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LinkedInPosts Tagged: Nutrition
Amira Resnick named new Director for Community Nutrition and Health
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Amira Resnick as our new Director for Community Nutrition and Health.
Amira brings a rich history of experience to strengthen the nutrition and health work of UC ANR. Amira joins UC ANR from her current position as Senior Manager with Alliance for a Healthier Generation based in Los Angeles. In that position, she has spearheaded new, innovative multi-sectoral partnership development, secured funding opportunities, and implemented projects to advance environmental and systemic change toward whole child health. Previously, as Statewide Family Services Coordinator with Telamon Corporation, Amira led program implementation across 17 Migrant Head Start sites with 500 employees, serving over 1,000 families.
"We look forward to Amira bringing her enthusiasm and experience to help continue the growth of our nutrition and health work across the state," said Associate Vice President Wendy Powers. "Our historical impact in these areas – and more recently the growing concerns around COVID-19 and food security – highlight the importance of and need for this work.”
Amira holds a master's degree in Public Administration from the University of Southern California and a bachelor's degree in Cultural Anthropology with a minor in Spanish from the University of Michigan.
The position will further refine our vision for growth in the areas of nutrition and health and will oversee the network of nutrition and health work implemented across the state through the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program; CalFresh Healthy Living, UC program; and UC Master Food Preserver program.
Amira will begin work with UC ANR on February 15, 2022. Please join me in welcoming her in this new role.
Sincerely,
Mark Bell
Vice Provost of Strategic Initiatives and Statewide Programs
UC ANR COVID-19 Update: Visitor clearance survey
Visitor clearance survey
UC ANR has been using a web-based daily “clearance to work survey” to ensure that employees who are working onsite or engaged in in-person field work, research or extension activities are free of COVID-19 symptoms. An offline or paper version of the survey is also available for volunteers or employees who cannot access the online survey. Symptom screening is a statewide recommendation for all employers and is required by UC guidance for campuses and ANR locations that have personnel working onsite. The UC Symptom Screening Task Force guidance also states that arrangements must be made to require the same or equivalent screening not only of students, academics and staff but also guests, contractors, vendors and members of the public who are permitted access to UC facilities.
To comply with this UC systemwide guidance and to increase the protection of our employees, beginning August 3, all visitors to UC ANR facilities must also complete a Visitor Clearance Survey prior to entry. Only visitors who receive a “Cleared to Enter” result will be allowed access. Visitors who are denied entry should be provided information about other ways to interact with UC ANR remotely, such as information available on websites, scheduling a phone consultation, video meetings, etc.
When visitors from a UC campus or vendors whose employer has a symptom screening process can demonstrate that they have already passed their institution's screening, those results will be acceptable to enter the UC ANR facility. Additionally, for UCCE offices, a county's symptom screening process will be acceptable to enter the UC ANR spaces.
To maintain privacy, UC ANR personnel will not record or retain the responses of any person's Visitor Clearance Work Survey, but will only keep a record of the final survey result, i.e.: “Cleared to Enter,” or “Stay Home,” using a daily visitor log or sign-in sheet to record survey clearance status.
The UC ANR Visitor Clearance Survey and additional instructions and details about the survey are posted on the UC ANR COVID-19 webpage: http://ucanr.edu/covid19 under “Standards for Resuming In-Person Activities.”
Celebration Corner
Starting in March 2020, Nutrition Policy Institute researchers rapidly adjusted existing projects and joined forces with partners to respond to the pandemic by providing guidance on adjusting school meal service and other school operations to meet the needs of families during school closures; providing guidance on food security measures among people experiencing homelessness; and supporting the strengthening of food assistance programs.
CalFresh Healthy Living, UC provided oversight, training and technical assistance to San Luis Obispo County Disaster Service Workers at essential farmers market sites to ensure that safety guidance was followed by vendors and the public. These efforts enabled farmers markets that serve low-income patrons through EBT Acceptance and Market Match programs to remain open and address food insecurity in these communities.
