Issue 19 - April 15, 2007 |
CFANS People in the News
  Peter Olin, director of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, will step down this summer from the post he's held for 25 years. He'll continue to teach and do research as part of the Department of Horticultural Science faculty. Mary Meyer, also a professor in the department, will be interim director of the arboretum.
 Shefali Mehta, recent Ph.D. graduate from the Department of Applied Economics, is a winner of the university-wide Mary E. McEvoy Award for Public Engagement and Leadership. The award is given to one graduate and one professional student who demonstrate dedication and assistance that benefit an individual, group or community, or strengthens a democratic way of life.
Two CFANS students, Ann Miron and Virginia Pollock, have been named as winners of the UMAA Student Leadership Awards, which recognize excellence in academics, character, leadership and contributions to the University of Minnesota.
 Jerry Cohen, professor in the Department of Horticultural Science, has been elected as a Fellow of the American Society of Plant Biologists.
The University of Minnesota Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters won the 1st Annual Lake States Quiz Bowl and Forestry Games held by the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in Tomahawk, WI, this month.
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In This Issue
- From the dean: The natural world
- ROC funding approved; Bell Museum will have to wait
- Alum will be CFANS commencement speaker
- Siehl Prize seeks nominations
- "Speaking of Science" with Karen Oberhauser
- Congressional visit showcases biofuels research
- Dairy team scores top national honors
- It's official: the new apple is 'Frostbite'
- Events
From Dean Allen Levine: The natural world
Editor's note: "Agriculture and Forestry in the Natural World" was the title of the panel discussion held April 10 as part of the Minnesota State Sesquicentennial celebration at the University of Minnesota. Panel experts Bev Durgan, Nancy Ehlke, Alan Ek, Scott Lanyon and Jim Linn offered historical and future perspectives. Allen Levine served as moderator.To hear the actual presentation, go to http://www1.umn.edu/sesqui/conversations.php
Agriculture and Forestry in the Natural World; the title of our panel discussion assumes there is still a natural world. With 6.6 billion people and finite land and water resources, changes in natural ecosystems are inevitable. Our survival depends on how we respond to the impacts of our growing population, our warming planet, our high-cost energy supplies, and our culture that separates us from the day-to-day realities of agriculture and forestry. Read more
More than a century ago, similar fears of environmental collapse and devastation drove the creation of many of the programs that are now part of the University's College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences or CFANS. Today we are seeing renewed interest in the topics on which our college and our panelists focus their attention. Topics concerning our land... spotlighted daily in the media, discussed around the dinner table, and debated in public settings.
At the panel discussion, historical slides, photographs and posters detailed important milestones the University has accomplished in the past 150 years. What we've learned is impressive; what we don't know is daunting. With the breadth of programs available at this University, and the strong public and private support we enjoy, we are uniquely positioned to discover wonderful things about how our human-dominated world works. Our faculty and staff are committed to solving our problems through science.
You might say we are Driven to Discover how Agriculture and Forestry thrive in the Natural World.
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ROC funding approved; Bell Museum must wait
Funding has been approved by the state legislature and Gov. Tim Pawlenty for construction projects that include a new maintenance and farm support facility at the Northwest Research and Outreach Center in Crookston and research and education space for renewable energy work at the West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris.
The $3.5 million projects are part of a $717 million bonding package. Legislators had approved about $925 million in projects, including $24 million for construction of a new Bell Museum of Natural History, but Pawlenty used his line-item veto to reduce the total package. Back to top of page
Alum will be CFANS commencement speaker
 Spring 2008 commencement for CFANS graduates will be at 2 p.m. on May 11 at Northrop Memorial Auditorium on the university's East Bank campus. This year's speaker will be Mark Seetin, senior vice president of government affairs at the American Stock Exchange and a former Minnesota agriculture commissioner. He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics.
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Siehl Prize seeks nominations for '09 award
 The Siehl Prize for Excellence in Agriculture is requesting nominations for the 2009 awards for outstanding contributions to agriculture and the alleviation of world hunger. In the past, awards were given in alternating years, but under a revised system, up to three awards will be made annually.
Recipients are chosen in three categories: knowledge (teaching, research and outreach), production agriculture and agribusiness. Recipients receive a $50,000 award as well as a sculpture and lapel pin designed by Minnesota artist Thomas Rose specifically for the Siehl Prize.
The Siehl Prize was created in the early 1990s by a generous gift from Minnesota farmer, livestock breeder and businessman Eldon Siehl, a dedicated philanthropist who had a lifelong interest in agricultural systems. Siehl was concerned that people were losing touch with their agrarian roots and wanted his gift to ensure that achievements in agriculture would be recognized and celebrated.
Deadline for nominations is Oct. 1, with award winners expected to be announced during the spring of 2009.
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A new "Speaking of Science" interview
 The latest installment of "Speaking of Science" is now online. The newest interviewee is Karen Oberhauser, a professor in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology . This series of interviews between CFANS dean Allen Levine and key faculty and staff showcases the research and outreach work happening throughout the college.
