Sept. 9, 2022
New webinar series to focus on Arkansas conservation partnerships
By Tracy Courage
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Fast Facts:
- Arkansas Conservation Partnership webinar series highlights resources available to Arkansas growers, producers
- First webinar set for Sept. 15 from 9-10 a.m. p.m. via Zoom
- No cost to attend
LITTLE ROCK — Conservation is vital to agriculture, and many resources and programs exist to support farmers’ pursuit of those practices. The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture will host a webinar series sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service to share information about ways to incorporate conservation practices through existing resources.
The first webinar in the Arkansas Conservation Partnerships virtual educational series will be 9-10 a.m. Sept. 15 via Zoom. Registration is required.
Lee Riley, a program associate in the Division of Agriculture’s Crop, Soil and Environmental Science department, will host the series with guest speaker Mike Sullivan, Arkansas NRCS state conservationist. Sullivan will discuss the service’s history and some of its partnerships and programs. A live question-and-answer segment will follow. A recording will be available later for those unable to attend.
Sullivan has worked as state conservationist for the NRCS in Arkansas since 2009, helping agricultural producers address priority natural resource concerns. He also served as the Mississippi River Basin coordinator from 2004-2009, developing the Mississippi River Healthy Watersheds Initiative, an $80 million-per-year initiative to improve water quality, enhance wildlife habitat and maintain agricultural productivity in selected watersheds in the Mississippi River Basin.
The Conservation Partnership series is sponsored by USDA NRCS and hosted by the Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service.
“Our goal with this series is to integrate the efforts of the Arkansas Discovery Farm, Arkansas Natural Resources Conservation Service personnel, conservation districts and the Arkansas Soil Health Alliance with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to develop and deliver virtual and educational experiences to a statewide network of participants to provide time and cost savings that are reduced by the ability to participate virtually,” said Julie Robinson, associate professor in the division’s Community, Professional and Economic Development. “Anyone working in the agriculture industry with an interest in conservation will learn about different programs and practices, and how existing programs can be used to implement conservation practices in Arkansas.”
The webinar series is the result of a needs assessment that NRCS conducted in 2019. Results indicated a training need from landowners, federal and state partners, and farmers about the various NRCS programs available. Respondents also indicated that they would prefer to learn via webinar. The Conservation Partnership webinar series was developed to fill the training gap and deliver much needed information in a format participants prefer.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uark.edu. Follow on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs to all eligible persons without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.
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Media Contact:
Tracy Courage
Director of Communications-Extension
U of A System Division of Agriculture
501-671-2126