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(108) Living on the Land: Stewardship for Small Acreages, New and Improved!
Susan Donaldson, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Reno, NV
Session: Poster Session
Throughout the west, population dynamics are changing. Our communities are all experiencing growth at the urban fringes and subdivsion of agricultural properties into to smaller, 1 to 40+ acre parcels. This growing audience of small acreage owners often is not well versed in land management practices. We are challenged as professionals to develop programs that effectively target the specific needs and resource issues important to small acreage owners. In 2001, with funding from the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Professional Development Program, professionals from eight western states including CA, OR, WA, UT, ID, NV, MT and CO teamed together to create the award-winning Living on the Land curriculum specifically aimed at the small acreage "lifestyler": the property owner who has purchased a small acreage property not as a source of annual income, but as a way of life. The team developed a series of five modules that address goal-setting, soils, water, grass and animals.
After the tremendous success of the initial version of the curriculum, evaluations of its use identified additional needs. The 2008 update of the curriculum includes three new modules: marketing and economics for small acreage properties; wildfire threat reduction; and whole farms approaches. The curriculum includes an instructor’s guide, lesson plans, PowerPoint presentations, evaluation instruments, and more. Trainings will be held in 2008 in Bozeman, MT and Albuquerque, NM for those interested in learning how to conduct small acreage programs in their communities. The free curriculum will be available on CD in fall, 2008.
Susan Donaldson
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
5305 Mill St., Reno, NV, 89502, USA
Phone: 775-784-4848
Fax: 775-784-4881
donaldsons@unce.unr.edu