Transcript Agriculture in the 21st Century

NAAE Presentation
Las Vegas
3 December 2010
Agriculture in the 21st
Century
Presented by:
Dr. Rick Parker
AgrowKnowledge Director
Where is Rupert, ID?
National Science Foundation Grant
Started July 1, 2001
One of 39 ATE Centers established by the
NSF
Only Agriculture Center
Housed at Kirkwood Community College,
Cedar Rapids, IA
Established with Partner Colleges
Partners with PAS – now 85 partners
Purpose/ Vision
"Grow educational and business partnerships that
strengthen math, science and technology skills of
students to prepare them for the new and emerging
jobs, technologies and issues in agriculture, food
and natural resources programs."
Belief
AFNR technology education collaborative effort
between business, industry and education.
Business and industry hire graduates and
understands current workforce needs and future
business trends.
Educational partners work together to ensure
students are prepared for the world of work with the
relevant knowledge and skills.
Teaching Philosophy
I hear; I forget; I
see; I remember; I
do; I understand."
Grad School when I really learned
See: Father Guido Sarducci's Five Minute University
About You
From?
Ag background
Raise livestock
Raise a garden
Raise chickens
Harvest livestock
Harvest and store fruits and vegetables
Could define sustainable and organic
Overview
By 2050, 70% of the 9.1 billion people in the
world will live in cities. What will the sustainable
food system look like that produces the massive
quantities of food needed? What type of training
and education will be needed to work in the food
system? Agricultural educators need to prepare
their students for this future. This workshop will
touch on the current opportunities and
challenges for agriculture and agricultural
education and what students will need in the
future.
Outline
Perspective/Point-of-View
Bit of History
Challenges/Opportunities
Sustainable
The Future
What Students Need
What to teach
Summary
Objectives
Create a vision
See the future with challenges and
opportunities
See where you fit and where your
students fit
Plan for the future
Teach for the future
Perspective
Snapshot taken 26 July 2010 at 15:30 MDT
If the world were 100 people
Life Expectancy
Medieval Britain
30
Early Modern Britain
40+
Early 20th Century
30-45
Current World Average
67
Perception; Perspective and
Point-of-View
Perception becomes reality
Some issues are just bigger
than we imagined or
understood!
Some things are not
what they seem to be or
claim to be!
At times we need to be thankful of
where we are! It could be worse.
You can see what you
want to see.
You can see what you want to see.
Urbanization
Worldwide people are moving out of the country and
into the cities. A continuous, massive amount of food
is required to by the population. As people in the
country move to cities worldwide, the number of cities
with a population of 10 million will increase to 26.
Several of these cities are in North America. Every city
this size requires 6000 tons of food shipped in each
day or about 2.2 million tons per year. Many cities are
millions of people, but less than 10 million. These cities
also require the shipping of thousands of tons of food
each day.
The Food System
Complex system, made up of scientific,
economic, social, and political
dimensions
Cooperation between many people and
organizations to produce, process,
transport, and distribute food
Easily disrupted by acts of humans and
once disrupted leads to food insecurity
and total lack of food
Some History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
More History
Environmentally-friendly home
Free-range chickens
Free-range chickents and “organic” eggs
More History
More History
Local foods now
How many calories to plow one acre?
History Timeline
Your Turn
What will be the course titles in 2050?
What will be the course content?
Where will your students come from?
What content/courses will be
meaningless in 2050?
Hours to produce 100 bu wheat
Year
Hours
Acres
1830
275.00
5
1890
45.00
5
1930
17.50
5
1965
5.00
3
1975
3.75
3
1987
3.00
3
2010
2.00
3
It takes a modern
combine about 9
seconds to harvest
enough wheat to
make 70 loaves of
bread.
