Grazing Documentary being
developed
A documentary that provides an overview of livestock
production on grazing lands worldwide is being developed through
efforts by Cody Sheehy and Melvin George at the University of
California-Davis. Titled “Out of the Past: A Journey Through the
Landscapes of Livestock Production,” the creative documentary
covers the ecology and cultural aspects of pastoralism, family
ranching and industrial livestock production and culminates in a
discussion of sustainable land use and the role of family
ranches in the future.
George hopes that ultimately the
documentary will be available via the internet, DVD, and blueray.
It is hoped that the movie may be used in public information and
education programs about ranching – and possibly even aired on
PBS.
To view the initial cut of the
film find a link at
http://www.autonomyproductions.com/Out_of_thepast/index.htm
Presently the film is at a
standstill until funding is secured to narrate the documentary
and record it in final form – a cost of approximately
$20,000-$30,000. Without funding, the film will not be
completed.
For more information or to offer
funding suggestions, contact Melvin George, Rangeland Management
Specialist, UC Cooperative Extension, at 530-752-1720 or
mrgeorge@ucdavis.edu.
Aerial Maps Free Online
Ever wish you had a good aerial photo of your property? The Web
can help. Free maps of satellite imagery can be downloaded from
the Web and utilized for land management purposes. The sites
included:
www.earth.google.com,
www.esri.com
and Web Soil Survey at
http://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/. The databases on
these sites allow you to search by section designations to
create customizable maps and soils information.
Plan Now for 4NCGL
It may be 11 months away, but it is not too soon to begin making
plans for the Fourth National Conference on Grazing Lands to be
held Dec. 13-16, 2009 at John Ascuaga’s Nugget Hotel & Casino
near Reno.
The conference objective is “To
Heighten Awareness of the Economic and Environmental Benefits of
Grazing Lands,” and its theme is “Grazing Lands – A Winning
Hand.”
How can you participate? You can simply attend and listen to the
many speakers during the three days of the event, or consider
making a presentation about your own grazing experiences. A call
for papers for the event is underway, and farmers and ranchers
are especially encouraged to make presentations.
The conference is designed to
provide a forum for discussions and exchange of information,
technology transfer, identification of research and program
needs, marketing of products, services, and other benefits of
grazing. It will be organized into four “tracks,” 1) western
grazing lands, 2) central grazing lands, 3) eastern grazing
lands, and 4) dairy grazing land management. The conference
sponsors are accepting abstracts for oral and poster papers in
the following categories within each track:
- Issues concerning the
agricultural – urban interface.
- Successful “cutting edge”
management technologies for grazing practices.
- Economic/marketing
implications of grazing.
- Public Policy implications
of grazing.
- The optimizing of grazing
land health for environmental and social benefits.
Abstract submissions should
indicate both the track and category where the abstract best
fits. To submit your abstract, prepare a 400 word, or less,
description of your presentation, and indicate oral or poster.
To submit an abstract to be considered visit http://www.glci.org
for details. The deadline is May 1, 2009.
The conference is being hosted by
the Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative (GLCI), the Society
for Range Management (SRM), and a number of other sponsoring
organizations. The target audience includes producers,
academics, consumers, government agency officials,
conservationists, environmentalists, urban based resource
interests, grazing land managers, landowners, and others
interested in effective natural resources management. |
