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Other Partners
- Agricultural Research
Service - As the in-house research arm of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, the Agricultural Research Service has a mission to
conduct research to develop and transfer solutions to agricultural
problems of high national priority and provide information access and
dissemination to ensure high-quality, safe food, and other
agricultural products, assess the nutritional needs of Americans,
sustain a competitive agricultural economy, enhance the natural
resource base and the environment, and provide economic opportunities
for rural citizens, communities, and society as a whole.
- American Farmland
Trust, Farmland Information Library - In 1993, USDA's Soil
Conservation Service (now NRCS) designated American Farmland Trust as
a FIC (Farmland Information Center) under the Farmland Protection
Policy Act.
- The American Indian/Alaskan Native
Association for NRCS is an
organization that advocates for:
- Service to reservations, Indian Lands, and the meeting of trust
responsibilities by serving as liaison between American Indian and
Alaskan Native communities and our NRCS colleagues and organization in
shaping the future of natural resource management
- A culturally diverse workforce by promoting the recruitment,
retention, and professional development of American Indian and Alaskan
Native employees and identifying and resolving barriers to employment
of American Indian and Alaskan Natives. Membership in the organization
is open to all interested parties.
- The American Institute
of Hydrology is the only national and international professional
organization that certifies Professional Hydrologist and Professional
Hydrogeologists. AIH was formed in 1981 to provide certification,
training and education for hydrologists.
- Asian Pacific Islander Organization, APIO, is a forum for employees to exchange
ideas, network, mentor, train, and add value to the agency by being a
linguistic, cultural, and ethnic bridge to our communities and other
employee organizations.
- Associated General
Contractors of America (AGC) is a national trade association of
construction contractors. The AGC has over 34,000 members nationwide,
and is recognized as a primary spokesperson for the construction
industry. AGC members are active in constructing the various watershed
and water control projects that the NRCS funds and/or controls.
Members represent prime contractors, specialty contractors,
subcontractors, and all other aspects of the industry. AGC members
actively participate with the NRCS through their national committee
through periodic meetings and frequent communications between
headquarters personnel.
- Association for Persons with Disabilities in Agriculture (APDA) is a chartered
employee organization formed in 1990 to meet the needs of USDA
employees with disabilities. APDA is for everyone who wants to broaden
their horizons, break down attitudinal barriers, and build
relationships based on positive experiences.
- Conservation Technology
Information Center (CTIC) - This site features two interrelated major
components: the Farm Resources Management section includes
conservation tillage survey figures, numerous types of agricultural
BMPs, etc.; the Know Your Watershed section features the National
Watershed Network, the National Watershed Library, State Contacts, and
more.
- Cooperative State
Research, Education, and Extension Service - In cooperation with
our partners and customers, CSREES provides the focus to advance a
global system of research, extension and higher education in the food
and agricultural sciences and related environmental and human sciences
to benefit people, communities, and the Nation. The CSREES mission
emphasizes partnerships with the public and private sectors to
maximize the effectiveness of limited resources. CSREES programs
increase and provide access to scientific knowledge; strengthen the
capabilities of land-grant and other institutions in research,
extension and higher education; increase access to and use of improved
communication and network systems; and promote informed decisionmaking
by producers, families, communities, and other customers.
- Department of Forestry,
Virginia Tech - The Department of Forestry is one of three
departments in the College of Forestry and Wildlife Resources at
Virginia Tech. The department enrolls approximately 270 undergraduate
students and 50 graduate students. Undergraduate degree options are
maintained on forest resource management, industrial forestry
operations, environmental resource management, and outdoor recreation.
At the graduate level, the department offers programs of study leading
to M.F., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees.
- Farm*A*Syst/Home*A*Syst
- A NRCS sponsored program aimed at preventing pollution on farms,
ranches, and in the home.
- The Farm Service
Agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture ensures the
well-being of American agriculture, the environment and the American
public through efficient and equitable administration of farm
commodity programs; farm ownership, operating and emergency loans;
conservation and environmental programs; emergency and disaster
assistance; domestic and international food assistance and
international export credit programs.
- USDA Forest Service
- The phrase, Caring for the Land and Serving People, captures
the Forest Service mission. As set forth in law, the mission is to
achieve quality land management under the sustainable multiple-use
management concept to meet the diverse needs of the people.
- Land Improvement Contractors of America (LICA) - LICA is an
organization composed primarily of small contractors whose activities
relate to the conservation, use, and improvement of land and water
resources ranging from terrace and pond building to septic tank
installation to logging operations.
- National Arbor Day Foundation
is a non-profit education organization with programs to help people
plant and care for trees to conserve soil, energy, water, wildlife,
and the atmosphere.
- National Association of State
Departments of Agriculture - NASDA is a nonprofit association of
public officials representing the Commissioners, Secretaries, and
Directors of Agriculture in the fifty states and four territories.