Glenda Humiston
Vice President
ANR in the news November 1-15
Are Blackouts Here to Stay? A Look into the Future
(E&E News) Anne C. Mulkern, Nov. 15
…Throughout the United States, between roughly 2000 and 2010, about 75% of homes that burned in wildfires were located in the WUI, said Van Butsic, a land use specialist at the University of California, Berkeley. The rest was mostly in rural areas, with about 2% in cities.
People go back after they lose homes, Butsic said. He surveyed the 28 largest fires in California from about 1975 to 2005, and through aerial photos tracked what was rebuilt. About 90% of destroyed homes were rebuilt within a decade, he found. New homes also filled in large tracts of undeveloped land in formerly burned areas.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/are-blackouts-here-to-stay-a-look-into-the-future/
Climate Considerations for Processing Tomatoes
(AgNet West) Nov. 15
Research models show that increases in overall temperatures in California will have a direct effect on how some crops are going to be produced in the future. In one study looking at processing tomato production in the Central Valley, researchers found that changing temperatures will likely have a noticeable impact on the timing of the growing season.
“We looked at the data all the way starting from 1950, into the future by 2030-2040 and see how the time of maturity is changing,” said Tapan Pathak, UC Specialist in Climate Adaptation in Agriculture. “What we saw is, in general the time from emergence to maturity, the timeframe for processing tomatoes in that region, is going to shrink down almost by two to three weeks.”
http://agnetwest.com/climate-considerations-processing-tomatoes
What's Growing On: American rose trials test sustainability
(Stockton Record) Marcy Sousa, Nov. 15
Did you know San Joaquin County Master Gardeners have been part of a National Rose Trial since 2018? The trial is part of the American Rose Trials for Sustainability (A.R.T.S.) program that has trial sites across the United States. It was initiated in 2012 by individuals representing multiple rose stakeholder groups, including: industry, the scientific community and public gardens. There are only two Mediterranean climate trial locations and both are in California. The trials at the Fullerton Arboretum started in 2019 and the UC Cooperative Extension office in San Joaquin County began in 2018.
…Our Environmental Horticulture Advisor, Karrie Reid, has been managing and overseeing the trial since 2018. Our roses were planted in unused turf areas that were converted to the trial grounds. One of the selling features of converting the turf sections was the calculated water savings: 3,656 square feet of turf used 103,000 gallons of water, while 60 roses in the same area on drip use 6,175 gallons, a 94 percent savings. Trial sites are covered with a 3-inch layer of wood mulch.
Report: California ag is a major economic driver for the state
(Agri-Pulse West) Brad Hooker, Nov. 13
A new report by the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (ANR) adds new dimensions to the “massive economic juggernaut” of the California agricultural industry. The findings reveal that agriculture contributed more than $263 billion to the economy in 2018 through direct sales and employed more than 1.2 million people, while benefiting urban and rural regions alike.
The report examines the entire “working landscape,” which also includes fishing, forestry, mining, outdoor recreation and renewable energy, in addition to agricultural distribution, production, processing and support. Together, the sectors represent $333 billion in sales, 1.5 million jobs and 6.4% of the total California economy, outranking the healthcare, real estate, construction and retail sectors. Agriculture accounted for 85% of the working landscape businesses and 79% of the sales income. According to ANR Vice President Glenda Humiston, the working landscape likely surpasses the finance sector as well.
UCCE Addressing Watergrass Issues in California Rice Fields
(AgNet West) Brian German, Nov. 13
Researchers from UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) are looking closely at the watergrass issues in California rice fields to get a better understanding of the problem. Watergrass has historically been a fairly common weed species that growers face, however in recent years the issue has been compounded by a number of factors. Several watergrass species have demonstrated resistance to the materials available and it appears that one or two new species may have emerged.
