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FSRE Systems Conference
>Date: Fri, 16 May 1997 10:03:25 -0700
>X-Sender: williamr@bcc.orst.edu
>To: csas001@unlvm.unl.edu
>From: williamr@ava.bcc.orst.edu (Ray William)
>
>Pam: A revised version of the FSRE Systems Conference announcement for you
>to post to SANET. Thanking you kindly. This is beginning to look like an
>exciting agenda with potential learning for lots of participants. Ray
>
>>CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT
>>
>>Food & Natural Resource Systems: Integrating Diversity, Inquiry, Action, &
>>People
>>
>>3rd North American Conference of the
>>Farming Systems Research & Extension Association
>>in collaboration with
>>Oregon & Washington State Universities and other groups
>>November 2-5, 1997
>>Resort at the Mountain
>>Welches (Mt. Hood), OR
>>
>>Diverse citizens including farmers, ranchers, natural resource managers,
>>bird and river advocates, urban dwellers, agency representatives, wildlife
>>specialists, ecologists, educators, researchers, and others are invited to
>>participate in a conference about complex natural resource, watershed, and
>>community food systems. Food and Natural Resource topics will focus on
>>whole farm/ranch production systems, watersheds, community food systems, and
>>pressures of the urban/rural interface. Case studies will be combined with
>>posters, brief presentations, facilitated workshops, site tours, and
>>discussion as a framework for inquiry and action involving management of
>>whole systems.
>>
>>This interactive working conference will explore diversity, inquiry, action,
>>and people within the context of urban and natural resource systems.
>>Diversity generates multiple views and opinions on how to improve complex
>>systems. Inquiry considers numerous learning and research approaches
>>including recent contributions from the science of systems thinking and
>>practice. Action evaluates alternatives from multiple perspectives before
>>implementation in the field. People begin to think of food and natural
>>resources as functional systems with a multitude of relationships and
>>interconnected consequences.
>>
>>
>>CONFERENCE OBJECTIVES:
>>
>>1. Improve your skills in dealing with complex food and natural resource
>>systems.
>>
>>2. Learn a variety of systems thinking and practice skills; explore ways to
>>integrate diverse opinions and facts into systems action plans.
>>
>>3. Take home information and actions about agriculture, forestry, fisheries,
>>watersheds, urban ecologies, and people trying to balance diverse needs,
>>perspectives, and integral improvements involving agricultural, urban, and
>>natural resource systems.
>>
>>
>>CONFERENCE TOPICS & AGENDA:
>>
>>The conference will be organized into 4 continuous, concurrent sessions.
>>Production systems with a focus on whole farm/ranch systems will integrate
>>resource management, integral pest management, soil health, foodwebs and
>>multiple pest suppression, fertility systems, agroforestry, cover crops,
>>value-added or developing natural products, and other topics of interest to
>>participants. Community food systems will feature conversations by
>>practitioners in the Pacific Northwest along with synthesis of ideas into
>>action plans. Watersheds and ecosystems will integrate fish, ag and
>>timber, urbanization, riparian ecologies, and other topics within a research
>>and systems inquiry framework to improve decisions within whole watersheds.
>>Urban/rural interface will .............
>>
>>SUNDAY, 2-9PM Learning Bazaar, Food Fair, And Reception: Look, listen, and
>>learn by attending poster sessions, farm photo displays, agency exhibits,
>>and a systems thinking/action bazaar. Story-telling by farmers has become a
>>popular event. Stories describe complexity, relationships, and emotions
>>along with ways farmers are struggling with improvements. Everyone has a
>>story. Perhaps you'd like to share your story within one of the 4
>>conference discussion topics. Others participants might listen for patterns
>>and relationships in how people are describing their research or inquiry
>>process. This event combines food as an integral part of learning about
>>resources in the Pacific Northwest.
>>
>>MONDAY Focus Sessions; Systems Learning: Focus sessions integrate
>>knowledge and experience with brief presentations and facilitated
>>discussions. Principles of systems thinking and practice will inform this
>>phase of inquiry and dealing with complexity. Ideas from the 4 topics on
>>Sunday will be integrated into these continuous, concurrent learning events.
