I was surprised by some unexpected livestock. I guess it's a great comfort to a garter snake to stretch its body along a cool metal water tank on a hot day. This project led to the development of The Monitoring Tool Box, as well as this newsletter. Here is some background on the origins and history of this innovative initiative. The Team is also working to implement a new dynamic process for designing agricultural research that is participatory and farmer-driven.
Emphasis is on a whole-systems approach which depends on a dialog among all team members.
The process values and develops on-farm knowledge and experience, and fosters changes in current research approaches. It is also raising questions and hypotheses for ongoing research in other settings. In the shorter term, the team is also developing useful indicators for farmers and information for policy makers. Increased bird numbers were documented on rested pasture pads compared to nearby grazed pads. Stream bank erosion rates were lower under MIG when compared to stream systems in permanent pasture situations.