“In the past few years watergrass is becoming more and more of a problem, whether it's the ones that we know that we have or these possible new species,” said Whitney Brim-DeForest, UC Rice Farm Advisor serving Sutter, Yuba, Placer, and Sacramento Counties. “It's just becoming more difficult to control with the herbicides that we have.”
http://agnetwest.com/ucce-watergrass-issues-california-rice-fields/
Experts Warn Of Surge In Sudden Oak Death Infections In North Bay
(KPIX) Wilson Walker, Nov. 12
“And then, of course, these limbs that have just fallen off,” said Kerry Wininger of UC Cooperative Extension as he stood beneath a dying tree in Sonoma County's Fairfield Osborn Preserve. “And big patches will come out at once.”
Wininger is with the UC team working to measure the problem, and the numbers are up dramatically. She oversees a yearly survey conducted by volunteer citizen scientists.
…“For Sonoma County in general, Sudden Oak Death numbers look about double where they were last year,” said Wininger. “So it's actually increasing at a rate a little bit faster than we would expect.”
Shelter exercise at the fairgrounds
(Appeal Democrat) Ruby Larson, Nov. 12
Some Glenn County agencies came together at the Glenn County Fairgrounds to participate in a shelter management training exercise last week.
…Travis said agencies that participated included Health and Human Services, sheriff's office, animal control, UC Cooperative Extension and North Valley Animal Disaster Group.
California's Wildfire Policy Totally Backfired. Native Communities Know How to Fix It.
(Mother Jones) Delilah Friedler, Nov. 11
…“We aren't anywhere near bringing fire back at the scale we need to,” says Lenya Quinn-Davidson, a fire advisor with the University of California Cooperative Extension who helped lead that burn. “It's important to push forward with a grassroots model that empowers people to do the work, instead of having bottlenecks with the agency that's in charge.”
The Humboldt County Prescribed Burn Association, which Quinn-Davidson leads, was the first organization of its kind in the West when it started in 2018, and has already inspired similar groups to start up in northern California's Plumas, Nevada, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties. These groups bring landowners and neighbors together to provide the manpower that controlled burns require. Quinn-Davidson says she's hosted 25 lecture and field-based workshops in the past year to increase people's comfort with prescribed fire, and in the past two years, she's led 20 burns on private lands.
Zediker honored as CattleWoman of the year
(Siskiyou Daily News) Nov. 10
Siskiyou County native Jacki Zediker was honored on Saturday, Oct. 26 as the 2019 Siskiyou County CattleWoman of the Year during the annual Cattlemen and CattleWomen's dinner in Yreka.
… Zediker has been the 4-H Youth Development Program Representative with the UC Cooperative Extension in Siskiyou County for more than 20 years, and has served as the regional coordinator for the North State counties in recent years, the CattleWomen said.
- https://www.siskiyoudaily.com/news/20191110/zediker-honored-as-cattlewoman-of-year
- https://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/news/20191110/zediker-honored-as-cattlewoman-of-year
Insect entrepreneurs use almond hulls as feed source for bugs
(Daily Democrat) Ching Lee, Nov. 8
…Maurice Pitesky, a UC Cooperative Extension veterinarian and specialist in poultry health and food-safety epidemiology, conducted an experiment two years ago on pastured layers, feeding up to 20% of the birds' diet with soldier fly larvae “with no change in welfare, egg quality, mortality.” The larvae feed provides methionine, an essential amino acid for poultry, and has “significant potential” to increase poultry production while freeing “more corn and soy calories for humans,” he said, though he warned of two caveats: economics and consistency of manufacturing the feed.
http://www.dailydemocrat.com/insect-entrepreneurs-use-almond-hulls-as-feed-source-for-bugs
Paradise rebuilds, but fire safety sometimes takes a back seat to economic realities
(LA Times) Laura Newberry, Nov. 8
…“Having this zone right next to a building is pretty important,” said Steve Quarles, a senior scientist with the Institute for Business & Home Safety who studied homes in Paradise after the fire. “No matter what the homeowner does in terms of vegetation management on the property, embers can blow over and ignite that woodpile next to the house.”
