Last week sped by in the blink of an eye. Monday Greg Ira and I attended the 7th Annual Summit for California Climate Action Network (CalCan). ANR was well represented with Betsy Karle, Dan Macon, Toby O'Geen, Devii Rao, Leslie Roche, Lillian Thaoxaochay and Daniele Zaccaria. Additionally, our Climate Smart Educators participated in the sessions. One session discussed the importance of trees to convert carbon dioxide to biomass. Keep in mind, one of the big drivers in the State's Climate Action Plan is urban trees. This dovetails with research done by Janet Hartin on urban trees evaluating varieties and their survivability under different conditions.
Tuesday was a super exciting day for the Master Gardener Program. After much work with Integrated Pest Management Program (IPM) and Informatics and GIS (IGIS) they launched the Spotted Lantern Fly eLearning course on eXtension. More than 5,500 email invitations were sent to volunteers. A phenomenal 65% open occurred. Within minutes 87 volunteers enrolled and began the 45-minute course with certificates and badges being awarded by the minute. This is an outstanding example of a multi-state project (PA was prominent), multi-campus project (within UC), state-agency collaboration (CDFA) and program cooperation/integration with MG, IPM, and IGIS. Lauren Snowden spearheaded the project. Way to go! You too can get in on the excitement by going to the website for the eLearning course . Here's the project weblink should you want additional information. Invasive Spotted Lanternfly (ucanr.edu)
Thursday's townhall featured Shannon Klisch. Shannon shared impactful work where Market Match is used at farmers' markets to augment CalFresh dollars. They saw a 171% increase in CF dollars redeemed at markets. Convening all associated with farmers' markets made a huge impact to reduce barriers associated with the program. Providing greater access to fresh fruits and vegetables is laudable.
Welcome Rachel Lee to UC ANR! Rachel is our new Director of Publication. Rachel has worked with UC for more than 20 years. If you're in the building on Tuesday-Thursday, don't hesitate to pop by her office and introduce yourself.
The week ahead will have many people spending time with family and friends. The Thanksgiving story many of us were taught as children is far from the truth. For a more realistic recounting of history read the blog post by Jennifer Sowerwine.
Be safe as you travel near and far for the holiday. Enjoy family, fellowship, food and festivities. Bon Appetit.