From san@nalusda.govFri Jul 14 23:18:11 1995 Date: Fri, 14 Jul 1995 12:17:58 -0400 (EDT) From: "Andy Clark, SAN Coordinator" To: sanet-mg@amani.ces.ncsu.edu Subject: SAN Overview SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE NETWORK (SAN) Information on sustainable agricultural issues and practices is available from a wide variety of sources, including research and educational institutions, private nonprofits, farmer organizations, publishers, consultants, lenders, and suppliers. Finding the available information, as well as identifying the gaps in the knowledge base, is an increasing challenge. The Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN) was formed to help meet this challenge. SAN is a cooperative effort of universities, government, business and non-profit organizations dedicated to information exchange. It was developed by a committee from diverse organizations, with support from the USDA's national Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program (see list at end). The committee's vision is that of a decentralized system that encourages and supports interaction among a diversity of information providers and users, rather than a centralized system with a one-way flow of information. To support this vision, the committee eagerly solicits comments, criticisms, and active participation from colleagues as the system takes shape. Current activities include: SHOWCASE OF EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS SAN sponsors The Showcase of Sustainable Agriculture Information and Education Materials. Begun by John Ikerd, at the University of Missouri, it is a compilation of publications, videos, and other materials, as a way to identify both the exemplary and the missing in sustainable agriculture knowledge. Materials that synthesize information in forms readily usable to farmers are a particular focus of the Showcase. The results are available as a printed document (see PUBLISHING) and as a computerized database (see INFORMATION ON DISKETTE). Those interested in contributing materials to the Showcase should contact Andy Clark (see address under "For More Information.") DIRECTORY A directory listing detailed characteristics of individuals and organizations who are willing to share their expertise in sustainable agriculture was compiled by the staff of ATTRA under the direction of Jim Lukens, ATTRA program manager. A compilation of over 700 entries, it represents the broad range of types of people and organizations knowledgeable about sustainable agriculture. The first edition was released in May, 1993, in electronic (see INFORMATION ON DISKETTE) and printed (see PUBLISHING) forms. To be listed in future updates of the Directory, contact ATTRA at 1-800-346-9140. PUBLISHING Preparing information in a form that is useful to farmers is a high priority of SAN. The first handbook, Managing Cover Crops Profitably, is available for $9.95 from Sustainable Agriculture Publications, Hills Building, Room 12, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405-0082. Other SAN publications include The Sustainable Agriculture Directory of Expertise ($14.95) and The Showcase of Sustainable Agriculture Information and Education Materials ($4.95) A guide to tillage tools is due in 1996. THESAURUS A common language is important for finding information from a variety of sources. Begun by Steve Mitchell of the Bio-Agricultural Library at the University of California, Riverside, to be continued by Andy Clark, the project will help organize the sustainable agricultural knowledge available and refine a word list that will be useful to people looking for information, authors assigning key words to their documents, as well as to those creating indexes. ELECTRONIC INFORMATION EXCHANGE Electronic exchange of information is an increasingly important activity for SAN. Kevin Gamble, extension computing specialist at North Carolina State University, is leading the effort to develop guidelines for the preparation of documents to be shared over computer networks. An electronic conference, sanet-mg, has been formed on the Internet for the sharing of ideas and information regarding sustainable agriculture. To subscribe, send the statement, subscribe sanet-mg, in the body of an Internet message to: almanac@ces.ncsu.edu. The Almanac software, previously developed at Oregon State University, automatically distributes any message sent to sanet-mg list. There are also databases and a calendar of events accessible through the Internet. Consult the separate brief "Getting Started Electronically with SAN," available by email or telephone request to Andy Clark (see address under "For More Information.") INFORMATION ON DISKETTE A microcomputer database of summaries of projects funded by SARE/ACE demonstrates the power of state-of-the-art, off-the-shelf text "infobase" management, using FolioViews™ software. The publications mentioned already are also available. The program runs on MS-DOS-compatible machines only, for the time being. For a free copy, send a blank, formatted, high-density diskette to Phil Rasmussen, Head, Ag. Systems Technology, Utah State University, UMC-2300, Logan, UT 84322-2300. (Internet: soilcomp@cc.usu.edu). They are also available for downloading to your computer through their gopher site, extsparc.agsci.usu.edu, PORT=70. EXPERIENTIAL INFORMATION The committee has recommended that more and better information from `experience', such as case studies and other forms of careful observation, be made available through the network, adding to information that is formally tested. We are exploring appropriate ways to describe and share this information so that its validity and range of applicability will be more easily evaluated by potential users. HOW TO PARTICIPATE You can "join" SAN simply by participating in one or more of its activities: contribute information to the Showcase, join the electronic discussion group, volunteer yourself or another expert for listing in the Directory, use the Cover Crops Handbook or the Folio Infobase and let us know what you think of them! FOR MORE INFORMATION As a decentralized network, the points of contact are many; feel free to contact the individuals mentioned above for specific aspects of SAN. To provide overall coordination and a central point of contact, SAN has established an office hosted by the Alternative Farming Systems Information Center (AFSIC) of the National Agricultural Library: Andy Clark, SAN Coordinator c/o AFSIC, Room 304 National Agricultural Library Agriculture Research Service 10301 Baltimore Boulevard Beltsville, MD 20705-2351 Internet: san@nalusda.gov Telephone: 301/504-6425 FAX: 301/504-6409 SUPPORT SAN is supported by the USDA's Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program. The project team includes: Andy Clark, SAN Coordinator (san@nalusda.gov) Jill Auburn, University of California (jsauburn@ucdavis.edu) Jane Gates, AFSIC, National Agricultural Library (jgates@nalusda.gov) Kevin Gamble, North Carolina State University (kgamble@twosocks.ces.ncsu.edu) Beth Holtzman, Northeast SARE Program, University of Vermont (bholtzma@moose.uvm.edu) Kristen Kelleher, Western SARE Program, University of Calif. (kkelleher@ucdavis.edu) Charles Panton, North Carolina A & T (forbesb@athena.ncat.edu) Ed Rajotte, Pennsylvania State University (egrajotte@a1.psupen.psu.edu) Gwen Roland, Southern SARE Program, University of Georgia (sareace@gaes.griffin.peachnet.edu Tory Shade, University Extension, Wayne County, Missouri (wayneco@ext.missouri.edu)