For the Record (LA Times) Nov. 12
Camp fire: In the Nov. 8 Section A, an article looking at the changes in Paradise, Calif., since the Camp fire a year earlier misidentified Steve Quarles as a senior scientist with the Institute for Business & Home Safety. Quarles has retired from that post and now serves as a UC Cooperative Extension advisor emeritus.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-11-08/rebuilding-paradise-one-year-after-camp-fire
Sudden oak death rebounds in Sonoma County, spreads in California
(Press Democrat) Guy Kovner, Nov. 8
… Matteo Garbelotto, director of the forest pathology and mycology laboratory at UC Berkeley, said discovery of the two infected tanoaks in Del Norte County was a signature finding of this year's sudden oak death survey, known as the SOD Blitz, organized by his lab since 2008.
“It's a good thing that we detected it because the sooner we know, the more options available to minimize the impact of the disease,” he said.
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/10262894-181/sudden-oak-death-rebounds-in
The 2050 challenge
(Iowa Farm Bureau) Teresa Bjork, Nov. 8
…Dr. Frank Mitloehner, an air quality extension specialist at the University of California-Davis, said American consumers don't realize that modern agriculture practices have helped increase our food supply while decreasing potential greenhouse gas emissions.
“It's time for us to explain what we do in agriculture in a way that the public understands,” Mitloehner said.
https://www.iowafarmbureau.com/Article/The-2050-challenge
Sudden oak death spreading fast, California's coastal forests facing devastation
(San Francisco Chronicle) Peter Fimrite, Nov. 7
…The rate of trees infected almost doubled in 2019 — from 3.5% to 5.9% — and was 10 times higher in some places compared with the 2018 survey, said Matteo Garbelotto, the director of the UC Berkeley Forest Pathology and Mycology Laboratory, which tested leaf samples taken by 422 volunteers.
...“There was a significant increase in infection rates over last year, but that's not totally surprising because we had a lot more rainfall,” Garbelotto said. “But it was a surprise to see them all at once. It's telling us we are entering a different phase of the disease, where the organism isn't really establishing itself in new areas, but is showing itself more when weather conditions are favorable.”
We mapped every wine country fire. They're larger and more destructive than ever
(Los Angeles Times) Priya Krishnakumar, Nov. 7
…Why is this happening? Scientists point to rising temperatures and the effects of Santa Ana and Diablo winds on increasingly dry terrain.
“In a way, climate change is priming the landscape to ignitions,” said Max Moritz, a wildfire specialist at UC Santa Barbara.
…Experts say many of the losses are due to increased development, as more and more homes have been built in areas prone to fire.
“The homes are the fuels,” Moritz said. “We see these burned neighborhoods where there are still shrubs and trees, and it's clear the homes propogated the fire.”
https://www.latimes.com/projects/wine-country-fires-california-sonoma-napa/
Water users making case in bankruptcy court; Cal Fire says dry canal poses fire hazards
(Chico News & Review) Ashiah Scharaga, Nov. 7
…Gosselin said the county is scheduling another meeting with water users for January. While “we cannot get in the middle and restore water to the Middle Miocene,” he said, it is exploring a project with Del Oro to extend water service on Pentz Road, which would help some of the folks who have been served by the canal. The UC Cooperative Extension is also close to completing an economic study related to the loss of the Miocene on water users, and Gosselin intends to seek grants and other funding for water supply reliability projects.
https://www.newsreview.com/chico/missing-in-action/content?oid=29213484
Farm City Newsday Thursday, 11-07-19
(AgNet West) Danielle Leal
Get the latest agriculture news in today's Farm City Newsday, hosted by Danielle Leal. Today's show is filled with stories covering the current disconnect in state and federal hemp regulations, California's working landscape sector providing significant economic value and details on the Almond Board of California's conference silent auction that benefits FFA students and how you can help. Tune in to the show for these news stories, recipes, features and more.
