The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University seeks to help Iowa agriculture improve environmental outcomes on farms, while promoting the vitality of rural communities and others dependent on agriculture.
The Leopold Center was established by the Iowa Legislature as part of the Iowa Groundwater Protection Act of 1987. Its legislatively-mandated goals are to "conduct and sponsor research to identify and reduce negative environmental and socio-economic impacts of agricultural practices, assist in developing emerging alternative practices that are consistent with a sustainable agriculture," and to "partner with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach to develop an educational framework to inform the agricultural community and the general public of its findings." The code establishing the Center defines "sustainable agriculture" as follows:
"[Sustainable agriculture is] the appropriate use of crop and livestock systems and agricultural inputs supporting those activities which maintain economic and social viability while preserving the high productivity and quality of Iowa’s land."
The Center is named for Iowan Aldo Leopold, renown for his writing and early thinking about the potential positive synergies that arise when people apply ethical thinking to interactions with one another and the land. The Center has a rich history of helping people help land in Iowa and beyond. Today, the Center is funded by an endowment held in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Iowa State University, private donations, and external grants awarded to Center faculty, staff, and partners.
Activities
The Leopold Center supports a range of education and research activities. You can learn more about the current activities of the Center by reviewing our Annual Reports, the News and Reports feature of this website, or by visiting the websites of the major programs the center supports indexed in our Activities page. Our annual reports offer an in-depth account of the projects and initiatives currently supported by the Leopold Center. If you are seeking support for your research or education project, please reach out to the Center staff.
History
The Leopold Center was established at Iowa State University by an act of the Iowa Legislature in 1987. The center was named after globally renowned wildlife biologist, educator, and environmental writer Aldo Leopold. Leopold’s early life on Iowa’s shores of the Mississippi River in Burlington shaped his outlook and optimism for a land ethic that sustains people and land. You can learn more about the rich history of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture on our website or by exploring the permanent digital repository of publications, reports, and papers published by the Center and its partners housed at the Digital Repository by the Iowa State University Library.
Funding and donations
The Leopold Center is funded by an endowment held in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Iowa State University, private donations, and external grants awarded to Center faculty, staff, and partners. The ISU Foundation accepts and manages all gifts made to the Leopold Center. Interested donors may make gifts online at the ISU Foundation website. Donors also may gift stock, real estate or personal property, or may choose to make a deferred commitment through a will bequest, charitable remainder trust or other gift planning vehicle. Contact the Center Director to discuss major gifts by emailing leocenter@iastate.edu
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