College of Natural Resources, UC Berkeley

School-based physical education plays a key role in curbing obesity and improving fitness among adolescents from low-income communities, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and UC Berkeley.

The study, which identifies opportunities for adolescents to improve their health based on routine daily activities, finds that regular participation in PE class is significantly associated with greater cardiovascular fitness and lower body mass index.

“We took an incredibly comprehensive look at all of the opportunities kids have throughout their day to engage in physical activity and determined which are the most strongly linked to fitness and weight status,” said first author Kristine Madsen, MD, MPH, an assistant professor of pediatrics at UCSF Children’s Hospital. “Obesity continues to be a major public health concern, particularly in low-income communities, so it is imperative that we develop targeted interventions to improve the health of at-risk youth.”

“This research will help support moving physical education policy forward. Clearly, physical education in schools is an underutilized tool in our efforts to reduce pediatric obesity,” said Patricia Crawford, DrPH, RD, the study’s senior author and director of the Dr. Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Center for Weight and Health at UC Berkeley.

The study appears in the November 2009 issue of the journal “Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine”.

Continue reading "Physical education key to improving health in low-income adolescents" »

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 11:17 AM | Permalink

Andaman Discoveries, a non-profit organization founded by CNR alumnus Bodhi Garrett, is among twelve finalists in the 2009 BBC World Challenge. The BBC World Challenge recognizes "innovative business projects that increase investment into the local community and take a responsible approach to the environment in which they are operating." Andaman Discoveries was chosen by a jury of high-level executives from Shell, BBC World, the World Bank, IUCN, and Newsweek. The World Challenge winner, selected from among the twelve finalists by BBC viewers and readers via online voting, receives a $20,000 grant.

"Our connection to the villages comes from rebuilding our lives together, and our projects focus on the big picture, empowering people to define their own future. This means that, along with responsible tourism, we also support scholarships for 120 kids, reforestation, [and] a community development network," says Garrett.

CNR's Breakthroughs Magazine featured Garrett in its Summer 2008 Issue: Bodhi Garrett: After the Wave.

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 9:33 PM | Permalink

The California State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection presented the Francis H. Raymond Award for Outstanding Contributions to California Forestry to Dr. William Libby on October 7, 2009.

Dr. Libby is Professor Emeritus of Forest Genetics, having taught forestry at the College of Natural Resources in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management between 1962 and 1994. His pioneering work in the field of forest tree genetics is internationally recognized and respected. Dr. Libby has practiced forestry on several continents and is well known for his work with California’s coast redwood and Monterey pine trees.

Though he officially retired in 1994, Dr. Libby has continued to educate and enlighten across the borders of country and perspective. He currently sits on the Board of the Save the Redwoods League with a focus on promoting research on redwood forest disturbance effects and the impacts of climate change on California’s coast redwood and giant sequoia forests. Dr. Libby’s observations on state and national forest policy are reflective of his insight and intellectual curiosity. His dedication in service to the forests of California and elsewhere is inspirational.

“Dr. Libby’s contributions to decades of forestry students and fellow researchers cannot be
measured,” said George Gentry, executive officer for the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The award is named for Francis H. Raymond who was the Director of the California Department
of Forestry and Fire Protection from 1953 to 1970. Mr. Raymond was one of the primary
advocates for the passage of the Professional Foresters Law in 1973. Since 1987 it has been
awarded to a group or individual who has achieved excellence in forestry in California.

Continue reading "Professor Honored for Outstanding Contributions to California Forestry" »

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 7:59 AM | Permalink

CNR student David Dinh is helping rural Ugandans to have access to safe drinking water.

"In every home in Uganda, drinking water is traditionally stored in a clay pot and culturally, there is a tremendous preference for this method of water storage. Unfortunately, water stored through this method can become quickly contaminated from repeated hand contact," Dinh writes. Because of the need for safe water storage, Dinh has helped to create improved clay pots with plastic spigots. They are "an affordable, accessible, and culturally appropriate safe water storage approach for rural Ugandan communities, " says Dinh.

Working in conjunction with Uganda Village Project and with support from the Strauss Foundation, Dinh has established social enterprise in the Ugandan villages. The distribution of the modified pots is subsidized for disadvantaged families in rural Uganda through the profits generated from the sale of modified pots in major urban areas.

Continue reading "CNR Student Helps Keep Water Fresh in Uganda" »

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 9:39 PM | Permalink

A University of California, Berkeley, project to catalog nearly every living thing on the Polynesian island of Moorea is enlisting the help of the island's 5th graders and showing them that science is not for foreigners only.

While conducting research for his thesis and for the Moorea Biocode Project, ESPM graduate student Brad Balukjian has been teaching 5th graders at the Paopao Primary School about biodiversity and introducing them to the scientific study of the plants and animals they see every day.

The biocode project, run by UC Berkeley and French researchers and funded by a $5.2 million grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, aims to build a comprehensive inventory of all non-microbial life on the island by 2011.With samples taken from the mountaintops to the ocean depths, it would be the first complete inventory of a tropical ecosystem.

At an end-of-year science fair on June 25, Balukjian's students proudly presented their collections of Moorean insects and plants to parents and fellow students. Each student had also collected a specimen specifically for the Moorea Biocode Project database, so that its DNA profile could be entered along with the student collector's name.

"They are immortalized in the biocode database," Balukjian said.

Continue reading "Growing young scientists in Tahiti" »

Posted by Cyril at 3:22 PM | Permalink

From goldmanprize.org:

Working to reduce the impact of Bangladesh’s exploitative and environmentally-devastating ship breaking industry, leading environmental attorney Syeda Rizwana Hasan spearheaded a legal battle resulting in increased government regulation and heightened public awareness about the dangers of ship breaking.

Hasan is a 2003 alumna of CNR's renowned Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program, which provides mid-career professionals and policymakers from around the globe with an opportunity to interact with UC Berkeley faculty engaged in up-to-date research and policy analysis on sustainable environmental management.

Bangladesh is one of only a few countries in the world with a thriving ship breaking industry. Decommissioned ships from around the world are sent to Bangladesh and dismantled by hand on the beaches by unskilled workers who are often paid less than one dollar per day....

Continue reading "ELP Alumna wins Goldman Environmental Prize" »

Posted by Cyril at 1:27 PM | Permalink

CNR graduate student Rebecca Carter volunteers as a biology teacher at San Quentin prison as part of the Prison University Project. The project offers inmates the chance to take classes towards earning college degrees.

Continue reading "Teaching Biology at Prison University" »

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 1:35 PM | Permalink

The first joint undergraduate poster session with CNR and the College of Engineering was a hit with students, faculty, and staff.

Taking on the theme of Natural Bridges: Different Perspectives, Common Goals, the forum gave students in a variety of disciplines to showcase their work, which ranged from projects in progress, to completed honors projects.

See photos and read more about the projects

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 9:26 AM | Permalink

The College of Natural Resources’ Student Resource Center located in 260 Mulford recently acquired ten new computers, replacing older computers that did not meet University security standards.

The new computers not only meet security standards, but also provide faster and more powerful computing.

The computers were purchased with funds from the Berkeley Fund for Natural Resources, which is generously supported by hundreds of alumni and friends of the College.

Over the years the Student Resource Center has grown as an education portal for CNR students. With the new computers, students have improved tools to help with homework and group projects.

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 10:40 AM | Permalink

by Jeannette Warnert

Kent Daane, Cooperative Extension specialist at UC Berkeley, has been appointed the University’s research liaison with the California Raisin Marketing Board and the California Table Grape Commission effective July 1.

In this role, Daane consults with the commodities’ research advisory boards, which provide guidance on grant requests that have been submitted by researchers. The California Raisin Marketing Board disburses about $200,000 annually and the California Table Grape Commission disburses about $550,000 annually to fund research in the crops grown by their members. Daane’s work as research liaison will be in addition to his current duties.

Daane has studied pest control strategies for California crops since 1990 at the UC Kearney Research and Extension Center in Fresno County. He and his research staff focus on the development of ecologically based pest management systems. Programs are developed to help farmers achieve economic success while farming using environmentally and socially sustainable practices.

In recent years, Daane has focused on vineyard pests, studying natural enemies of vine mealybug and leafhoppers; and he has worked to enhance the vineyard environment to support pest enemies such as spiders. While Daane’s research centers on biological control, it has included studies with the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis and pheromones, which help conserve natural enemies in the farm ecosystem. Daane also investigates insect-plant interactions that influence pest or natural enemy densities, the economic impact of pest populations and the biology and ecology of pests and natural enemies. Daane’s other projects focus on insect pests in orchard crops (pistachio, olive, almond and stone fruit), and glassy-winged sharpshooter biology in the San Joaquin Valley.

“Good, solid research, which combines basic and applied science, will always be the foundation of improved pest management systems,” Daane said. “Having a good line of communication with the agricultural community has particularly helped direct my research program toward relevant issues and pest problems.”

In 2000, Daane was appointed Cooperative Extension specialist in the Division of Insect Biology at the Berkeley campus. He maintains laboratories and staff at both locations – with the Berkeley lab allowing opportunities for close collaboration with campus-based faculty and the Fresno County location ensuring a strong working relationship with farmers, Cooperative Extension farm advisors and researchers at the Kearney Research and Extension Center.

“Because Dr. Daane has significant research activities both at UC Berkeley and at the Kearney Ag Center he is especially qualified to facilitate the research-to-farm continuum,” said Maxwell Norton, UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources program leader for agricultural productivity. “He has an intimate knowledge of the many problems facing raisin and table grape farmers and packers and they will greatly benefit from him participating in this role.”

Contact Jeanentte for more information at 559-241-7514 or jwarnert@ucop.edu.

Posted by Eva St. Clair at 10:48 AM | Permalink