http://agnetwest.com/farm-city-newsday-thursday-11-07-19/
California working landscapes generate $333 billion in sales and 1.5 million jobs
(News release) Pam Kan-Rice
- https://plantingseedsblog.cdfa.ca.gov/wordpress/?p=19581
- https://yubanet.com/california/californias-working-landscape-generates-333-billion-in-sales-1-5-million-jobs
- https://cvbtcom.ipower.com/californias-working-landscape-generates-333-billion-in-sales/
- https://fruitgrowersnews.com/news/study-californias-working-landscape-supports-more-than-1-5-million-jobs/
Power shutoffs leave some farmers feeling ‘helpless'
(Ag Alert) Ching Lee, Nov. 6
… "If they've lost cooler capacity or the ability to wash product, not only are they taking a hit on the expense side, but they have less to sell," Placer County sheep rancher Dan Macon said. "That's kind of a double whammy for a number of folks."
… Wineries also are running into this problem, said Anita Oberholster, an enology specialist for University of California Cooperative Extension. Those operating on generators are running low on fuel and can't get it to their wineries, which need power not only to process fruit but to control temperature during the fermentation process. Because yeast can generate a significant amount of heat during fermentation, an inability to control temperature could affect the quality of the wine, she said.
… "People are making the investments they need to make, but it's stuff that's outside the normal course of business, and I think there'll be some financial impacts from that in terms of this season's profitability," he said.
As a UCCE livestock and natural resources advisor, Macon said the outage has prompted him to start sending a survey to farmers in an effort "to catalog resources that are out there and available for sharing in situations like this," whether it's generators, water-hauling capacity or, in the case of fire, the ability to load livestock quickly and safely.
http://www.agalert.com/story/?id=13411
Spring rains likely caused waterlogging of walnut trees
(Farm Press) Logan Hawkes, Nov. 6
…Luke Milliron, UCCE Farm Advisor in Butte, Glenn, and Tehama Counties and Janine Hasey, UCCE Farm Advisor Emeritus, also addressed the topic in a recent blog post.
“Plant roots need to breathe,” they wrote. “This process of respiration is critical to energy production in roots. Saturated surface soil moisture levels restrict root access to atmospheric oxygen, limiting the energy production of respiration and eventually resulting in root asphyxiation (death).”
https://www.farmprogress.com/tree-nuts/spring-rains-likely-caused-waterlogging-walnut-trees
California agriculture in 2050 – where we are headed and why
(CDFA blog) Nov. 5
At its monthly meeting today, the California State Board of Food and Agriculture heard a cautiously optimistic appraisal of agriculture's future through 2050 from economist Dr. Daniel Sumner, director of the Agricultural Issues Center at UC Davis. Dr. Sumner believes that net farm income will continue to grow, even though it may experience ups and downs, and that growth specifics will hinge on the management of five key cost factors:
https://plantingseedsblog.cdfa.ca.gov/wordpress/?p=19531
Beckstoffer Vineyards, in Partnership with University of California, Davis and Duarte Nursery, Launches Groundbreaking Clonal and Rootstock Trial Addressing Climate Change and Improved Grape Quality in Cabernet Sauvignon
(Wine Industry Advisor) Nov. 5
Andy Beckstoffer, perhaps the most recognized California grower of wine grapes, announced that Beckstoffer Vineyards, in partnership with University of California, Davis and Duarte Nursery, has launched a groundbreaking trial addressing climate change and improved grape quality for Cabernet Sauvignon at Beckstoffer's Amber Knolls Vineyard in the Red Hills of Lake County. University of California, Davis called the trial “the mother of Cabernet research trials.”
Study: California's working landscape supports more than 1.5 million jobs
(Fruit Grower News) Nov. 5
California's working landscape and the industries associated with agriculture and natural resources contribute significantly to the state's economy, according to a new study by the California Community Colleges Centers of Excellence for Labor Market Research, California Economic Summit and the University of California's Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
UC scientists seek innovative uses of ag waste
(Farm Press) Chris Brunner, Nov. 5
…Historically these waste materials have been used as a rich source of compost. However, scientists at UC Cooperative Extension are researching innovative uses for this material.
