COLLABORATION AND SUPPORT FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE PROGRAMS

Goals / Objectives
9804350. Sustainable agriculture programs in the U.S. have continued to expand and diversify. Federal funded programs in sustainable agriculture research, education, and extension are coordinated through the Office of Sustainable Agriculture Programs at USDA-Csrees. This office works with university-based staff at a number of U.S. institutions to develop, implement, and carry out programs. It is the intent of the proposed effort to provide support for national programs in sustainable agriculture, through coordinating and communicating functions.

Project Methods
Coordination and communication are seen as a need for support of national sustainable agriculture programs. These positions and sets of responsibilities are expected to be complementary to regional staffing and programs carried out under the auspices of national sustainble agriculture programs. The two responsibility areas will be met through two full-time positions, an Associate Director, and a Communications Specialist.

Progress 08/01/98 to 07/31/03

Outputs
Program Analysis: Project database development is on-going, information about each funded project is being entered. This will allow the program to examine and evaluate the portfolio of projects to determine future funding decisions and to work at integrating project results into professional development programs. The electronic reporting system was implemented and integrated into the SARE web page so that all project annual and final reports can viewed by the general public. Program Communications: Several publications were developed and distributed based on a survey of information needs; a bulletin titled Meeting the Diverse Needs of Limited-Resource Producers, a brochure Exploring Sustainability in Agriculture, and a book Building Soils for Better Crops.

Impacts
The database of projects will allow the decision makers to develop the call for proposals to better meet the research and education needs of their region. Research scientists and educators will be able to examine past and current projects and develop proposals to expand the knowledge base of sustainable agriculture and provide better information to farmers and extension. The publications will provide farmers and agriculture educators with additional resources on sustainable agriculture practices.

Publications

No publications reported this period

Progress 01/01/02 to 12/31/02

Outputs
Program Analysis: Project database development is on-going, information about each funded project is being entered. This will allow the program to examine the portfolio of projects to determine future funding decisions and to work at integrating project results. The electronic reporting system is now fully integrated into the SARE web page so that all project annual and final reports can be viewed by the end user. Program Communication: Several publications were developed and distributed based on a survey of information needs, a bulletin titled "Meeting the Diverse Needs of Limited-Resource Producers", a brochure "Exploring Sustainability in Agriculture", and a book "Building Soils for Better Crops".

Impacts
The database of projects will allow the decision makers to develop the call for proposals to better meet the research and education needs of their region. Research scientists and educators will be able to examine past and current projects and develop proposals to expand the knowledge base of sustainable agriculture and provide better information to farmers and extension. The publications will provide farmers and agriculture educators with additional resources on sustainable agriculture practices.

Publications

No publications reported this period

Progress 01/01/01 to 12/31/01

Outputs
Program Analysis: Project database development is on-going, information about each funded project is being entered. This will allow the program to examine the portfolio of projects to determine future funding decisions and to work at integrating project results. An electronic reporting system has been developed so that all project annual and final reports can be entered into the database giving more complete information to the end user. Program Communication: Several publications were developed and distributed base on a survey of information needs. New American Farmer is a compilation of 50 case studies of sustainable farm operations, Profitable Pork and Profitable Poultry are bullentins to help build awareness of alternative production and marketing opportunities for farmers and agriculture educators.

Impacts
The database of projects will allow the decision makers to develop the call for proposals to better meet the research and education needs. Research scientists and educators will be able to examine past and current projects and develop proposals to expand the knowledge base of sustainable agriculture and provide better information to farmers and extension. The publications will provide farmers and agriculture educators with additional resources on sustainble agriculture practices.

Publications

No publications reported this period

Progress 01/01/99 to 12/31/99

Outputs
Program Analysis: Project database development is on-going, information about each project is being entered. This will allow the program to examine the portfolio of projects to determine future funding decisions and to work at integrating project results. Program Communication: Several publications were developed and distributed based on a survey of information needs. On-Farm Research bullentin provides information for farmers and extension on how to conduct research on farms and ranches. Marketing bulleting provides examples of successful marketing strategies and resources for additional information.

Impacts
(N/A)

Publications

No publications reported this period