NASDA supports the use of Resource Management Plans (RMP). The RMP
provides farmers and ranchers with a voluntary opportunity to enhance their
resource protection and meet the requirements of the laws and regulations in a
manner tailored to their operation.
- National Audubon Society - The National Audubon Society's mission is to conserve and restore natural ecosystems,
focusing on birds, other wildlife and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s
biological diversity. Each year, Audubon and Cornell Lab of Ornithology
conduct the Great Backyard Bird Count during mid-February. Another activity
called Audubon At Home is a way to improve backyard habitat by taking
personal conservation action to improve the environmental health and habitat
quality of our yards and neighborhoods.
- National
Organization of Professional Black NRCS Employees - The
Organization is to enhance the awareness of and improve the level of
education and professional development in training Blacks within NRCS
to increase the participation of Blacks in agriculture, natural
resources, and related fields. Membership is open to all employees.
- National
Organization of Professional Hispanic NRCS Employees - The
Organization assists NRCS in the delivery of program benefits and
services to the Hispanic rural/urban community by strengthing NRCS
efforts in the recruitment, retention, development and advancement of
Hispanics.
- Service Center
Initiative Team - Multi-agency USDA Service Center team.
- Society for
Range Management - A professional scientific society and conservation
organization concerned with studying, conserving, managing and sustaining the
varied resources of rangelands, which comprise nearly half the land in the
world.
- Rural
Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) - The mission of RBS is
"to enhance the quality of life for all rural Americans by
providing leadership in building competitive businesses and
sustainable cooperatives that can prosper in the global
marketplace." RBS accomplishes this mission by investing its
financial resources and technical assistance in businesses and
communities, and by building partnerships that leverage public and
private, cooperative resources to create jobs and stimulate rural
economic activity.
- USDA's Rural
Development is committed to helping improve the economy and
quality of life in all of rural America. Through our programs, we
touch rural America in many ways. Our financial programs support such
essential public facilities and services as water and sewer systems,
housing, health clinics, emergency service facilities and electric and
telephone service. We promote economic development by supporting loans
to businesses through banks and community-managed lending pools. We
offer technical assistance and information to help agricultural and
other cooperatives get started and improve the effectiveness of their
member services. And we provide technical assistance to help
communities undertake community empowerment programs.
- Southern
Appalachian Man and the Biosphere Cooperative - SAMAB is a consortium of
Federal and State Agencies established by an inter-agency agreement to
promote the enhancement of environmental health, economic use, and
cultural values across the Southern Appalachians.
- Sustainable Agriculture
Network - SAN is the communications and outreach arm of the
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. SARE is
a U.S. Department of Agriculture-funded initiative that sponsors
competitive grants for sustainable agriculture research and education
in a regional process nationwide.
- Soil and Water Conservation
Society - SWCS is a professional organization dedicated to soil and water
conservation.
- The Society of American Foresters
mission is to advance the science, education, technology and practice
of forestry; and to use the knowledge, skills and conservation ethic
of the profession to ensure the continued health of forests and the
availability of forest resources to benefit society. Our members
include public and private practitioners, researchers, administrators,
educators, forest technicians and students. We are looking forward to
our 100th anniversary celebration in 2000!
- The Texas State
Soil and Water Conservation Board administers Texas' soil and
water conservation law and coordinates Texas' soil and water
conservation program with the state's soil and water conservation
districts. Its mission is to promote the wise and productive use of
the state's soil and water resources."
- USDA National Agroforestry Center
(NAC) had its origins in the 1990 Farm Bill. It began as a Forest
Service effort in 1992 and expanded into a partnership with the
Natural Resources Conservation Service in 1995. NAC conducts research
on how to design and install forested buffers to protect water quality
and develops and delivers technology on a broad suite of agroforestry
practices to natural resource professionals who directly assist
landowners and communities.
- Urban Greening has a
primary focus on the living part of the urban environment, -- gardens, parks, urban forests, and urban waters (watersheds, rivers,
creeks, lakes, ponds, wetlands, deltas, beaches, harbors, ports, and
bays). It includes EcoIQ Magazine on Urban Greening, more than 100
Link Center and Directory pages linking to online urban greening
resources, a calendar, anthologies, related educational and media
resources, and more.
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Department of the Interior - Working with others, to conserve,
protect, and enhance fish and wildlife and their habitats for the
continuing benefit of the American people. Major responsibilities:
migratory birds, endangered species, freshwater and anadromous fish,
the National Wildlife Refuge System, wetlands, protecting habitat,
conserving coastal areas, environmental contaminants.
- Wildlife Habitat Council
works to increase the amount of quality wildlife habitat on corporate,
private, and public lands. WHC, along with NRCS and the National Association of
Conservation Districts, helped develop the Backyard Conservation Campaign and
continues to promote backyard conservation practices and activities,
incorporating them into nonagricultural and corporately owned lands.
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