Sustainable agricultural resources: The role of land-grant universities

Excerpt

PEOPLE are increasingly aware of the need to change the nation's land ethic. They see soil erosion, hear about water pollution, and read about displacement of farm families and the loss of wetlands and biological diversity. They sense that all is not well in agriculture and that farm income transfers and even land-idling programs for conservation are not the ultimate solution.

But where will the leadership come from to help agriculture and, indeed, all of society preserve natural resources without threatening national or global food security and farm income?

Public universities, especially land-grant institutions and the Extension Service, must take the lead. Forward-thinking programs that combine land stewardship with socially viable and profitable farming systems must become fundamental in their work. They must address far more than crop yields and maximum profits. Their adult education programs must present unbiased information that can be used in resource-conserving farming systems. They must listen to all segments of the agricultural enterprise and be sensitive to and meet in all possible ways the needs of small farmers who …