Spring is in the air and my reprieve from allergies is over. There is no question my immune system has acclimated to California and is not pleased with the blowing pollen. This became readily apparent to me when I pulled into the Lodi area last Friday. The Global Food Initiative Fellows were on a tour of agriculture. Bent Holtz, Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, Paul Verdegaal, Brenna Aegerter and Karrie Reid were with the group for the day so the Fellows were in very good hands! It sounds like the group was highly engaged with their tour stops (a winery, cherry processing at Morada Produce, Staten Island, and an almond orchard plus a couple of presentations about UCCE programs back at the San Joaquin County office). I was unable to attend the tour stops but my sense was that the cherry pack line was a favorite. I have added Staten Island to my bucket list of places to see next winter, in addition to a more formal visit to the San Joaquin UCCE office in the near future. I did get a chance to speak briefly to The Nature Conservancy partner who spoke to the group about the relationship between agriculture, resource management and the environment as it relates to the work on Staten Island. The most important thing to come of the day was a better appreciation by 18 undergraduate and graduate students from across UC of what it means to farm in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and the importance of that region to food security. The day was an outstanding display of the many partnerships across UC and the role UC ANR plays in successful agricultural production in the Delta.
I was particularly excited to see everything going on in San Joaquin County now that I am very close to becoming a resident of the county! But, yes, I still have Michigan plates. In my defense, it is a process and I really don't care to take time away from work to wait in line. I have passed the Smog check (a bit of a surprise). Now I need to pass the written driver's ‘knowledge test'. Rather than study for it, I have opted to complain about it so we will see if that turns out to be the best strategy.
Today I headed off to Program Council, held down at the Hansen REC. Google Maps sent me to the Sacramento airport a different route from my usual. It reminded me how uncomfortable change can be. But I made it in plenty of time for the flight and saw some new things along the way. We started Program Council with field tours hosted by the local advisors (thanks to Ben, Sabrina, Andre, Jose and Jim!) that included an insectary, an avocado pack house and the Hendrick Reserve – all very nice but the pack line was my personal favorite because of the tech toys. Topics for the meeting tomorrow include the next steps for the competitive grants process. The list of letters of intent recommended for submission as full proposals was released. We will also talk about core issues for reporting our work. We will also provide the Program Council with updates on the Opportunity Grant program. By mid-afternoon everyone will head back home. Thanks to everyone in Ventura County for the tours and conversations! It was a nice change in pace from 2 days in a meeting room.
