Living on the Land Curriculum Expansion and Instructor Trainings

Living on the Land Curriculum Expansion and Instructor Trainings

Summary

This Western SARE PDP project addresses the need for resource management education for small acreage owners at the urban/rural interface. The 2001 WSARE-funded curriculum, Living on the Land: Stewardship for Small Acreages, has been used to train thousands of small acreage owners. The current project will update and expand the curriculum to include three new modules: marketing and economics of small-acreage properties; wildfire threat reduction; and whole farms approaches. We will also provide a minimum of two trainings in western locales in 2008 for approximately 100 Cooperative Extension, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Soil and Water Conservation District staff.

Objectives/Performance Targets

Objective 1: Update and Expand the Curriculum

We propose to update the existing modules and add new information into the existing curriculum. The proposed revisions include:

-Re-organization of Module #1: Setting the Stage: Inventorying Resources

-Additional methods of irrigation

-A new lesson on pond management and an abbreviated lesson on stream management

-An expanded section on integrated weed management strategies and safe herbicide use

-Alternatives for grazing and vegetation management

-A new lesson on feeds and feeding as it relates to species commonly found on small acreage properties

-A separate lesson on managing wildlife

-Revision of the Instructor’s Guide

Three new modules will be added:

1. Marketing and Economics of Small Acreage Properties, including principles of marketing and economics, production systems, and case studies.

2. Living with Wildfire, including understanding and reducing the threat, and what to do when wildfire occurs.

3. Tying It Together: The Whole Farms Approach

The curriculum will be externally reviewed and published on CD and on the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension Web site.

Performance measure: Curriculum is successfully updated, expanded, reviewed, and published.

Objective 2: Western States Trainings

In response to the numerous requests for additional training that have been received, once the curriculum revisions have been completed, we will offer two, 1-2-day training sessions in two locations in the western United States. We are tentatively targeting Bozeman, Montana (July 2008), and Durango, Colorado (October 2008). Fifty participants from the target audiences will be invited to each training, and financial support will be offered to defray travel expenses.

Performance measures: Up to 100 educators receive training in the use of the curriculum; educators evaluate the curriculum; educators use all or part of the curriculum in training small acreage owners; educators share the materials with others.

Accomplishments/Milestones

The Living on the Land development group has held two meetings to date. The first meeting was held November 1 – 3, 2006, and the second meeting was held June 20-22, 2007; both meetings occurred in Reno, Nevada. The project was delayed by difficulty obtaining Human Subjects Research approval for the year three evaluation of the curriculum. The team was initially comprised of the following members:

1. Dr. Susan Donaldson, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
2. Dr. Bob Hamblen, Colorado State University Cooperative Extension
3. Melody Hefner, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
4. Dr. Kevin Laughlin, University of Idaho Extension
5. Ed Smith, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
6. Doug Stienbarger, Washington State University Extension
7. Cinda Williams, University of Idaho Extension

The project team has been expanded to include Wendy Williams, NRCS, Bozeman, MT. Wendy was an original author of the curriculum. However, federal guidelines made it difficult to cover her travel expenses. Her state conservationist has deemed this project sufficiently important that he will cover Wendy’s expenses out of his own budget. Wendy is revising the lessons on forage species and grazing management, and will provide one or more case studies for the new module on marketing and economics. She has also offered seek permission to host and manage logistics for a training in Bozeman.

At the first meeting, we reviewed the existing lessons, pinpointed needed changes, agreed on additions, and assigned tasks to team members. In addition to the two new modules proposed in the grant application, we agreed to add a final module (Module 8) to synthesize the concepts provided throughout the curriculum into a lesson on a total farm sustainable approach to property management. Cinda Williams will take the lead on the new Module 8.

During the time period from December 2006 to June 2007, team members worked on outlines of the new materials and revisions to the existing materials. By our next meeting, held June 20 – 22, 2007, and attended by all participants except Cinda Williams, a new outline of the curriculum had been developed, Web sites updated, and draft PowerPoint presentations completed. The outline of the updated curriculum is attached in a separate document.

During the June 2007 meeting, we fine-tuned the existing materials and determined gaps and additions needed for the new modules and updates for the instructor’s guide. Graphics development has also begun.

We also began the process of planning the two trainings, and agreed on two locations as our first choices: Bozeman, Montana, in July 2008 and Durango, Colorado, in October 2008. Alternate locations include Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington. The training will include workshops on program development and long-term sustainability; concurrent sessions introducing curriculum content; and a tour to one or more small acreage properties to practice inventory and communication skills.

The next meeting of the group will be held in Reno from November 5 – 7, 2007, to finalize the curriculum prior to peer review, and continue planning the training sessions.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

The curriculum is still undergoing revision, and we do not have impacts or outcomes to report at this time. However, we expect the following outcomes will result from this project:

Short-term:
1. Better trained and prepared educators who will be more comfortable with the material and better able to initiate programs, obtain funding, and work with the audience.
2. An increase in the number of small acreage trainings being offered.

Medium-term:
1. More educators successfully reach the target audience of small acreage land holders and help them implement best management practices
2. Increased knowledge and change in behavior by local audiences as a result of programs initiated by program participants making use of the curriculum.

Long-term:
1. Better managed small acreage properties.
2. Sustainable land use.
3. Improved economic status as a result of marketing and budgeting training.
4. Improvement in water quality and other natural resources.

Collaborators: