The Accidental Sustainability Agent

Traditionally, county Extension services have been associated with agriculture, but now also include many other areas and disciplines, notably, youth development; natural resources; horticulture; family, consumer and health sciences; and community and economic development. While UA Cooperative Extension has no specific sustainable living education program, it does have a full complement of outreach and educational programs in natural resources, agriculture, community and economic development, youth development and family, consumer and health sciences. Sustainability Concept Number of Respondents Percent of Total Respondents* Conserving natural resources (water, arable land, biodiversity,range, habitat, etc.) 86 93% Promoting use of renewable resources 62 67% Minimizing fossil-fuel related inputs 37 40% Maximizing benefits to environmental, social and economicSystems 87 95% Reducing risks to human health 84 91% Reducing negative impacts on the environment 81 88% Minimizing impacts to health care systems though Vol. 4, January 2013ISSN: 2151-7452=prevention practices 39 42% Increasing youth’s interaction with nature 60 65% Fostering the practice of reduce, re-use and recycle 61 66% Promoting smarter consumer and personal finance choices 37 40% Adapting to drought 57 62% Promoting locally grown food 52 57% Fostering smarter transportation alternatives 15 16% Other (please specify): Prevention of Point Source and Non-point source contaminants in watersheds; creating means of slowing down runoff through watershed management; Promoting sustainable economic activities and a diversification of the economic base; Adapting to fire as a natural process in wildland ecosystems; Food Planning and Preservation; Community CapacityBuilding; Promoting school readiness of children 0 to 5 and over health and well-being of children. 14 15% N = 92 *Percentage will total to more than 100% as respondents were permitted to select more than one concept. The results of this assessment indicate that although UA’s Cooperative Extension has no sustainability education program per se, a high degree of sustainability principles are well-embedded in all of its programs – agriculture, youth development, natural resources, family, consumer and health sciences, community and economic