TY - JOUR T1 - Embracing short-term practical goals and longer term research advances JF - Journal of Soil and Water Conservation SP - 66A LP - 66A VL - 62 IS - 4 AU - Mark Anderson-Wilk Y1 - 2007/07/01 UR - http://www.jswconline.org/content/62/4/66A.abstract N2 - The Journal of Soil and Water Conservation is broader and more varied than many professional and scientific journals. In addition to its applied research section, the journal includes news, viewpoints, and articles on practice and policy. Readers of the journal often request more practical, applied articles. We hope to satisfy these requests with more case studies and other articles on practice, as well as continue to provide a forum for research to fulfill its promise of delivering the tools needed to advance and sustain soil and water conservation. Applied research provides the testing and validation of conservation technologies and strategies necessary to guide decisions related to policy and practice. In addition, basic research can expand the knowledge base required for future applied research and practical advances. So what is the holy grail of conservation research? What is the role of research in relation to soil and water conservation in the long term? Should there be a role for such basic research in this journal? Currently the journal often focuses on applied research-research that scientifically investigates and addresses real-world problems and issues. The reasons for this focus are well founded. The sponsors of much of the … ER -