The April and May leadership classes involved traveling the North County coast line and the Pajaro Valley. Julie Huffington Barrett opened the Seymour Center at Long Marine Lab and arranged a wonderful tour. You could have heard a pin drop as Professor Gary Griggs,PhD gave us a fantastic presentation about the changes in coastal environment and habitat over the last hundred years, he also gave us his projection for future challenges in the climate, ocean levels, and wildlife in the Monterey Bay. We also learned about the migration habits of birds and sealife.
Dr.Griggs is leading a much needed expansion of Long Marin lab, we are convinced that the value of Long Marine Lab research and development is well worth supporting the growth of lab facilities.
The April and May classes focused on learning more about the working person, from timber harvesting at Big Creek Lumber to making cement at CEMEX. We also learned about the worker challenges in food precessing and agriculture. The following is a summary of some of the key challenges faced by industrial and agricultural leaders:
- The value of good timber harvesting practices to a healthy forest is a proven science; but the terms and conditions for actually removing trees is a constant source of contraversy and heavy regulation.
- The possibility of burning tires as a fuel source is potentially a cleaner and more effective use of resources; the emotional connection to tire burning makes it unfeasbile to invest into this technology; maybe it's time to re-think our approach.
- Picking fruit and vegetables requires skilled workers; a strawberry picker is not automatically prepared to cut lettuce and visa versa. The farmer must be prepared to pay the cost of leasing land, high priced water, minimize the impact of pesticides, face the challenge of community growth into ag lands, and employee and take care of an effective work force.
- Their are no guaranteed successes from planted crops; the impact of unforseen pests like the recently discovered Light Brown Moth or the evidence of E-coli could easily bankrupt a farmer.
- Immigration reform must be taken seriously; there are no lines of workers waiting to work in the fields. We must also substitude facts and science for fear and ignornance when determining risk and hazard mitigtion.
Class member Mary Andersen recognized that the leaders of the various venues we visit at LSCC do not necessarily agree; for example local government leaders have different motives and expectations than does agricultural leaders,the demand for water and housing runs in conflict with the need for agricultural water and labor forces. So what does this tell us about leadeship? We must understand and respect the motives of all leaders and attempt to negotiate, collaborate and come to the middle on some of our demands. We must use good logic, knowledge and effective network support to do what is "right" even when it hurts!