>>
>>TUESDAY Field And Site Tours: Participants will explore how people in
>>the Pacific Northwest are doing inquiry or research about food and natural
>>resource systems. Tours will visit people involved with Portland community
>>food systems, watershed/livestock/ forest systems along the Salmon River and
>>in eastern Oregon, intensive horticultural production systems in Hood River
>>orchards and the Willamette Valley, and urban/rural interfaces in southwest
>>Washington.
>>
>>WEDNESDAY Experiencing Human Inquiry & Action: Small groups organized
>>during field tours will summarize their insights and discoveries for
>>presentation during a working breakfast. Following the working breakfast,
>>concurrent sessions will focus on conference themes to integrate learning
>>approaches and information within a systems framework involving the
>>conference topics. "Discoveries" will be reported prior to the TOWN HALL
>>meeting that follows.
>>
>>A TOWN HALL meeting will focus on integrating experiential knowledge of
>>citizens with expertise from agencies, universities, and organizations to
>>improve complex natural resource systems. An interactive conversation with
>>agency heads and conferees will highlight both an inquiry process designed
>>to "level the playing field" and ways natural resource systems might be
>>treated as functional systems. A gala barbeque and farewells will conclude
>>the conference.
>>
>>
>>EXPECTED CONFERENCE OUTCOMES:
>>
>>Participants will improve their knowledge about agricultural commodities,
>>watersheds, ecosystems, food systems, and ways to integrate learning and
>>acting within a systems framework. Because the Farming Systems Research &
>>Extension Association has fostered interdisciplinary inquiry, this workshop
>>will explore these topics from multiple perspectives including social,
>>economic, environmental, and technical views. Participants will do a
>>"walk-about" in systems thinking that highlights input/output,
>>transformation, feedback, hierarchy, and other principles of this emerging
>>science.
>>
>>
>>ABOUT THE CONFERENCE SITE:
>>
>>The workshop site is near Mt. Hood about 45-minutes from Portland at the
>>Resort at the Mountain. It is surrounded by farms, cities, ranches,
>>forests, and watersheds. The Resort features a magnificent natural resource
>>setting along with great food and Northwest hospitality. We expect the
>>entire event to be memorable.
>>
>>
>>CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS AND CONTRIBUTIONS
>>
>>Conferees will participate both within a structured learning framework and
>>in facilitated discussions that move toward synthesis within one of the
>>concurrent topics. Attendees are encouraged to bring photos, questions,
>>issues, published papers, posters, facts, stories, descriptions of
>>successess and failures, books, references, videos, experiences, web sites,
>>and other ways to contribute knowledge and insights in the way we might
>>improve inquiry and learning associated with complex natural resource and
>>urban ecosystems.
>>
>>Co-sponsored and organized by:
>>Oregon State University
>>Washington State University
>>Alberta Agriculture Food & Rural Development
>>Mike Naylor, California Orchardist
>>Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute
>>American Society of Agronomy
>>USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service-Soil Quality Institute
>>
>>REQUEST FOR REGISTRATION AND SITE INFORMATION
>>
>>Please send the attached request form to gain more information about the
>>North American FSRE Association and registration for the semi-annual
>>conference or training events.
>>
>>Food & Natural Resource Systems: Integrating Diversity, Inquiry, Action, &
>>People
>>
>>Farming Systems Research & Extension - North American Association
>>in conjunction with
>>Oregon and Washington State Univerisities and others
>>November 2-5, 1997
>>
>>Resort at the Mountain
>>Welches (Mt. Hood), OR
>>
>>
>>Name: _____________________________ Organization: ______________________
>>
>>Address: __________________________________________________ Zip: _________
>>
>>Phone: ___________________ FAX: ________________________________________
>>
>>E-mail: _________________________________________________________________
>>
>>Please include your mailing address so we may send you a registration form
>>and complete agenda.
>>
>>E-mail to seiters@bcc.orst.edu or williamr@bcc.orst.edu or Mail to:
>>Stefan Seiter or Ray D. William
>>Horticulture Dept., OSU
>>ALS 4017
>>Corvallis, OR 97330
***********************
Pam Murray, Coordinator
Center for Grassland Studies and
Center for Sustainable Agricultural Systems
PO Box 830949
University of Nebraska
Lincoln, NE 68583-0949
phone: 402-472-9383
fax: 402-472-4104
e-mail: csas001@unlvm.unl.edu