Evaluation of a collaborative approach to mediate conflict between parties with interests in wildlife and livestock in Colorado

The Habitat Partnership Program (HPP) is a collaborative initiative of the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Colorado Cattleman\u27s Association. The program consists of 15 committees, distributed over western Colorado, representing the interests of public resource managers, livestock growers and hunters. Through partnerships and projects, each committee strives to reduce fence damage and forage loss from big game activity. Information gathered from interviews, documents, projects and observation was used to assess the effectiveness of HPP in meeting its stated goals: resolve conflicts, improve ecosystem health, raise local knowledge about resource management and improve communication and understanding. Over seven years (1991--1998), committees completed habitat improvement projects on 77,856 hectares of public and private land, established 124 water developments and assisted with noxious weed control on 5,904 hectares. In addition, 193 kilometers of new \u27wildlife friendly\u27 fence and 60 big game crossings were built. For educational purposes, committees sponsored 31 workshops in holistic resource management and developed 37 brochures on natural resource issues. Ninety-four percent of committee members thought the program improved communication between landowners, sportspersons and government agencies. As measured by independent indicators and the degree of satisfaction of program participants, HPP can be considered an improvement over previous directive programs. However, the continuous influx of people and the loss of habitat in Colorado---over 110,000 hectares per year---may render moot the issues addressed by collaborative wildlife and natural resource management programs

Seed Quality Assurance in Maize Breeding Programs: Tests to Explain Variations in Maize Inbreds and Populations

Maize (Zea mays L.) breeders are interested in evaluating the seed quality of their inbred lines, as seed quality has a strong relationship to field emergence. There is little information, however, on the influence of the seed quality of the inbred on field emergence of the hybrid. The objectives of this research were to (i) determine whether seed quality tests and a seed quality index of the inbred parents and F2 seed are correlated with field emergence of F1hybrids, and (ii) determine how many tests are necessary to calculate this index. Standard germination (SG), saturated cold (SC), and soak (Soak) tests, and the inbred quality index (IQI) were calculated on inbred parents and their corresponding F2 progeny, and field emergence was measured on associated F1 hybrids produced in Clinton, IL in 2002 and 2003. The tests and index of the parental inbreds and F2 progeny correlated poorly with early field emergence of the F1 hybrids. All tests were required to calculate the seed quality index. By averaging several seed quality tests into a single index, the poor seed quality performance of inbreds and F2 populations in some tests can be masked by other tests. The seed quality index might be useful when ranking inbreds based on seed quality but not as a selection tool

Evaluation of a collaborative approach to mediate conflict between parties with interests in wildlife and livestock in Colorado

The Habitat Partnership Program (HPP) is a collaborative initiative of the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Colorado Cattleman's Association. The program consists of 15 committees, distributed over western Colorado, representing the interests of public resource managers, livestock growers and hunters. Through partnerships and projects, each committee strives to reduce fence damage and forage loss from big game activity. Information gathered from interviews, documents, projects and observation was used to assess the effectiveness of HPP in meeting its stated goals: resolve conflicts, improve ecosystem health, raise local knowledge about resource management and improve communication and understanding. Over seven years (1991--1998), committees completed habitat improvement projects on 77,856 hectares of public and private land, established 124 water developments and assisted with noxious weed control on 5,904 hectares. In addition, 193 kilometers of new 'wildlife friendly' fence and 60 big game crossings were built. For educational purposes, committees sponsored 31 workshops in holistic resource management and developed 37 brochures on natural resource issues. Ninety-four percent of committee members thought the program improved communication between landowners, sportspersons and government agencies. As measured by independent indicators and the degree of satisfaction of program participants, HPP can be considered an improvement over previous directive programs. However, the continuous influx of people and the loss of habitat in Colorado---over 110,000 hectares per year---may render moot the issues addressed by collaborative wildlife and natural resource management programs.</p

Agroecosystems Analysis from the Grass Roots: A Multidimensional Experiential Learning Course

An intensive, experiential travel course in Agroecosystems Analysis was conducted in Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska during summers of 1998 and 1999. The intended student audience was advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students. Pretravel readings and a week-long series of farm visits, which consisted of in-depth interviews with the farmers and their families, prepared student teams to analyze and evaluate the production, economic, environmental, and social sustainability of 10 farms. Students shared their analyses both orally and in written reports. Based on a multifaceted student evaluation process, we found that participants were highly motivated, strongly engaged with the course content and learning activities, and committed to learn from the interviews and group learning processes. They reported that this multidimensional learning experience was more valuable than other traditional courses at their home campuses. Faculty learned how to: (i) allow students the opportunity to assist in developing the learning environment and community; (ii) design an optimum travel schedule to permit adequate time for individual reflection and group process; (iii) deal with challenges in the small group setting; and (iv) design a useful multi-phased learning evaluation process. Based on this experience, faculty in Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska are highly motivated to continue this course and expand the opportunities for experiential learning

Seed Quality Assurance in Maize Breeding Programs: Tests to Explain Variations in Maize Inbreds and Populations

Maize (Zea mays L.) breeders are interested in evaluating the seed quality of their inbred lines, as seed quality has a strong relationship to field emergence. There is little information, however, on the influence of the seed quality of the inbred on field emergence of the hybrid. The objectives of this research were to (i) determine whether seed quality tests and a seed quality index of the inbred parents and F2 seed are correlated with field emergence of F1hybrids, and (ii) determine how many tests are necessary to calculate this index. Standard germination (SG), saturated cold (SC), and soak (Soak) tests, and the inbred quality index (IQI) were calculated on inbred parents and their corresponding F2 progeny, and field emergence was measured on associated F1 hybrids produced in Clinton, IL in 2002 and 2003. The tests and index of the parental inbreds and F2 progeny correlated poorly with early field emergence of the F1 hybrids. All tests were required to calculate the seed quality index. By averaging several seed quality tests into a single index, the poor seed quality performance of inbreds and F2 populations in some tests can be masked by other tests. The seed quality index might be useful when ranking inbreds based on seed quality but not as a selection tool.This article is published as Goggi, A. Susana, Petrutza Caragea, Linda Pollak, Gina McAndrews, Mindy DeVries, and Kevin Montgomery. "Seed quality assurance in maize breeding programs: Tests to explain variations in maize inbreds and populations." Agronomy journal 100, no. 2 (2008): 337-343. doi: 10.2134/agronj2007.0151.</p