The College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences (CAFES) at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls recently awarded seven faculty research fellowships to help increase dairy-related research capacity through the Dairy Innovation Hub initiative.
The selected faculty members will tackle research projects in the hub’s four priority areas; stewarding land and water resources; enriching human health and nutrition; ensuring animal health and welfare; and growing farm business and communities.
Funded through a $7.8 million per year investment by the state of Wisconsin, the hub harnesses research and development at UW-Madison, UW-Platteville and UW-River Falls campuses to keep Wisconsin’s $45.6 billion dairy community at the global forefront in producing nutritious dairy foods in an economically, environmentally and socially sustainable manner. Since its launch in 2019, the hub has funded more than 160 projects across the three campuses. More information is at dairyinnovationhub.wisc.edu.
A faculty research fellowship is a temporary position for permanent faculty members to provide support for a specific research project and any ancillary costs — including ensuring that the faculty member has time to conduct research and support for existing teaching responsibilities.
The following UW-River Falls faculty fellows were selected for funding:
Bahareh Hassanpour, Plant and Earth Science Department
Hassanpour is an assistant professor in agricultural water management with research interests in remediation of non-point source pollution, water quality, nutrient cycling, and the fate and transport of contaminants. Her position is partially funded by the Dairy Innovation Hub. Hassanpour’s project “Groundwater fluctuations-related nutrient cycling and stream water quality in agricultural headwater areas” aims to create a molecular-scale explanation of the transport and cycling of nutrients in soil and groundwater where manure is applied.
Veronica Justen, Plant and Earth Science Department
Justen is a crop science professor with research interests in plant breeding, field crop production, and enhancing diversified crop rotations with cover crops and hardy winter small grains. Justen’s project “Optimizing forage cover crop systems for agronomic production and environmental stewardship” will evaluate the interactive effects of cover crop species, environmental factors, and agronomic management on the productivity of forage cover crop rotations in Northern climates.
Sylvia Kehoe, Animal and Food Science Department
Kehoe is a professor of dairy science and assistant chair of the department. She teaches courses on lactation and milk quality as well as animal welfare. Kehoe’s project “Effects of using calf jackets on performance and health of purebred and crossbred dairy calves in different rearing environments” will evaluate the use of calf jackets for dairy calves and dairy x beef crossbred calves in both an indoor calf barn and outdoor hutch environment.
Natasha Rayne, Plant and Earth Science Department
Rayne is an associate professor of plant and earth science, specializing in soil science with an emphasis on soil fertility. Her research focuses on nutrient cycling and the improvement of soil health using manure. Rayne’s project “Effect of in-field prairie strips on nutrient cycling and biodiversity in crop production systems: a preliminary study” will examine the soil nutrient contributions of planted prairie strips to crop production systems and changes in the soil nutrient status over time.
Susanne Wiesner, Plant and Earth Science Department
Wiesner is an assistant professor of environmental science. Her research interests include agricultural atmospheric science and climate resiliency, land-atmosphere interactions, remote sensing, and ecosystem management. Wiesner’s position is funded by the Dairy Innovation Hub. Wiesner’s project “Establishing a baseline greenhouse gas budget and climate resilience target for the Mann Valley Dairy Farm” intends to improve the monitoring and verification of greenhouse gas emissions at the Mann Valley Farm.
James White, Agricultural Economics Department
White is an associate professor of agricultural economics. He teaches a variety of courses in the department and has research interests in agricultural management, finance, and public policy. White’s project “Rural economic development in Wisconsin: analysis of intergenerational mobility and community-centered case studies” will focus on rural Wisconsin communities and examine causes of economic decline and alternatives for generating positive economic growth with existing resources.
Source : uwrf.edu