Dr. Pramod Pandey, a faculty member and Cooperative Extension specialist at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, focuses on better ways to manage waste material for both large and small farms. Dr. Pandey researches how to convert the organic matter in manure and other waste materials into a renewable energy source that can be used to power our state.
https://www.farmprogress.com/dairy/uc-scientists-seek-innovative-uses-ag-waste
Shifting Winds in Fire Management
(Noozhawk) Harrison Tasoff, Nov. 4
…“We are mixing up the problem of forest and fuel management with the problem of wildland-urban interface fires,” said Max Moritz, an adjunct professor at UC Santa Barbara's Bren School of Environmental Management and a statewide Cooperative Extension wildfire specialist.
https://www.noozhawk.com/article/shifting_winds_in_fire_management
Early UC hemp research already yielding results
(Farm Press) Jeannette Warnert, Nov. 4
For the first time ever, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) researchers harvested an industrial hemp crop at one of its nine research and extension centers this fall.
“It's an interesting crop,” said UC Cooperative Extension specialist Bob Hutmacher. “There is a tremendous amount of research that can be done to understand its growth and best cultural practices, optimal planting dates either by seed or transplants, irrigation and fertilization management, and, particularly, to address pest and disease management.”
https://www.farmprogress.com/hemp/early-uc-hemp-research-already-yielding-results
Day of the Dead – More Than a Colorful Sugar Skull, UC ANR Says
(Sierra Sun Times) Ricardo A. Vela, Nov. 2
- Many of us in the US have seen or heard something about the Mexican celebration El Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead), whether it's a reference in a horror movie or a community fair where children get their faces painted as colorful skulls. For many, that is the extent of their knowledge of this millenary, radiant and vibrant Mexican celebration.
Early UC Hemp Research Already Yielding Results
(CalAg Today), Nov. 2
For the first time ever, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) researchers harvested an industrial hemp crop at one of its nine research and extension centers this fall.
"It's an interesting crop," said UC Cooperative Extension specialist Bob Hutmacher. "We don't have a lot of experience in UC ANR with hemp at this time. There is a tremendous amount of research that can be done to understand its growth and best cultural practices, optimal planting dates either by seed or transplants, irrigation and fertilization management, and, particularly, to address pest and disease management."
https://californiaagtoday.com/early-uc-hemp-research-already-yielding-results/
In Woodlake, One Motivated Couple And A Mile-Long Garden Inspire Children And Flowers To Flourish
(KVPR) Alice Daniel, Nov. 1
…And that's the point, right there. It's why two life-long Woodlake residents, Olga and Manuel Jimenez started the garden 16 years. Ago. It's named for the lake next to it. Taking care of the garden builds character, Manuel says. And strong work skills, and relationships.
… It sits between a lake and a road on land the city bought with a rails to trails grant, so it's far longer than it is wide. Manuel's retired now but he designed it when he was still a UC small farm advisor.
California Fire Danger Continues to Worsen, Experts Say
(Wall St J) Jim Carlton, Nov. 1
…“There's no simple problem and no one simple answer,” said Max Moritz, statewide fire specialist based at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/california-fire-danger-continues-to-worsen-experts-say-11572623148
On the Hunt: Study Seeks Answers on Wildlife Exposure to Lethal Rat Poison
(CSU Fullerton) Nov. 1
…Under the mentorship of Paul Stapp, professor of biological science, and in collaboration with scientist Niamh Quinn, a human-wildlife interactions advisor with the University of California Cooperative Extension in Irvine, Burke is studying how native wildlife is exposed to rodenticides. Burke has been working on the research over the past two years for his thesis project.
