Conference Highlights

The World Cafe
Wednesday, May 6th 2:00pm - 4:30pm


World CafeWorld Cafe™ Conversations are an intentional way to create a living network of discussions about questions that matter. A Cafe Conversation is a creative process for leading collaborative dialogue, sharing knowledge, and creating possibilities for action in groups of all sizes. We will conduct a World Cafe Conversation for the entire conference addressing the questions that really matter to move forward as individuals, institutions, and as urban extension. This will be an opportunity for the interaction with others that was requested from previous years' conference participants.


Super Sessions
Tuesday, May 5th 2:45pm - 5:00pm

PDF Format Supporting the Emerging Local Foods Movement
Ken Meter


Speaker: Ken Meter
Crossroads Resource Center, Minneapolis

Emerging interest in local foods poses exceptional opportunities and challenges for urban extension agents. Although consumers ask for "food with a farmers face on it" from farms they trust, immense obstacles loom for farmers and grocers who try to meet this demand. Distribution infrastructure that favors export agriculture often inhibits local food trade. Uncertainty about fuel costs and availability force us to build resilient approaches. Increasingly, urban areas are becoming viewed as potential food production centers. New immigrants who hold farm or business skills are becoming valuable in new ways. Many of these emerging trends stretch traditional extension roles. Come to this workshop to gain a solid overview of U.S. food systems, the potential for innovative food businesses, and how extension workers may play the most supportive role. Bring your success stories as well as your questions. This workshop will combine cutting-edge presentations with interactive working sessions.

About Ken Meter:
Ken Meter, president of Crossroads Resource Center in Minneapolis, holds 38 years experience in community capacity building as an administrator, researcher, journalist, and educator. His pioneering studies of farm and food economies, "Finding Food in Farm Country," serve as a national model that has been adopted by 39 regional food initiatives in 19 states. Meter taught the economics of agriculture at the University of Minnesota, and microeconomics at the Harvard Kennedy School, where he also received a Masters in Public Administration under a mid-career Public Service Fellowship. Meter advises the Aldo Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, and also USDA Community Food Programs.

PDF FormatSocial Media and Social Networking

Molly Immendorf

 

Speaker: Molly Immendorf


Do you Facebook? What's a wiki? Who's your avatar in Second Life? These social networking sites are popular past times on the Internet. But is social networking just for fun? This in-depth session will describe social networking and how it can be used in education, outreach and community building. Information will be shared on social networking options as well as the pros and cons of using a number of these sites. A group of Extension colleagues will share how they have used social networking in developing and delivering educational programs in various programming areas.

About Molly Immendorf:
As the Instructional Technology Specialist for University of Wisconsin
Cooperative Extension since 1998, Molly Immendorf helps her colleagues integrate technology into their educational programs to improve student learning and communication.  She has a M.S. in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Educational Communications and Technology.  In 2005-6, Molly was a UW Teaching Fellow where she examined student learning within virtual communities.

Welcome Event
Tuesday, May 5th 5:30pm - 8:30pm

DISCOVERY WORLD

innovation | innovation | environment
Located on Lake Michigan

Sullivan.jpgImmerse yourself in our world of water, where fun and learning go hand in hand with hors d’ovueres and refreshments.

Step into the amazing Reiman Aquarium where you’ll see aquatic life from the Great Lakes, North Atlantic, and the Caribbean.

Interact with stingrays, a bamboo shark, slipper lobster, sea urchins, sturgeon, and more when you experience the Touch Tank!

Explore the extraordinary Helen Bader Foundation’s Great Lakes Future™ exhibit, where you can view the entire Great Lakes watershed built to scale. Learn about native amphibians, reptiles, and fish. You can create a Great Lakes rainstorm and experience the awesome power and importance of water in nature.

500 North Harbor Drive
Milwaukee, WI 53202
(414) 765-9966
Fax (414) 765-0311
www.discoveryworld.org