Research partnerships for 2013–14 neared the $1 million mark as two faculty members and two post-doctoral associates embarked on their first full year at the PIE Center.
Through grants and other research partnerships, PIE Center researchers earned $931,000, with PIE Center research components supporting projects worth more than $8 million.
Assistant professors Alexa Lamm and Joy Rumble established their research programs, while Quisto Settle and Levy Odera joined Healthy Gulf, Healthy Communities Grant Coordinator Angie B. Lindsey as post-graduate associates. Lindsey. Former Director Tracy Irani was previously the only faculty member directing the PIE Center’s accomplished team of staff and graduate student researchers.
PIE Center research helps communicators, educators, policymakers and community leaders understand how to address agricultural and natural resource issues by examining how people think, learn and act when faced with challenging issues.
“By partnering with the PIE Center, we have gathered key information on public perception of agricultural practices and tailored our messaging in a manner that resonates with our target audience. It is imperative that we ensure consumers understand where their food comes from, how it is produced and the environmental benefits of an industry that provides food, fiber and fuel to the world.” — Staci Braswell, Florida Farm Bureau Federation
“The PIE Center provided us specialized consultation and evaluation services and has become a critical resource for us. We view the PIE Center as an invaluable partner that helps us generate the desired impacts with our school gardening programs. The PIE Center was knowledgeable and responsive to our needs and provided feedback on how we might better engage our clientele.” — Sandra Thompson, Florida A&M University
Highlighted research projects include:
Governance of food security in southern Africa
The PIE Center’s first international grant will explore the interactions among southern African organizations that control the region’s food security and land-use decisions. Researchers from South Africa, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands join researchers from the University of Florida. The PIE Center will lead the team’s internal and external communications strategies by developing an online knowledge management platform that will connect team members worldwide.
Awareness of environmental stewardship programs
Using an online survey, PIE Center researchers will assess consumers’ awareness of environmental stewardship programs in UF/IFAS Extension and the Florida Farm Bureau Federation. The programs promote the responsible use and protection of Florida’s natural resources through sustainable practices and conservation.
Examining consumer preference for strawberries
To increase the demand for Florida-grown strawberries among state residents, the PIE Center conducted focus groups and an online survey to test specific marketing strategies. Results showed that while consumers prefer Florida-grown strawberries, they are unaware of the growing season and unlikely to look at the label for growing location.
Connecting Florida produce and K-12 schools
Expanding on the popular research into the value and perceptions of local food, PIE Center researchers will examine the partnership among K–12 schools, food service distributors and local farms to provide Florida’s schoolchildren with healthy food options. The research, funded by a Specialty Crop Block Grant, promotes school nutrition through greater reliance on locally grown fruits and vegetables.
Extension faculty, staff as brand managers
PIE Center researchers conducted an online survey with UF/ IFAS Extension faculty and staff to understand the perceptions and needs of the faculty and staff representing the UF/IFAS
brand in counties across the state. Although Extension personnel believed that good communication and branding was important, they were generally not aware of available resources.
Evaluating undergraduate science education
PIE Center researchers are evaluating a national effort to improve undergraduate science education with the goal of increasing the number of science, technology, engineering and mathematics graduates. Organizations involved in the Partnership for Undergraduate Life Science Education, or PULSE, include the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation.
Healthy Gulf, Healthy Communities
Researchers hit the halfway mark of the five-year, $6 million Healthy Gulf, Healthy Communities project that addresses concerns in Gulf communities following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. To celebrate, UF researchers welcomed community partners to Gainesville to share research findings and to identify goals for the remaining two years of the grant.
The research examines the resiliency of communities and individuals, as well as the safety of the seafood harvested in areas impacted by the oil spill. The project team works with affected communities to build networks and programs that help rebuild and prepare for future disasters. Researchers found that Gulf Coast residents face high levels of depression and anxiety and are concerned about conflicting and unreliable information from governments and BP.
Residents’ attitudes toward agriculture
Focus group participants in a five-county region in southwest Florida said they valued agriculture’s economic, nutritional and historical impacts on the area but were unsure about environmental and labor concerns. The two-part collaboration with the Gulf Citrus Growers Association included an online survey that showed more than three-fourths of respondents said their opinions of agriculture would improve if they had more information.
Participants discussed their desire to become more involved with agriculture, primarily by visiting farms and getting to know farmers. PIE Center researchers suggested that agricultural organizations and leaders can build consumer trust and relationships by attending and sponsoring community events and hosting families or organizations at their property.
Community gardening education
To help rural and urban children understand the importance of sustainability and nutrition, PIE Center researchers and Florida A&M University are evaluating the impacts of community-based gardening education programs near Tallahassee. Children, who in many cases are exposed to vegetables they would not otherwise eat, learn how to grow and prepare their own food. Students and staff give high praise for the programs, citing the hands-on learning experience as especially valuable.
Science & policy in fisheries education
The initial chapter of the recruitment, training and research program to incorporate public policy and stakeholder opinions into fisheries population dynamics education closed with positive student reviews and opportunities for future collaboration. The PIE Center teamed up with fishery experts from the National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the UF/IFAS Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences program to host the graduate-level summer program.
The two-week program focused on rehabilitating sturgeon populations in the Apalachicola Bay and Suwannee River basins and allowed the eight students to get hands-on research experience. The PIE Center then showed the students how to communicate about the research results and translate them into useable information for decision makers.
