WOOSTER, Ohio — Ohio State University's Agroecosystems Management Program (AMP) will present a free public lecture, "Surface Water Runoff and Soil Erosion Research in Upper Normandy, France: From Soil Science to Agronomic Studies to a Role-playing Game," 1:30 p.m., Thursday, March 29, at locations in Wooster and Columbus.
Veronique Souchère and Alexandre Joannon, both of the National Institute for Agronomic Research (INRA), Rennes, France, will speak. Both have been involved in intensive research on soil erosion and water runoff in Upper Normandy. A focus on soil science and agronomy has been expanded to include economics and sociology, too.
Souchère, an agronomist, has developed a runoff and erosion model that takes into account agricultural practices. She is working on a role-playing game that helps farmers and stakeholders implement solutions to improve soil and water conservation.
Joannon, an agronomist and a visiting scholar in the Department of Human and Community Resource Development, has studied farm management to identify technical constraints that could impede the implementation of solutions at the farm and watershed levels.
Attend and participate by interactive simulcast in 121 Fisher Auditorium on the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center's (OARDC) Wooster campus, 1680 Madison Ave.; or in 244 Kottman Hall on Ohio State's Columbus campus, 2021 Coffey Road.
An interdisciplinary program, AMP works to improve the economic, environmental and social viability of Ohio agriculture and rural communities by applying ecological principles to land use and resource management. The effort teams scientists, students, staff, individual farmers and landowners, and representatives of government agencies and conservation, agricultural and environmental groups.
Support for AMP comes from OARDC, Ohio State University Extension, Ohio State's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (OARDC and OSU Extension are the research and outreach arms, respectively, of the college), the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and individuals and organizations.
Contact AMP Coordinator Lois Grant at (330) 202-3537 or grant.47@osu.edu for more information.
Find further details about AMP at http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/amp/.
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