Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Leopold Notes September 2012

Notes from the Leopold Center Archive

PLEASE JOIN US THURSDAY!
The Leopold Center is hosting a welcome reception for our new director, Mark Rasmussen, on Thursday, September 6, 3:30 to 5 p.m. in the Campanile Room in the ISU Memorial Union in Ames. There will be a short program at 4 p.m. and the public is invited – we hope to see you there!

Details on our web calendar

NEW FUNDS FOR COVER CROPS
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship is allowing farmers to sign up for cost-share dollars to plant fall-seeded cover crops this year. The emergency rule change includes cover crops as an eligible practice under the Iowa Financial Incentives Program (IFIP), commonly called cost share.

See the announcements box on our calendar page for more details.
Other details on our Iowa Cover Crops Working Group page

SOUTHERN IOWA ACTIVITIES
A couple events in Chariton will feature Leopold Center-supported projects. The first is a September 6 field day at the McNay Research and Demonstration Farm beginning at 5:30 p.m. Guests can see where ISU professor Jim Russell is doing climate change research with regard to grazing, and he’ll also give an update of his riparian grazing research later in the program. Local growers and local products will be featured at the Second Taste of Southern Iowa banquet on Tuesday, September 18 in Carpenters Hall in Chariton.

ISU McNay field day
Taste of Southern Iowa Banquet

NORTHERN IOWA ACTIVITIES
Thanks to involvement of the Farm Energy Working Group, four of the 11 farms participating in the 2012 Northern Iowa Farm Crawl on Sunday, September 9 will talk about how they are reducing their farm energy use.

Details about this group and the popular event

WATER ROCKS! is a new educational program for youth developed by the Iowa Learning Farms. Some of the new materials were previewed recently at the Ames Farmers Market, where ILF showcased its newest trailer, Conservation Station 3, or CS3. Both programs are possible, thanks to Leopold Center support.

Read more on the ILF blog
More about the LC-ILF partnership

LEOPOLD CENTER 2012 RFP
The Leopold Center's 2012 Request for Pre-proposals resulted in 54 submissions: 21 that will be considered in the Center's ecology initiative, 17 in marketing and food systems, 10 in cross-cutting and 6 in policy. Submissions are evaluated by staff, expert reviewers and members of the Leopold Center Advisory Board. Decisions on full proposal development are made in September and final funding decisions occur in January.

USDA GRANTS FOR FARMERS
The North Central Region of USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) has announced its farmer and rancher grant program and the types of projects it will fund in 2013. Farmers also can apply for Value-Added Producer Grants from the USDA’s Rural Development program. Iowa farmers interested in the value-added grants are invited to learn more at a September 6 workshop hosted by the Drake Ag Law Center. 

Details about both grant programs are in the announcements box on the Leopold Center calendar page

LOOKING AHEAD
Agriculture in human landscapes will be the topic of the 2012 Pesek Colloquium on Monday, October 9, presented by University of Maryland professor and conservationist Erle Ellis.

Details on our website

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