Foods of the US
Foods of the US
Size of the food system
Tony's Pizza Service in Salina, Kansas is
a part of the food system. Tony's makes
pizzas. Just for Tony's Pizza Service
EACH WEEK this requires the following
from agriculture:
* 127 tons of spices
* Enough pepperoni to stretch 128 miles
* Tomato paste from 54 acres of tomatoes
* Four produced from 1,157 acres of wheat
* Beef from 182 steers
* Pork from 2,498 hogs
* Cheese from 1,453,540 gallons of milk (equal
to the yearly production for 37,180 cows)
Current Situation Opportunities and
Challenges
Corporate or Family Farming
Industrial Agriculture
Factory Farms
Global Warming/Climate Change
GMO
Urban Agriculture
Permaculture
Community Supported Agriculture
Environmentalism
Slow-foods, Fast Food Nation, Food Inc. and
Others
Issues and Development
Urban
Local
Industrial/Scientific/Factory Farming
Developing Countries
Sustainable
Attitudes Towards Agriculture
“High production agriculture that depends on genetic
engineering and poisons to control pests in mono cropping
is a house of cards is just waiting to collapse.
In terms of agriculture, awards for legitimate environmental
respect should go to the many farmers who creatively have
developed systems to produce food in consort with nature
rather than trying to dominate it for profit or, in the case of
all too many family-scale conventional farming neighbors,
for survival.”
Urban Food Movement
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_agriculture
http://www.urbanfarmhub.org/2010/04/role-ofdesign-urban-food-movement/
Permaculture
An approach to designing human settlements
and agricultural systems that mimic the relationships found in
natural ecologies.
Permaculture is sustainable land use design. This is based on
ecological and biological principles, often using patterns that
occur in nature to maximize effect and minimize work.
Permaculture aims to create stable, productive systems that
provide for human needs, harmoniously integrating the land with
its inhabitants. The ecological processes of plants, animals, their
nutrient cycles, climatic factors and weather cycles are all part of
the picture. Inhabitants’ needs are provided for using proven
technologies for food, energy, shelter and infrastructure. Elements
in a system are viewed in relationship to other elements, where the
outputs of one element become the inputs of another.
Permaculture Chicken
Local Food Movement
Local food movement is a collaborative
effort to build more locally based, selfreliant food economies. This sustainable
food production, processing, distribution,
and consumption are integrated to
enhance the economic, environmental,
and social health of a particular place
Local Foods
http://greeneconomypost.com/the-foodrevolution-rethinking-fast-food-11062.htm
Community Supported
Agriculture
Industrial/Scientific/Factory Farming
Developing Countries
Basic Research to Enable Agricultural
Development (BREAD) -- A program
jointly supported by NSF and the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF)
http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2009/nsf09566/ns
f09566.htm
Slow Foods Movement
Some More Perspective
One US farmer feeds 155 people
Sustainable Agriculture
Sustainable Agriculture Tool Kit
Sustainable Agriculture
Standards
1. Base direction and change on science
2. Honor market principles
3. Increase profitability and reduces risk
4. Satisfy human need for fiber and safe,
nutritious food
5. Conserve and seek energy resources
6. Create and conserve healthy soil
Developed by Dr. Rick Parker
Sustainable Agriculture
Standards
7. Conserve and protect water resources
8. Recycle or manage waste products
9. Select livestock (animals) and crop
appropriate for environment and available
resources
10. Manage pests with minimal environmental
impact
11. Encourage strong rural communities
12. Promote social and environmental
responsibility
Developed by Dr. Rick Parker
Opportunities and Challenges for
Agriculture and Agricultural
Education
Educating the other 98% about
Agriculture
New Careers in Agriculture: Change in
Perception
New and Better Training and Education
Needed
The "Ag" Experience
For the Future: Agriculture’s
Promise
Support organizations that tell
agriculture's story
Public policy should balance agricultural
production with environmental protection
and energy independence
Assist new farmers as they transition into
production agriculture
Policy should be designed to continue
federal funding for agricultural-based
education programs
For the Future: Agriculture’s
Promise
Produce a Farm Bill that promotes the
marketing of agricultural products
National Young Farmer Education
Association (NYFEA)
http://www.nyfea.org/
http://www.agriculturespromise.com/
What Will Students Need?
Ag101
Old Programs/New Programs
Math, Science and Technology
Certification
Jobs/Careers
Instructional Methods
Media: Textbooks or Not
– Kindle, iPad, Google Docs etc.
