, and wellness, and improving food security. Group
2--Life Course Promoting healthy human development in family contexts through community programs and activities. Emphasis is on identifying and building on family strengths, and on family support as a universally available community resource. Priority 3: Reducing stress and violence. Developing critical life skills strategies to reduce the levels of stress and opportunities for violent behavior. Emphasis is on instruction and modeling of new behaviors to increase awareness of individual and environmental factors affecting stress and violence, and increase positive choices for coping with stress and violence. Priority #1 Develop And Apply Youth Community Action Models And Methods Background Information Youth Community Action work is critical to the land grant civic mission, as CCE has a commitment to the people of New York to build self-capacity among citizens so they can solve problems and build strong and vibrant communities. In 4-H, the pledge, creed, mission and vision proclaim the development of citizens as a primary goal of 4-H. Clearly, 4-H would not be 4-H if not for both the youth development and civic elements. The following principles of youth and civic development are at the heart of the 4-H experience:
Implications/opportunities for Cornell Cooperative Extension applied research and extension response to developing and applying youth community action models and methods include:
Desired outcomes:
Priority #2: Advance Life Skill Development Background: Cornell Cooperative Extension youth development programming focuses on helping youth developing competencies, often known as life skills. To successfully grow into mature, productive, and contributing citizens, young people need to acquire:
In 4-H Youth Development, Life Skills:
Implications/opportunities for Cornell Cooperative Extension applied research and extension response to Advance Life Skill Development include:
Desired Outcomes Deepening our understanding of how young people acquire life skills can increase our intentionality and therefore help us help them get more out of each learning experience so that:
Priority #3: Defining and Applying Principles Of Positive Youth Development Background: Eight elements critical to youth development, and central to the 4-H experience, have emerged through current research initiatives. The critical elements are:
The multiple groups concerned about community programs for youth – policy makers, families, program developers and practitioners, program staff, and young people themselves – have in common the desire to know whether programs make a difference in the lives of young people, their families, and their communities. Research, program evaluation, and social indicator data can help improve the design and delivery of programs. Implications/opportunities for Cornell Cooperative Extension applied research and extension response to defining and applying principles of positive youth development are:
Desired Outcomes There is evidence that youth with more personal and social assets have greater positive development. Since program features typically work together in synergistic ways, programs with more features are likely to provide better supports for young people’s positive development. Research that focuses directly on these features in the Cooperative Extension youth programming, including our work with and through schools and other youth serving groups, would increase our understanding of how community programs for youth could incorporate these features into program design and implementation to the ultimate benefit of youth.
Priority #4: Enhancing Science And Technology Literacy Background: In the past year, nearly 200,000 New York youth participated in 4-H educational activities in the science and technology areas of environmental education, biological and physical sciences, plant and animal sciences, technology and engineering, and textiles and apparel. The Science and Technology Program Work Team has worked to identify curriculum needs in science and technology areas and has provided training for extension educators through numerous workshops and seminar sessions. The PWT has focused on an activity of concept mapping related to what makes a science project interesting. . Results from the concept mapping have helped to identify specific indicators that have potential for program enhancement. Implications/opportunities for Cornell Cooperative Extension applied research and extension response to Enhancing Science and Technology Literacy:
Desired Outcomes
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