The Agroecosystems Management Program (AMP)

AMP is an interdisciplinary program at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center and the Ohio State University.. The Program’s purpose is to improve the economic, environmental and social viability of Ohio’s agriculture and rural communities through the application of ecological approaches to land use and resource management. The formation of AMP was motivated by two principle reasons: (1) The concern that agriculture, and the communities of which it is a part, face unparalleled economic and social pressures such as low commodity prices, rising land prices, suburban development and decline in environmental quality; and (2) our belief that a meaningful Land Grant University response to these forces be strongly interdisciplinary within the university and participatory with the shareholders of Ohio. Our program has at its centerpiece the concept of agroecosystems, defined as the integration of production, environment, economics and social systems. This concept provides a holistic and useful framework for addressing complex societal issues. We have taken a broad view of this definition to include field, farm, community, watershed and regional scales, and the links from farmer to market to consumer. In the course of developing this Program, a perspective and approach has evolved in response to the voices of shareholders that increasingly want to engage in examples of research, education and outreach that demonstrate the compatibility and synergism between social, economic and environmental objectives.

The Agroecosystems Management Program was awarded the 2003 Howard M. Metzenbaum Ohio Citizen Action Award.

Authors:
Frank Allaire, Department of Animal Sciences, College of Woster, Columbus, OH, 43210-1074
Benjamin Stinner, Department of Entomology, Wooster, OH, 44691-4096
Deborah Stinner, Department of Entomology, Wooster, OH, 44691-4096
Joseph Hartzler, Shareholder and Partner, Hartzler Family Farms and Dairy, Smithville, OH, 44677
Richard Moore, Department of Human Community Resource Development, Wooster, OH 44691-4096
Casey Hoy, Department of Entomology, Wooster, OH, 44691-4096
Jay Dorsey, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service and Department of Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering, Columbus, OH, 43210-1058
Fred Hitzhusen, Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Developmental Economics, 2120 Fyffe Road, Columbus, OH, 43210-1084
Mark Weaver, Department of Political Science, College of Wooster, Wooster, OH, 44691

Abstract:
Model social processes useful in facilitating sustainable development are advanced from our team experiences with a case study. The processes are: learn how to learn as a team and community, use a model process that reveals shared interests and leverageable points, and then facilitate local stakeholders in developmental action. The case provided the team the opportunity to lean to describe and comprehend the case agroecosystem as a whole-natural elements and social relationships. Dialogue among stakeholders created an awareness and clarity of leverageable issues. Team engagement with local stakeholders facilitated efforts to organize, integrate information and motivate developmental action. Case issue lessons were: farmers need information to transition to more sustainable forms of agriculture, institutional mechanisms are needed to support the development of new markets, consumers need information on the benefits of using agricultural products that enhance their environment, and the public needs to share responsibility for food safety and health rather than generating more governmental regulation. This sustainable development model process is presented to inform other farm-community change efforts.

Journal Title:
Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, Volume: 19 Issue: 1; ISSN: 1044-0046 Pub Date: 11/20/2001.