WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK "SUSTAINABLE"

by Richard Ross
Interim Dean of Agriculture, Iowa State University

The word "sustainable" peppers many discussions on agriculture. How do we strengthen rural communities to ensure they are sustainable places to live? How do we plan for a sustainable agriculture that supplies food for the world's population while protecting the environment? How do we ensure our economic competitiveness is sustainable in global markets?

Sustainability was a central issue at a national summit on the conservation of American's private lands that I recently attended. The meeting gave me a new insight into what really underlies the meaning of "sustainable."

The conservation summit was impressive in that it found a way to bring together people with different viewpoints to forge a strong commitment to a sustainable environment. That was the common thread: a desire to preserve something good -- our natural resources -- for ourselves, our children and their children.

It's a thread that can be found in other discussions about our farms, communities, families and economy. So, what we're really talking about when we talk about sustainability in agriculture is quality of life. It's as simple as that.

Sustainability also is a thread that I see running through many programs in the College of Agriculture. For example, over the last decade, an Iowa State team has developed buffer strips along farm streams to improve water quality. The work has become a national model for stream improvement and for a current effort to establish a hundred similar sites in Iowa.

Iowa State is working on ways to maintain high-quality lakes for recreation -- an important quality-of-life piece of Iowa's economic development strategy. An ISU team is diagnosing problems with lake waters and proposing management solutions.

Iowa State sociologists recently held open forums around the state to discuss ways to improve job quality in rural communities. Our rural development center developed a national database to help job-seekers find resources to help them land good jobs. Our rural-health researchers are helping families strengthen the skills they need to prevent drug abuse and behavioral problems among youth. These kinds of efforts get to the heart of quality of life in our small towns.

Lastly, Iowa State's new Plant Sciences Institute may be the ultimate quality-of-life program. By exploring the full potential of plants and their genes, we get closer to meeting the food and nutritional needs of a growing planet. New discoveries may lead to high-value, environmentally friendly products and technology for home and industry. The institute gives Iowa new opportunities to strengthen our economy and keep Iowa competitive in the world marketplace.

That's a vision well worth pursuing. It's a vision of sustainability for high quality of life in Iowa.

(Richard Ross is the interim dean of the College of Agriculture and the dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University.)

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