People

We build meaningful citizen involvement into our programs with the help of a Citizens Advisory Council. The council gives us input on our long-range and strategic plans for research on sustainable farming and rural community vitality. A Faculty Associates group helps us develop relationships with faculty members representing a broad range of academic disciplines. CIAS staff members work with these partners to create flexible, multidisciplinary research and education/training projects.

Deirdre Birmingham will chair CIAS Council

At its June meeting, CIAS welcomed Deirdre Birmingham as the new Chair of its Citizens Advisory Council. Deirdre is starting an organic apple orchard in Iowa County. She is beginning with specialized British apples for high-quality, traditional (hard) ciders. She initiated and runs the Upper Midwest Organic Tree Fruit Growers Network, and she helps nonprofits and farmers apply for various grant programs. She is on the boards of directors of the REAP Food Group and the Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), serving as its vice-president.

CIAS extends its heartfelt thanks to its outgoing council Chair Karen Breneman. Karen and her husband, Bob, operate a 90 cow, grass-based dairy in Columbia County. They used a conventional, free-stall dairy for twenty years, and made the switch to grass in 1993. They are members of Columbia County Graziers and their farm is part of the Discovery Farms program.

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CIAS in the community

How do we get more local produce in the marketplace?

How do we get more local produce in the marketplace?

On December 8th, CIAS co-hosted a meeting for 50 public and private sector leaders to discuss the opportunities and challenges of fresh produce aggregation and distribution in Wisconsin. This meeting was supported in part by the Baldwin Wisconsin Idea Endowment, a UW-Madison based fund designed to foster public engagement and advance the Wisconsin Idea. The December 8th meeting exemplified the Wisconsin Idea, bringing together university and other public sector advocates and private sector food industry business leaders. The agenda for this meeting was designed to identify and begin addressing the key barriers to greater local food sale in Wisconsin and the upper Midwest. Notes from this meeting will be available shortly. For more information, contact Anne Pfeiffer, 608-890-1905.

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