Other news from the Leopold Center

Agroecology Team gets top ISU College award

The Iowa State University College of Agriculture has given the Agroecology Issue Team its annual Team Award. This interdisciplinary issue team was established by the Leopold Center in 1990 to develop local watershed management systems that increase the sustainability of agriculture. The team has partnered with landowners, businesses, resource management agencies and non-governmental organizations to establish conservation buffers and restore wetlands. One of its major accomplishments has been the Bear Creek Watershed project, chosen in 1999 as one 12 national restoration demonstration projects. Members of the team are Dick Schultz, Tom Isenhart, Joe Colletti, Jim Raich and Bill Simpkins.

Leopold Center fundraising efforts move to second stage

Grassroots fundraising efforts on behalf of the Leopold Center have netted close to $40,000 since the Fall 2002 kickoff.

The Center has received contributions from nearly 100 individuals and organizations. Many of the gifts were accompanied by letters of support or notes of encouragement that were very heartening to the Center staff and advisory board. Donations were received from citizens of 73 Iowa cities. The “Friends of the Leopold Center” group includes 12 individuals or couples who have donated at least $1,000 to help the Center through its financial difficulties.

Following on the heels of the successful grassroots campaign, several longtime Center supporters have worked with ISU Foundation executive Richard Bundy to identify other potential sources of outside income for the Center. Bundy has begun work with individuals, corporations and foundations that may be interested in assisting the Center. This effort dovetails nicely with a new emphasis by the ISU College of Agriculture on providing additional support for several sustainable agriculture enterprises now operating within the college.

Annual report focuses on ‘A Year in the News’

The Leopold Center got plenty of press in the past year. Unfortunately, much of it dealt with budget cuts and retrenchment. The newly published Leopold Center annual report for fiscal year 2002 shows how the Center coped with these financial difficulties and continued to maintain support for its three research initiatives, outreach activities, and collaborative efforts with other groups.

Carrying out the “news” theme in layout and design, the report has been scaled back from previous years to indicate that it was not “business as usual” at the Center this year. Feature stories cover the pork niche market working group, the agricultural policy conference, local food systems research, community conversations, and the creative ways the Center chose to deal with the loss of $1 million in revenue.

The concluding year of funding for the various issue teams and initiatives, as well as the partnership with Practical Farmers of Iowa are covered in detail. A lively section on Center happenings describes some of the ways that Center staff continued to spread the word about sustainable agriculture at Iowa State University and around the state.

One-fourth of the annual report is devoted to recapping the work of the investigators in the competitive grants program—those embarking on new projects, ongoing work, and projects that concluded their efforts at the end of the year.

The 24-page report is now available from the Center office. It was compiled and edited by Mary Adams, with graphic design provided by Juls Design of Ankeny.

Center plans Iowa visit for ecologist Jules Pretty

Plans are underway at the Leopold Center to bring noted sustainable agriculture scholar and author Jules Pretty to Iowa in 2003.

Pretty is director of the Centre for Environment and Society at the United Kingdom’s University of Essex. The author of more than 150 research papers and eight books, Pretty looked at more than 200 sustainable farming projects on 70 million acres in 52 countries. His analysis showed that sustainable practices can lead to substantial increases in production – as much as 150 percent for some root crops.

In 2001, he published Agri-Culture: Reconnecting People, Land and Nature, a book that shows how sustainable agriculture practices have transformed communities and landscapes in many parts of the world. His newest book, Guide to a Green Planet, has just been published.

In addition to his academic activities, Pretty is deputy-chair of Great Britain’s Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment (ACRE) and has served on a number of government advisory committees. A frequent speaker and contributor to media reports, he has worked with the BBC on several nationally-broadcast programs. A member of the Institute of Biology and British Agricultural History Society, he also edits the International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability.

Watch the Leopold Center web site and newsletter for details about the Jules Pretty visit.

This event is an activity of the Leopold Center’s new ecology initiative.

News & Notes from the Leopold Center, Spring 2003

The final report of a consumer focus group study that looked at how to best market specialty meat, poultry and dairy products from grass-fed or pasture-raised animals is now available from the Leopold Center. An independent market research consultant conducted six focus groups last fall in Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota. The report showed that consumers want to see general standards to define pasture-raised products. The report is posted on the Leopold Center web site, http://www.leopold.iastate.edu, or can be ordered by contacting the Center, (515) 294-3711, leocenter@iastate.edu.


Got questions about federal farm programs? The National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture has a new web site with information on a range of programs and policies related to sustainable agriculture, including provisions in the latest Farm Bill. The web site, called the Federal Sustainable Agriculture Program Primer, includes information about each program, who administers it, how to access the program, how it is funded, the program’s status, and where to get additional information. The Federal Sustainable Agriculture Program Primer is at: http://www.sustainableagriculture.net/primer.php.


Farmers who want to know more about selling to restaurants, hospitals and food services can check out a new publication, Selling to Institutions: An Iowa Farmer’s Guide. This 24-page free booklet includes a checklist and answers to common questions about insurance and equipment requirements, and how to find state programs that offer assistance for small businesses. The publication, written by attorneys Robert Luedeman and Neil D. Hamilton and published by the Drake University Agricultural Law Center, was funded in part by a grant from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. Copies can be downloaded from the Iowa Food Policy Council web site, http://iowafoodpolicy.org, or requested from the law center at (515) 271-4956.

Good Neighbor award

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) and the Iowa Ag Radio Network have established a monthly Good Neighbor Award for livestock producers who show care and concern for the environment and their neighbors. Winners will receive an award plaque and will be honored at the Iowa State Fair. Leopold Center director Fred Kirschenmann is a member of the selection committee. Send nominations to IDALS, Henry A. Wallace Building, Des Moines, IA 50319, or agri@idals.state.ia.us.

Environmental groups establish I-CALL

More than 700 Iowans have volunteered to be part of a new advocacy effort for stronger conservation and environmental policies and programs in the state. The owa conservation Advocatse' and leaders Link, or I-CALL, is a communications tool for citizens who would be willing to contact their legislators about key policies or issues. The network is a project of the Iowa Environmental Council and the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation.

More information is posted at: www.iowacall.org. To sign up, call (515) 309-3152, or e-mail ICALL@iowacall.org.

The goal is to involve at least 2,000 Iowans in this effort.

Back to Spring 2003 Leopold Letter