Agroecology Degree Programs

Despite its primary focus as an OARDC interdisciplinary research program, AMP continues to work towards assisting academic units with creating curriculum and degree programs in agroecology and sustainable agriculture.

Associate Degree Program, 2 yr – AMP has facilitated the external advisory committee and assisted ATI faculty with exploring a new associate degree program in sustainable and organic agriculture.  A survey is currently being conducted to assess the needs, interests and content areas for the program.

Bachelors Degree Program, 4 yr – Discussions with CFAES academic departments are ongoing for a BS in agroecology/sustainable agriculture, and a student farm as a resource for such a program and hands-on learning opportunity for CFAES and other OSU students.

Graduate Programs – In addition to interdisciplinary special topics courses offered by AMP faculty, an Agroecosystems Science Track has been proposed for the Environmental Science Graduate Program (ESGP).  The guidelines for such tracks within the ESGP program are currently being addressed by the Curriculum and Graduate committees.

Contact Casey Hoy, hoy.1@osu.edu, Wesley Greene (ATI), greene.2@osu.edu, or Richard Moore (ESGP), moore.11@osu.edu, for more information.

Agroecosystem Health Initiative – Assessing Agricultural Resources in Natural and Social Terms

We have often had requests from stakeholders for a methodology to assess Ohio agroecosystems and visualize their current state.  Agroecosystems include both people and the land, and function at watershed, community, and landscape scales.  Sustainable management of land and water resources requires a complex balance between environmental, social and economic objectives. More…

Collaboration among OARDC Interdisciplinary Programs

It is becoming increasingly clear that an overarching question for Ohio is how to have viable, expanding agriculture and rural communities within an increasingly urban and suburban state. The issues of rapid development of agricultural land, the social acceptability of consolidation within the livestock industry, increasing concerns over agriculture’s impact on water and air quality, and decline in the number of young people pursuing careers in agriculture all indicate the challenges to agricultural sustainability. At the same time, Ohio can demonstrate leadership in sustaining agriculture as a foundation of our future through holistic and interdisciplinary approaches to solving problems and creating opportunities. More….

Collaborations with the Innovative Farmers of Ohio and Ohio Ecological Food and Farming Association

The Agroecosystems Management Program has had numerous projects and shared activities with the Innovative Farmers of Ohio (IFO), a non-profit, state-wide organization dedicated to sustainable agriculture and the Ohio Ecological Food and Farming Association (OEFFA), the state’s primary organic farming advocacy and certification group. More….

Farmland Preservation, Land Use and Economic Development Activities in Northeast Ohio

AMP helped established a group of community leaders from the agricultural communities of Wayne, Holmes and Ashland Counties who serve as a sounding board and advisory council for improving agricultural opportunities in the area.  This group has grown to include twelve members and includes those from county government, farm organizations, financial and agricultural businesses as well as farmers.  More….

Interdisciplinary Coursework – Linking Stakeholders and Students

Agriculture Interdisciplinary 694: Our Food and Our Land in the 21st Century, a course offered winter quarter in 2001, brought nine of OSU’s stakeholders into the classroom. After participating in the course students came to understand that making a living on Ohio’s landscapes and acting as a responsible citizen is a highly complex undertaking that requires broad understanding and a great capacity to balance and integrate the interests of many.  Stakeholders appreciated their interactions with students and report gaining new perspectives of their industry and a greater appreciation of the teaching and learning processes of the University.  AMP has since sponsored similar interdisciplinary team and stakeholder case study-based courses including a series on renewable energy (AU05) and Planning and Design of a Sustainable Farm (SP08).

Contact Matt Kleinhenz, kleinhenz.1@osu.edu, or Casey Hoy, hoy.1@osu.edu, for more information

K-12 Curriculum Development and the Jason Project

AMP has participated in several statewide initiatives to include agriculture into general K-12 curricula for Ohio.  Mapping lessons were created to support the JASON Project in 1999.  These lessons are currently available as an Internet mapping program offered statewide so that schools can access the lessons with widely available web browsers. The lessons are currently off-line but we would be happy to entertain requests for the curriculum.

