RANCHING Business
Stewardship Education Opportunities Abound
Classes, websites, online training, fi eld days, conferences and more — opportunities are out there for landowners to learn about what it takes to be a good steward of their land and resources.
By Sara Carney W
HEN IT COMES TO LAND STEWARDSHIP AND conservation, education is a major factor in the implementation of best management
practices (BMPs). The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service has de-
veloped several programs to help educate landowners. Many of these educational programs consolidate and collect information and make that information more accessible through conferences, trainings and fi eld days. These programs connect landowners to scientists and policymakers, empowering and actively engaging landowners in the conservation process.
Bennett Trust The Bennett Trust Endowment originated from one
landowner’s deep appreciation of and desire to preserve the Edwards Plateau, and AgriLife Extension’s wish to carry on these values. Eskel Bennett, a native Texan who retired in Dripping Springs, provided an endow- ment for AgriLife Extension to continue his tradition of education and preservation of the Edwards Plateau. Bennett was an advocate for land stewardship and used
76 The Cattleman September 2015
this endowment as a way to continue his work in land stewardship even after his passing in 2006. “His desire was for us to be able to conduct land
stewardship programs in the Edwards Plateau, because that is where they (the Bennetts) lived and that is a property they loved,” says Dr. Larry Redmon, the fi rst Bennett Trust AgriLife Extension specialist. The endowment is the fi rst one given directly to
AgriLife Extension. “Mr. Bennett’s gift is an enduring legacy and our ability to conduct stewardship programs out there will go on indefi nitely,” Redmon says. The endowment funding formed the Bennett Land
Stewardship program. Through conferences, the pro- gram specifi cally addresses the land management issues of the Edwards Plateau, including brush con- trol and prescribed burning. Conferences also cover topics that are applicable outside the region, such as estate planning, water management and livestock stocking rates. The third annual Bennett Trust Land Stewardship
Conference will be held April 14-15, 2016, in Kerrville. The Women’s Natural Resource Management Con-
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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