October 5-7, 2009 | Crowne Plaza, Downtown St. Paul
Thank you to all who attended this year's conference.
See what's happening with the initiatives discussed during the breakout sessions.
On this wrapup page:
You can download conference presentations on the Extension employee site and see more photos from the conference on Flickr.
Printable version [.pdf]
8 a.m.: Welcome and activity
8:30 - 9:30 a.m.: EFANS address, Q+A - Associate Dean Greg Cuomo
9-10:30 a.m.: Breakout sessions: EFANS initiatives
10:30 a.m. - 1 p.m.: Program team meetings
10:30 - 11:30 a.m.: Local educator meeting
12-1 p.m.: Box lunch provided
Leader: Barb Liukkonen
Join us to develop an EFANS climate variability initiative, built on the current work and/or interests of participants. We'll identify common interests and programming opportunities, following a brief summary of the evidence and implications of climate change in Minnesota, Extension's role in other states, and resources in climate mitigation, adaption, and literacy. Help identify a list of next steps, priorities, and potential for addressing climate change through EFANS work.
Leader: Tim Arlt
This session will begin to investigate how best to establish the infrastructure for a vibrant Small Farms initiative to address the growing number of small farms in Minnesota. We'll provide an overview of small farm needs in Minnesota and a synopsis of our work to this point. We need your input on how best to proceed to meet the growing demands of these new farmers. Join us to share your ideas about how we can address the needs of this growing segment of our clientele.
Leaders: Renee Pardello and Faye Sleeper
Take part in defining the future direction of our water related programming. EFANS has the expertise and supported research, the connections, and the ability to organize stakeholders and partners to work together toward successful programs that address the complexities of sustaining Minnesota’s water resources.
We will begin by sharing results of the recent "water-mapping" survey. These results show how content areas and targeted audiences intersect for the 30 Extension educators and faculty who responded. We will discuss programmatic opportunities, new collaborations, and next steps.
Leaders: Katherine Waters and Jeff Reneau
Food systems encompass a wide spectrum of activities as food travels from farm to fork. How does EFANS fit into this system now? How will our work change in 1, 5 and 10 years? This breakout will focus on discussion of what our strengths and weaknesses are in facing the needs of education in food systems and how we can best use our resources to meet future needs.
Leaders: Diomy Zamora, Doug Tiffany, Dean Current, Gary Wyatt
The interest in and use of renewable sources of energy are increasing in response to rising energy costs. There is a great need for improved energy efficiency in homes, farms, and communities, and the demand for innovative and local renewable energy options has never been stronger. There are a number of research and development initiatives at the University of Minnesota and outstate areas of Minnesota aimed at highlighting the opportunities and addressing the challenges of developing energy options that foster environmental improvement and economic development.
In this session, we'll discuss the expanded role University of Minnesota Extension should play in renewable energy education in Minnesota to ensure that research results are shared and distributed as a basis of community and economic development. Further, we will discuss appropriate next steps to coordinate efforts and draw on potential synergies among the many renewable energy players within and outside the University system.
Leader: Dave Moen
Several EFANS programs use volunteers to deliver programming. Each team has created its own program design and management system. EFANS seeks to provide greater consistency in how volunteer-based programs support and manage volunteers. Starting from sound volunteer management practices and University policy, we will discuss how we can create standard practices for all EFANS volunteer-based programs (e.g., background checks, selection, financial management, etc.). We will lay the plans for a follow-up working group to develop recommendations. The outcomes should result in more efficiency and effectiveness and less confusion for volunteers participating in multiple programs.
Leaders: Rebecca Noran and Larry Coyle
Educational delivery is at the core of Extension’s work. Limited resources don’t need to stop innovation; they have been known to fuel it. As EFANS programs explore new, effective methods for delivery we can leverage this learning across the center. This session will identify current core methods of education delivery, potential alignments with Extension/University projects, future directions and areas for growth, and next steps to formalize this effort.