A biomass harvest field day was held Oct. 29, 2001, near Harlan. Biomass
harvesting is one method of adding value to agricultural products being
studied and implemented in ISU Extension's Southwest Area.
Extension areas specialize
To save money and reduce administration, Iowa State University
Extension reorganized from seven to five administrative areas during 2001.
Each area is developing a specialty that fits its geographic location
and local needs.
The Southeast
Area is the largest geographically and has 31 percent of the state’s
population. The area has some of Iowa’s largest communities while
also having very rural counties. Agriculture is varied, and industry ranges
from established providers of aviation electronics and integrated telecommunications
services to new “on the farm” industries. It also is an area
where Extension is helping to close the “digital divide.”
“We are working with farmers and rural service providers to establish
high speed Internet communication,” said Lois Hunt, area extension
education director for Southeast Iowa. “We are exploring with them
the possibilities, then providing education.”
Extension and local entities joined forces to provide dairy- and industry-related
services in the Northeast
Area.
The Dairy Center in Calmar, which includes an operational dairy enterprise,
is concentrating on programs that capitalize on the region’s strengths
— its people, livestock industry, supporting infrastructure, environment
and communities, said Paul Brown, Northeast Area director.
The ISU Industry Outreach
Center in Cedar Falls (part of the Center
for Industrial Research and Service, CIRAS) has provided services
to more than 1,500 people representing more than 100 area companies, according
to manager Mike Willett.
The Northwest Area
has a greater concentration of livestock than any other area and an increasingly
diverse human population. Here leadership and environmental issues top
Extension’s priority list.
“Many Extension staff are preparing youth and adults for leadership
roles in the changing complexities of rural life, helping them recognize
community assets and discover ways to build on those assets,” said
Peggy Haafke, Northwest Area director.
At an area-wide “town meeting,” citizens helped identify key
environmental concerns. For example, ISU Extension will cover issues such
as manure management, phosphorus education, water quality and environmental
stewardship both on farms and in towns.
Residents of the Southwest
Area benefit from Extension’s partnership with the Wallace Foundation,
said Bob Ramsey, Southwest Area director. One goal of that partnership
is to provide rural development through value-added agriculture businesses.
ISU Extension has connected the 29 producer/owners of BioMass Agri Products
(B/MAP) LLC with researchers on campus, with corporations sharing their
vision and with federal grant dollars bringing them closer to attaining
their goals.
Extension’s Central
Area has the second largest population, the smallest number of counties
and is tied to all the other areas by major highways. Iowa
State University Learning Connection, in the Partnership Building
in downtown Des Moines, is the area’s headquarters.
Extension is partnering with WOI Radio Group and eight ISU colleges at this facility, said Sherry Glenn, Central Area director. “We are connecting people who come to downtown Des Moines on a daily basis with new learning opportunities. Our goal is to help people become self-directed learners.”
Contact Laura Sternweis, editor, lsternwe@iastate.edu.
Visit the ISU Extension homepage.
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Last update: January 2002