CALS Online and Dean’s Message
Jan. 13, 2025
Dean’s Message
Hello CALS – Happy Monday… I have a few thoughts on the intense and destructive wildfires in the Los Angeles area, and wildland fire in general… There are a host of reasons why we have wildfires, how they differ year-to-year, and how they are managed. There are no simple explanations or solutions. It is very much a moving target, and an alignment of conditions (think of the LA fires as a “perfect storm” of conditions)…
Top Stories
Owusu to Lead CALS Global Engagement Programs
Francis Owusu, former department chair and now professor of community and regional planning at Iowa State’s College of Design, will move across campus to Curtiss Hall as the next CALS associate dean for global engagement and director of the Center for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods, effective March 17. Owusu is a trained geographer with many years of academic work in sustainable development, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, the Midwest and elsewhere. His research, teaching and outreach have focused on globalization and development policy, institutional capacity building, agriculture and natural resources management, and urban and economic development issues. He has engaged in several development projects alongside nongovernmental organizations, policymakers and international development agencies.
Research
Faculty and Staff Support Leadership for Sustainability
Iowa State faculty and staff have a strong commitment to on-campus sustainability efforts, according to a survey conducted by J. Arbuckle and graduate students Kristine Micheletti and Sydney Etten, sociology and criminal justice. The findings highlight concern for environmental stewardship among faculty and staff and indicate their support for the university taking a more prominent role in sustainability leadership.
Extension and Outreach
Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll 2024 Summary Report Released
The 2024 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll Summary Report has been released and focuses largely on the well-being of Iowa farmers over time. Specifically, it tracks quality of life, stress, farm financial health, and satisfaction with life and work over the annual survey’s four decades of data collection.
Extension Releases Updated Decision Maker Reports
ISU Extension and Outreach has released updated Data for Decision Makers reports for the state, counties and cities. Based on data from the American Community Survey for 2019 to 2023, the reports offer detailed insights into household and family income, educational attainment, housing values, rental costs, occupation, employment and poverty measures.
Around the College
Iowa State Center Sowing the Seeds of Change
This year marks 135 years of seed testing at Iowa State. Over the past century, the Seed Science Center has evolved into one of the most comprehensive seed labs in the world, testing more than 350 seed types for more than 600 pathogens. In a Jan. 7 article for Seed World, Cynthia Hicks, Seed Science Center, talks about the Center’s work to provide better access to quality seed.
Public Meetings this Week for Monarch Listing Decision
On Dec. 10, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that they are proposing to list the monarch butterfly as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium has information on its website on how to be involved in this decision, including two virtual public meetings with the USFWS this week – Tuesday, Jan. 14, from 5-7:30 p.m., and Wednesday, Jan. 15, from 7-9:30 p.m.
Calendar
Jan. 15: CALS Staff Ice Cream Social
The CALS Staff Council is holding an ice cream social on Wednesday, Jan. 15, from 2:30-3:30 p.m. in the Iowa Farm Bureau Pavilion in Kildee Hall. Ice cream is provided by the ISU Dairy Science Club.
Jan. 22: Women Impacting ISU Calendar Reception
The 2025 Women Impacting ISU calendar will be unveiled during a reception on Jan. 22 from 3:30-5 p.m. in the Memorial Union Sun Room. The program will begin at 4 p.m. and will be livestreamed. Faculty, staff and students selected from CALS are: Amani Elobeid, economics; Rachel Burlingame, sociology and criminal justice; Albulena Basha, doctoral student in agricultural economics; and Ashlyn Rairdin, doctoral student in plant breeding.
Feb. 5: Shivvers Lecture
The Shivvers Memorial Lecture is Feb. 5 at 7:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Sun Room. Jonathan Lundgren, executive director of Ecdysis Foundation and CEO of Blue Dasher Farm, Estilline, South Dakota, will present. The lecture is hosted by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture and the Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture. The event is free and open to the public.
Communications Kiosk
Use Data as a Plural in the Sciences
Some traditional plurals, such as data, have gradually acquired a mass noun sense and are increasingly coupled with a singular verb. Originally data was a plural of datum. In formal writing, and always in the sciences, use data as a plural. “But make your play and be consistent – vacillating will not win the admiration of readers and listeners.” (The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, pgs. 229 and 324)
Infograzing
Registration Open for February Civics Conference
Registration has opened for Civics Across the Curriculum and Co-Curriculum, a professional development conference for faculty, staff and administrators on Feb. 19, noon to 4:30 p.m. at the Memorial Union. Registration, which will remain open through Feb. 3, is free and includes lunch.
Parks Library Turns 100
In celebration of 100 years of discovery, exploration and collaboration, Parks Library will host several events throughout the year. Parks Library 100th Birthday Bash featuring daily birthday treats is the first week of spring semester, Jan. 21-24, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., while supplies last.
Art Walk Highlights Topel, Cheng Art Collection
An art walk highlighting the art collection of former Dean David Topel, Jay-lin Jane Topel, Tung-Hsiang Cheng and Chih-Fei Cheng is Jan. 29 from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the second floor periodical room of Parks Library. The collection is intended to further the appreciation and understanding of Chinese culture by exhibiting the beauty of traditional Chinese arts.
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
Julie Stewart, Editor
jstewart@iastate.edu, (515) 294-5616
https://www.cals.iastate.edu/cals-online
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is published by email every Monday. The deadline for submitting content is 12 p.m. on Thursday.