The University of California has a long-standing President’s Advisory Commission (PAC) on Agriculture and Natural Resources to provide guidance to the UC President, as well as the Vice President of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Division (UC ANR). Through the years various stakeholders, including RCRC, have been invited to serve on the Commission. RCRC is currently represented on the Commission by Mary-Ann Warmerdam, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs.  

During the most recent monthly PAC meeting on Emerging Issues, UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Advisors Sarah Light and Laura Snell presented on the interagency collaboration efforts of the  California Conservation Planning Partnership involving recent soil health and water management projects. The session recording is available here, and the presentation is available as a PDF here. 

Key takeaways from the conversation 

  • These collaboration efforts demonstrate the importance of UCCE in rural counties, as they provide connections with resources and organizations, provide the necessary facilitation skills, as well as scientific expertise. 

  • Relationship building is essential to the success of these efforts. It was noted that as we think about rural challenges, the practice of making friends is important; this is true not only within the local rural community, but also in suburban and urban areas to increase their understanding of agriculture.  

  • Being a trusted partner allows UCCE to be a bridge and is critical to get anything done. UCCE’s collaboration with many different groups builds trust into the network, which is vital for agriculture and the state of California.  

RCRC thanks UCANR for providing the briefing. The entire PAC Emerging Issues series is accessible on YouTube here. For more information, contact RCRC Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, Mary-Ann Warmerdam.