Contact Casey Hoy hoy.1@osu.edu  for more information.

Land Use Changes, Exurban Studies and Food System Assessment

Drs. Jeff Sharp, Elena Erwin and Jill Clark in collaboration with the Swank Chair in Rural Urban Interface, Mark Partridge, lead the Exurban Change Project with the objective of analyzing economic, social, agricultural and land use change throughout Ohio’s townships, regions, and rural areas. The overall goal of the project is to perform applied research on these topics and to disseminate data and research results to local officials, professionals, and interested citizens to support their planning and decision-making.  More….

Ohio to Japan Innovative Marketing of Soybeans

A USDA Innovative Food and Farming Systems grant partially funded several trips to Japan to:

1. Size up the transitional organic soybean market.  “Transitional” refers to the three years of transition necessary for conventional farmers to become certified under organic certification standards, and
2. Target the Japan Consumer Cooperatives as a potential partner based on a new trade and distribution system related to environmental improvement and mutual social concerns of people over food health and safety.

Trips were taken by R. Moore in 2000 before the grant and 2001 by himself and then with several farmers and a representative of an environmental group in 2002, and 2003.   The main meetings were with the Saitama Prefectural Government, Saitama Consumer Cooperative, Tokyo Net—the collective buying consumer cooperative for the greater Tokyo consumer cooperatives, and the Miyagi Consumer Cooperatives.

Partnerships and Projects with Extension’s Sustainable Agricultural Team

The Agroecosystems Management Program maintains close association with the Sustainable Agriculture Team of Ohio State University Extension.  This multidisciplinary Extension group has the charge of promoting sustainable production practices and innovative marketing programs for Ohio.  Collaborative projects include monthly conference calls, fact sheets and bulletins on sustainable agriculture, field days and workshops highlighting farmer and farmer/researcher, a travel/internship program for extension agents, development of new approaches to crop and livestock production, and direct marketing, and numerous professional development activities for extension agents directed at sustainability issues in agriculture.

Contact Mike Hogan, hogan.1@osu.edu, or Alan Sundermeier, sundermeier.5@osu.edu , for more information.

Sugar Creek Watershed Restoration – A Community Based Approach to Ecosystem Management

A stakeholder watershed alliance of farmers, university and agencies was formed in response to the Ohio EPA’s selection of the Sugar Creek as a target for planning and restoration because it was the second most impaired watershed in Ohio.  Farmers, other land owners, municipalities and industry within the watershed, faced with costly corrective measures to meet EPA regulatory water quality standards, proactively took the opportunity to improve their environmental quality and resource base while creating a model system for community wide response to a major environmental issue. More….

Supporting the Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy 

Cuyahoga Valley National Park was founded “for preserving and protecting for public use and enjoyment, the historic, scenic, natural and recreational values of the Cuyahoga River and the adjacent lands of the Cuyahoga Valley.”  The Countryside Initiative will preserve the agricultural heritage of the Valley where historically 80% of the land was once farmed. More….

Sustainable Agriculture to a Wider Audience:  Developing a Model Project with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in Clark County Ohio

This project addressed the long-term outcome of bringing the story of sustainable agriculture to wider audiences of both farm and non-farm backgrounds.  The goal was accomplished through collaboration between agriculture and the arts professionals employing the unique communication capabilities of music combined with photography to promote sustainable agriculture. The effort emphasized the themes of the best in agricultural practices, ecology and esthetics of the land, and farming as a culture and way of life. More….

The Mellinger Farm

In 2002, the Ohio State University Board of Trustees accepted the donation of The Mellinger Farm from Patricia Miller Quinby and the estate of her sister, Virginia Miller Reed.  Three quarters interest in the property now belongs to OARDC; with the remainder to be donated in 2009.  While the property remains in partnership, the Farm will continue to be managed by the private farm management company that has been overseeing the farm for Mrs. Quinby. More….