Community Development &
Sustainable Natural Resource Systems in Florida

Community Development

Community is more than a place. It is the people and relationships that exist within the place. For communities to develop and grow they must have the active interest, commitment, and involvement of citizens from all walks of life. However, the skills necessary to empower local people and groups need to be cultivated and learned. Our communities need guidance, information, support, and expertise if they are to meet their needs and achieve their goals. The FYCS Community Development program provides current and future leaders with the special skills needed to educate, assist, and contribute to local community well-being.

The need for community development training and expertise is increasingly a necessary skill for professionals in a variety of fields. Such skills facilitate local participation in planning and decision making, promotes more sustainable uses of our natural resources, helps to enhance social and economic well-being, and enhances local adoption and adherence to development programs. These are only a few of the many areas where community development training is needed and can be utilized.

Through the FYCS Community Development program, exposure to a wide variety of topics is provided. Included are:

  • Defining and Understanding Community and its Development
  • Community Development Theory
  • Civic Engagement, Community Action, and Mobilizing Residents
  • Community Studies Research Methods
  • Understanding Local Decision Making
  • Leadership Development
  • Understanding the Role of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
  • International Development
  • Community Planning and Visioning
  • Achieving Sustainable Development

Extension agents, professionals, local government officials, and graduate students from a variety of backgrounds and interests are encouraged and welcome to take part in this important and timely program. Through these, participants will be provided with the background and skills necessary to contribute to local community development and programs.

Sustainable Agriculture

Extension educational materials in the area of sustainable agriculture are designed to provide farmers, consumers, and decision-makers with the knowledge and skills needed to understand and evaluate the sustainability of agriculture.

A five-module series, Evaluating Sustainability, is available through the Florida Cooperative Extension Service. The series may be utilized in its totality, or the individual modules may be used individually. For those who purchase the entire package, an introductory video and background reading are included which examines the meaning of the term sustainable agriculture.

These materials are appropriate for adult audiences and are currently being revised for use by middle and senior high school teachers. While some familiarity with agricultural production is helpful, it is not necessary. These materials are designed to be utilized in a workshop or similar group setting.

Each module includes a video presentation and presentation guide, background reading, classroom exercises, field studies, discussion questions, and a pre- and post-test of learning and a participant's and a facilitator's guide. While it is desirable that the facilitator have some background in the agricultural, natural, or social sciences, the facilitator's guides are designed to permit effective delivery of the materials without expertise in the five subject matter areas that are included.

The five modules include:

Biodiversity

In this module participants examine the impact of modern agricultural production on biodiversity during the interactive video presentation, learn basic methods of sampling in a classroom activity, and conduct a field study of insect biodiversity in a field and/or natural setting.

Water Quality

The interactive video explores the causes of deteriorating water quality and suggests actions that individuals and communities can take to monitor water quality. The classroom exercise is a simulation game, BIO-ASSESS, developed by the Alabama Water Program. In the field study, participants learn how to conduct a biological assessment of water quality.

Energy: The Hidden Input

This video examines the many ways in which energy is used in modern agricultural production. In the classroom exercise, participants learn the basic steps necessary to evaluate the energy productivity of an agricultural system. In the field exercise, participants collect data to compare the energy productivity of one or more production systems.

Conserving Soil Resources

This interactive video focuses on the extent and causes of soil erosion and examines the steps that farmers and others can take to reduce soil loss. The classroom exercises provides the data needed to evaluate the land use capability of three parcels of land, using an ecologically based classification system. In the field exercise, participants conduct a land use capability classification of one or more parcels of land.

Money Matters

This video examines the ways in which adoption of more sustainable production practices may affect the price and availability of food. A classroom example of a production budget is provided. Participants interview one or more food producers to evaluate the sustainability of their production systems from an economic perspective in the field study.

A six-module series focusing on the environmental impacts of rural and urban development is also available. These materials use an interactive format, are designed for adult audiences, and are useful for Extension agents, planners, and others who work with the construction industry.

For More Information Contact:

Dr. Marilyn E. (Mickie) Swisher
Associate Professor, Sustainable Agriculture
(352)392-2202 x256
mesw@ufl.edu

or

Dr. Mark A. Brennan
Assistant Professor, Community Development
(352)392-7087 x229
brennanm@ufl.edu

Resources