Read the Q and A with Karen Oberhauser
Listen to raw MP3 audio of the interview:
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4
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Congressional visit showcases biofuels research
Reps. Tim Walz, center, of Minnesota's First Congressional district and Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, right, toured labs in the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering in mid-March to learn about biofuels research and future workforce needs. Both voiced support for continued research and said more is needed to “grow” the biofuels industry.
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Dairy team scores top national honors
Students from the University of Minnesota
won first-place honors in the Seventh Annual North American Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge (NAIDC) this month in Madison, Wis. Thirty-two teams from the United States and Canada competed.
NAIDC is a two-day competition that enables
students to apply theory and learning to a real-world dairy, while
working as part of a four-person team.
Minnesota's team includes: back row, left to right: Matthew Rosenfeld, coach Marcia Endres, and Evan Van Beusekom. Front row, left to right: Melisa Bauer and Amber Hazel.
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It's official: The new apple is "Frostbite"
The University of Minnesota's newest apple has a name: Frostbite. The name was  chosen after a contest at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum that drew more than 7,000 entries worldwide. Jim Luby, a professor in the Department of Horticultural Science, and David Bedford, an apple scientist at the department's Horticultural Research Center, coordinated the judging process. The committee selected two runners-up: "Munchkin" and "Small Wonder." But don't run out to buy a Frostbite yet -- commercial nurseries will soon start propagating the trees, which will be ready for gardeners and orchards to plant in one to two years. The first trees will then bear fruit to sell around 2014.
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Events
Here are a few of the upcoming events of interest to the College of
Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences community. Visit www.cfans.umn.edu to
see more events.
James P. Houck Lecture on Food and Consumer Policy
Wednesday, April 16 , 2 p.m.
Cargill Building for Microbial and Plant Genetics
The third James P. Houck Lecture on Food and Consumer Policy will feature keynote speaker David Laibson, an economics professor at Harvard University and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. The title of his lecture will be "Temptation, Self-Control, and Public Policy." The event is free but registration is requested. William E. Larson and Raymond R. Allmaras
lecture on Emerging Issues in Soil and Water
Wednesday, April 16, 2 to 4:30 p.m.
335 Borlaug Hall, St. Paul campus
The theme of the annual Soil, Water and Climate department lecture is “National Environmental Indicators." The lecture includes two speakers: Robin O’Malley of the Heinz Center, Washington, D.C., who will speak on “An Environmental Information System for the 21st Century” and Bob A. Stewart of West Texas A&M University, who will speak on “National Indicators of Changes in Soil Quality.” For details about the event, contact Satish Gupta at sgupta@umn.edu or 612-625-1241.
Biofuels and the Environment
Twin Cities Agricultural Issues Roundtable
Tuesday, April 22, 11:30 to 1 p.m.
Four Points Sheraton hotel, Minneapolis
Steve Polasky, Fesler-Lampert Professor of Ecological/Environmental Economics, will be the keynote speaker. He is a co-author of a recent publication in Science titled “Land Clearing and the Biofuel Carbon Debt," which estimates the “carbon debt" created when new land is cleared for biofuel production. Polasky will present the research findings and will answer questions about the study. Advance reservations are required by April 18: contact Sue Pohlod at 612-625-8779 or spohlod@umn.edu. Luncheon cost is $30.
Kolshorn Lecture Series
Thursday, April 24, 5 p.m.
Green Hall, St. Paul campus
The 2008 Kolshorn Lecture Series, sponsored by the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, will feature David B. Wake, Professor of Integrative Biology and Curator of Herpetology, University of California, Berkeley.
His speech is titled "Are we living in the midst of a sixth mass extinction?" The lecture begins at 5 p.m.
Seeing Climate Change Film and Video Festival
April 24-27, various times
Bell Museum of Natural History
The weekend includes films, discussions, workshops, and social gatherings that focus a lens on climate change and global warming.
The event is co-sponsored by The Onion, The Red Stag Supper Club, The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, The Nature Conservancy, The University of Minnesota’s Sustainability Studies Minor and other university and community partners. Cost for admission to all events is $40 for adults and $25 for students, seniors and Bell Museum member, or $8 and $5 for individual films. H. K. Hayes Memorial Lecture
Friday, April 25, 3 p.m.
Cargill Building for Microbial and Plant Genetics
Vicki Wilde, leader of the Gender and Diversity Program for all 15 international agricultural research centers around the world, will be the keynote speaker. The annual lecture and award of the H.K. Hayes Graduate Student Award are sponsored by the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics.
Minnesota State FFA Convention
Sunday-Tuesday, April 27-29
University of Minnesota campuses
The 79th annual Minnesota FFA Convention will include highlights of achievements by FFA members from around the state, learning activities, competitions, entertainment and a speech by national FFA eastern region vice president Tyler Tenbarge. Headquarters for the event is the Continuing Education Conference Center on the St. Paul campus.
Philip M. Raup Lecture
Thursday, May 1, 3 p.m.
Cargill Building for Microbial and Plant Genetics
The third Philip M. Raup Lecture on Land and Environmental Policy will feature Professor Kathleen Segerson, University of Connecticut. The title of her presentation is "Ecosystems Services: A New or Old Paradigm within Environmental Economics?" The lecture is free, but registration is requested. The lectures are sponsored by the Department of Applied Economics.
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