…For his project, Burke set up bait stations — tamper-proof black boxes — at 90 sites in Orange County — in the backyards of homeowners who participate in the Master Gardeners of Orange County program, and grow large amounts of fruits and vegetables, which attract animals, including rats.
http://news.fullerton.edu/2019fa/rat-poison-research.aspx
As fires rage, pressure mounts to train California's next generation of forest stewards
(Edsource) Sydney Johnson, Nov. 1
… Blake Schmidt, a math teacher at Ross Middle School in Marin County, decided to take his students to Forestry Challenge after participating in a free [UC ANR] statewide program for California teachers called the Forestry Institute for Teachers.
Study finds schools across the nation have too much lead in drinking water
Despite increasing awareness of the issue of lead in drinking water, UC Nutrition Policy Institute and Harvard School of Public Health researchers found that many students in the U.S. attend public schools in states where not all taps are tested for lead, according to reports in various media outlets including The Guardian, NBC News and The Nation.
“All kids, no matter where they live, should have access to safe drinking water in school,” said Angie Cradock of Harvard's Prevention Research Center on Nutrition and Physical Activity, who led the study team. “Drinking water is important for helping kids grow up healthy, and water should be safe to drink.”
The researchers found that there is no uniformity in states' approaches to create and oversee programs to test for elevated lead in school drinking water. When collected, data are not regularly made available to guide action to reduce potential exposure to lead. About half of the country's students are at public schools in states that don't have programs or requirements to test drinking water in those schools.
Of the 24 states (plus Washington, D.C.) with a statewide program to test school drinking water for lead, only 12 states had data that could be analyzed by the research team. In these 12 states, 44 percent of all schools had at least one tap that tested higher than their state's threshold for action, and 12 percent of all samples had a lead concentration higher than the state's action level. The report also describes the features of statewide initiatives in operation between Jan. 1, 2016, and Feb. 28, 2018, in 24 states and the District of Columbia to conduct testing for lead in school drinking water.
The report was funded by Healthy Eating Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
For more information, see the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health website.
Two new ways to get involved in the Global Food Initiative
In July 2014, UC President Janet Napolitano launched the UC Global Food Initiative (GFI) and ANR continues to play a major role in the GFI. Two new examples are a special issue of California Agriculture that is in the planning stages and a food-research video competition for UC students that the Nutrition Policy Institute is co-sponsoring. A call has gone out UC systemwide to participate in these projects.
Special issue of California Agriculture
ANR's peer-reviewed research journal California Agriculture is planning a special Global Food Initiative issue for summer 2017. Developed in partnership with GFI leaders at ANR, UCOP, the 10 UC campuses and the UC-affiliated national laboratories, the issue will mark the third anniversary of the initiative's launch.
The issue will feature a collection of original research papers in the GFI subject areas: nutrition, food security, food sourcing, food equity, food literacy, food recovery, food waste, local food systems, sustainable agricultural production, sustainable fishery practices, sustainable urban agriculture and climate smart agriculture. A call for papers is going out to researchers throughout the UC System.
ANR researchers working in these areas are encouraged to submit papers. Please see the call for manuscripts for full details. Abstracts are due for initial review by Oct. 1, 2016, with complete manuscripts to be submitted by Nov. 18.
If you have questions, contact Jim Downing, executive editor, at jdowning@ucanr.edu and (530) 750-1352.
Food research video contest
The World Food Day Video Challenge, co-sponsored by ANR's Nutrition Policy Institute, the UC Davis World Food Center and the GFI, is open to UC students. Students from all the UC campuses are invited to submit videos up to three minutes long that feature UC research. It could be about their own research or your research.
The winning team will receive $1,000 and an opportunity for team members (up to 3) to attend the Borlaug Dialogue International Symposium in October.
One objective of the contest is to raise awareness of the depth and breadth of food-related research and outreach being performed across the UC system.
Please encourage GFI fellows and UC students at your locations to participate by submitting a video by Sept. 7, 2016.
Details about the challenge are at foodvideos.ucdavis.edu. If you have questions, read the FAQs or contact WFC's Amy Beaudrealt at abeaudreault@ucdavis.edu or NPI's Ron Strochlic at rstrochlic@ucanr.edu.
