Stay Connected!
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Save the dates: August 13-15, 2010--WLI Alumni Annual Meeting in Orlando. Stay tuned for more info
WLI Class VIII nominations begin Summer, 2010
Help Evaluate WLI!
Dr. Carter asks all alumni to help her evaluate the program and make the necessary changes to keep it relevant and ensure that it is meeting the needs of Florida’s agriculture and natural resource industries and participants. To do so, Wedgworth Leadership Institute is going to embark on an ambitious evaluation process that will hopefully encourage and assure participation of alumni from all corners of the state. Dr. Hannah Carter is working with researchers from UF to implement this process and she is excited at the prospect of utilizing technology in the evaluation. WLI alumni will have the option of being involved in the WLI Program Evaluation three ways: in person at several locations around the state, on-line through the use of a chat discussion board, and on-line through the use of web cams so it will be a “virtual” focus group. You will only participate in one of these options—not all three! Before she can begin the evaluation process, she need your help in identifying your interest in participating and your ability to so via the on-line options.
Dr. Carter has created a very short survey (it should take you less than five minutes) to determine your interest in participating and your ability to do so. Please complete this survey by Friday, February 26th. The survey can be found at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DL7YSL5
The program is dependent on you as it continues to evolve. This is your chance to directly impact future classes of the program—we need your help!
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Carter.
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Florida’s Water-quality
Standards Under Fire
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What is MarketMaker you ask? This is a national marketing effort which was developed at the University of Illinois and is being implemented in many states around the country. It’s an interactive mapping system that locates businesses and markets of agricultural products in a state, providing an important link between producers and consumers. Not only does it link buyers and sellers, it also has searchable databases for market research by users. Florida joins fourteen other states in launching this online marketing effort. Most of the dollars to purchase this program came from IFAS/Extension with additional support from the UF’s Office of Sustainability. If you’d like to see how MM works, go to http://national.marketmaker.uiuc.edu/.
In order to make MM a huge success in Florida, it is necessary to get as many of the state’s food producing farmers to register their operations. To begin the familiarization process in Florida, a MM Advisory Committee will be formed with interested extension agents/ faculty, intermediaries and industry folks. One of the responsibilities of the Advisory Committee will be to schedule training for UF/IFAS faculty some time later this spring. We would like to invite all interested UF/IFAS faculty and staff to get involved in this exciting marketing activity. It should be possible for all folks interested in learning how to use MM to attend this training that will be forthcoming in the spring.
More complete details will be forthcoming as we move forward. Stay tuned!
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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made a decision to intervene in the state of Florida to set numeric nutrient criteria for identifying impaired waterways within the state, stating in a January 15 press release,
“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing water quality standards to protect people’s health, aquatic life and the long term recreational uses of Florida’s waters, which are a critical part of the state’s economy.”
The EPA release continues, “Nutrient pollution can damage drinking water sources; increase exposure to harmful algal blooms, which are made of toxic microbes that can cause damage to the nervous system or even death; and form byproducts in drinking water from disinfection chemicals, some of which have been linked with serious human illnesses like bladder cancer.”
Read the full press release here.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has failed to establish numerical standards for nutrient pollutants in Florida's lakes, canals, rivers, estuaries and springs, which has caused the EPA to make this decision. FDEP determines the health of Florida’s waters by examining the health of biological systems associated with its water bodies, not by setting nutrient levels. About a third of Florida’s water bodies would not pass the federal standards today.
Don’t Tax Florida, a “broad coalition of concerned Floridians who oppose the unfair, unscientific, one-size-fits-all numerical nutrient criteria soon to be proposed by the EPA for Florida water” calls the regulation, “a de facto tax on all Floridians.”
The Florida agricultural industry, working with DEP and the Water Management Districts, has implemented clean water standards through Best Management Practices, but these standards may not address the specific nutrient reductions required by the federal Clean Water Act. One example of a successful Florida agricultural BMP program can be found here.
For an informative article on the subject, click here.
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Congrats to Eric Hopkins!
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IFAS Senior Vice President Opening & Search
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 Class V alum Eric Hopkins received Farm Credit’s Phelps-Martin award for his exceptional personal contribution in service to his community . Hopkins, a board director with Farm Credit of South Florida, is the vice president and business manager of Hundley Farms, a commercial agricultural operation based in Belle Glade, which produces sugar cane, sweet corn, radishes, green beans, rice and sod.
Hopkins serves on the Farm Credit of South Florida board of directors and as the Youth Program Chairman for “Leadership Palm Beach County” since 2001. The youth program engages a select group of high school juniors in the county, and puts them through a seven-month civic-engagement and leadership development experience.
In support of Mr. Hopkins’ nomination, the executive director of Leadership Palm Beach County wrote: “I have had the opportunity to interact and work with thousands of volunteer community leaders. Eric stands out among the top one-half of one percent I know. With his combination of knowledge and personality, Eric is just the kind of person you hope steps up to lead in your community.”
The annual awards are named in honor of Steve Phelps, general counsel for The Farm Credit Council, and Marsha Martin, chairman of the FCA Board, both of whom died from cancer in 2000 and were both noted for their commitment to community service. Along with recognition at The Farm Credit Council’s Annual Meeting and a distinctive trophy, those honored with the Phelps-Martin Award also receive a check for $1,000 for the charity of their choice. Congrats Eric!
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Four candidates for this position have been selected and have been interviewed in early February.
We're pleased that Class II’s John Hoblick is on the search committee and as such, involved in the selection and interviewing process.
Dr. Hannah Carter had the opportunity to meet each candidate and was present for their on-campus presentations, so be assured, if they did not know it already, they now understand the importance of the Wedgworth Leadership Program to IFAS and Florida’s agriculture and natural resource industries.
Video presentations of all the candidates are available here. You will find the links to the candidates presentations under the “Special IFAS Faculty Assembly Meetings, SVP Candidate Address”.
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The mission of the Wedgworth Leadership Institute Alumni Association:
To build and maintain a broad-based network of leaders committed to promoting Florida agriculture and natural resources and expanding the Wedgworth Leadership Institute for Agriculture and Natural Resources.
The vision of the Wedgworth Leadership Institute Alumni Association:
To be the premier networking association for agriculture and natural resource leaders in Florida.
For more information, please visit the main website of the Wedgworth Leadership Institute
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