Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Director: A look at the Leopold Center Policy Issue

Back to Leopold Letter Fall 2008

By JERRY DeWITT, Leopold Center director

Q. Why does the Leopold Center have a Policy Initiative? How does policy fit with sustainable agriculture?

The Leopold Center has funded research throughout its history that has made significant and visible impacts on farming practices in Iowa. We invested in areas such as nitrogen management, and work by the late Fred Blackmer led to the late-spring soil test, now an important tool for farmers. We invested research dollars in other areas, too -- hoop structures for swine, grazing, buffers and streamside plantings, and increased markets for locally grown foods -- that we hope have had visible impacts on the Iowa landscape.

We also acknowledge that new practices and programs alone can be effective up to a point; changes in practice often are driven by policies at the state and federal levels. Our policies need to deal with the heart of the issues to reposition needed change. The approach at the Leopold Center is to provide the research for innovative practices and systems, and integrate targeted policy work that can lead to change

Q. How is the Leopold Center's policy work different than many other groups working in policy?

The Policy Initiative is one of three focus areas for research and programs at the Leopold Center; we also have the Ecological Systems Initiative and the Marketing and Food Systems Initiative. Our policy work is the smallest of the three initiatives, with a majority of our efforts and resources focused on ecology (the production aspect of agriculture).

We feel that our policy work must focus on Iowa issues and opportunities. Our limited resources do not allow us to directly tackle significant issues such as the Farm Bill when other groups are providing leadership and expertise at the national level. We have positioned our work to be supportive of other activities in the state or region. We provide data, speak out and share our findings.

Q. What are some of the key policy issues that the Leopold Center has addressed?

We try to focus on issues that relate to our rural Iowa landscape that are impacting our farm families and communities. Some real-time issues for Iowans that may be included in our policy work are protection of soil and water resources, flooding impacts, the issue of hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico, loss of local infrastructure such as in local meat processing, specialty crops for Iowa, access to markets, and creating opportunities for new farmers.

To undertake meaningful policy projects we are working with partners throughout Iowa who share common interests. Partners beyond Iowa State University in the recent past have included the Iowa Farmers Union, Practical Farmers of Iowa, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, Drake University, Women, Food and Agriculture Network, the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, and the Iowa Network for Community Agriculture. Such partnerships usually have included funding to these groups through grants to work on issues that may be related to our work in Ecology or Marketing and Food Systems, or to answer particular questions that relate to a larger or overarching issue.

Q. What strategic investments are needed in policy? What do you see as a major goal of local policy?

We likely would be well served in Iowa if we could begin to rethink the role and contribution of local and regional agriculture to our communities and state. How can local agriculture be repositioned and viewed as a local economic development engine? How can we measure the impacts of local and regional agriculture to our state economy? How are communities better served by reaching out to farmers, local processors and ag businesses?

To do this we need more local and regional economic research in Iowa. We need economists and local decision makers working together. We must gather real data that has impacts locally. We must show opportunities backed by facts that provide local policy makers and elected officials with choices and options.

Audiences that we must better serve are our elected representatives in the Iowa General Assembly, Boards of Supervisors, City Council members, Soil and Water Commissioners, various county boards, and county agricultural associations.

Back to Leopold Letter Fall 2008