Certification
Agricultural Certifications
In most areas of agriculture (AFNR) the methods of demonstrating knowledge
and skills involve work experience, degrees from educational institutions, or
product-based certificates. However some areas of agriculture (AFNR) provide
certifications or accreditations.
AgrowKnowledge is developing some national certifications for introductory
animal science, introductory plant science, biofuels, introductory agricultural
biotechnology, geospatial technician, equine science and aquaculture.
To certify is to attest as meeting a standard, and in the educational arena, a
certificate is a document certifying that one has fulfilled the requirements of a
field. To see a list of some of the current certifications in agriculture check out
the Special Projects - Certification section of our website.
Jobs/Careers
• New jobs, new focus
• AgCareers.com
AgrowKnowledge
Career Clusters
 AgrowKnowledge participated in
a national Career Cluster project,
sponsored by the NASDCTEC.
 The project identified 16
Career Clusters
 Agriculture, Food, and
Natural Resources (AFNR).
The Career Cluster of AFNR

Identifies Seven Pathways
Each pathway provides educators
– The knowledge and skills
– The accompanying measurement criteria,
– Forms the basis for learner success in high
school, college, technical training,
apprenticeship programs, and the
workplace.
AFNR
Career Pathways
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Agribusiness Systems
Animal Systems
Environmental Service Systems
Food Products And Processing Systems
Natural Resources Systems
Plant Systems
Power Structural and Technical Systems
& Agricultural Biotechnology
Emerging Careers
Top 10 Employment Areas in Agriculture
1. Agronomy
2. Crop Protection/Chemicals
3. Biotechnology
4. Equipment/Machinery
5. Grain
6. Seed
7. Dairy
8. Food/Hospitality
9. Beef
10. Feed
Based on US jobs posted between January 1, 2008 – September 15, 2008
Corporate Need for Training
Rapid changes in technology, the exportation of jobs,
downsizing, shortcomings in formal education, global
competition and the aging workforce.
– In the 2009 Skilled Labor Outlook Report 100% of employers stated that
they offer training for their skilled labor employees.
– 21% of employers surveyed listed training with post-secondary
institutions as a means of retaining employees
Employers experience the most difficulty in recruiting skilled
employees at both the hourly and salary level.
– 2007/2008 Agribusiness HR Review
The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that careers for
technically trained agriculturist (science technicians ) is
expected to grow 12 percent during the 2006-16 decade
– Biological careers are expected to grow 14-20% during the same time
More of the Future
Where are the Career
Cluster Jobs/Careers?
A project of
AgrowKnowledge
and AgCareers
Facts/Overview/Trends
700+ – Two-year, colleges offering AFNR – related degrees
(have database)
40% of 2-year college graduates transfer to universities
High schools and two-year colleges must work together (driven
by Perkins funding)
Assessments and certifications critical for secondary and
postsecondary (2-year CTE)
– Assessments driven by education
– Certification driven by industry (not many in ag)
National Standards (math & science)
National AFNR Content Standards (on TeamAgEd website)
Timing never better with attention to agriculture, food and
environment
Career Clusters (+biotech) – Knowledge and Skills for AFNR
Facts/Overview/Trends
Oddly with all the attention to AFNR – agriculture
seems to be loosing its relevance
Ag needs to show science, rigor and relevance
Context of agriculture provides rigor and relevance
High schools have spectrum of quality – some not
preparing for emerging careers in ag; for example vet
tech
AFNR jobs/careers promising for the prepared
Learning is improved in project-based curriculum
IT skills imbedded in curriculum
Summary
9 billion people will need food
Many challenges or opportunities
(Nowhere)
Agriculture engaging context for
teaching most subjects
Never a time when more interest in
agriculture, food and natural resources
Technology changes delivery
Hands-on still best
Act before the money runs out
Are you (will you
be) teaching what
is relevant to the
future?
Contact Information
Rick Parker, PhD
AgrowKnowledge Co-PI & Director
Ph: 208-670-3704
Skype: rickoparker
Fax: 208-436-1384
E-mail: [email protected]
AgrowKnowledge website: www.agrowknow.org
Motto: "I hear; I forget; I see; I remember; I do; I understand."
I text!