June 9, 2009: Celebrate the Closings of Two Agricultural Easements in the Valley

On June 9, 2009 the Central Valley Farmland Trust will be celebrating the placement of agricultural easements on Jorgensen Ranch and Silveira Farm. These easements ensure that the land will support agriculture and the communities where they are located for future generations.

The celebration will take place at:

Jorgensen Ranch
Tuesday, June 9, 2009,
10:00 a.m.
30416 W. Jorgensen Road,
Gustine, California

What does GVC have to say about agricultural easements:

“We are seeing more and more farmers in the Central Valley choosing to make agricultural easements a part of their business, financial and estate plans,” said Theresa Kiehn, Agricultural Programs Associate with the Great Valley Center. “They’re a proven way to guarantee that farmland remains in private hands, agricultural business continues and the land’s natural resources are forever protected.”

Materials & Resources

→ Read the California Department of Conservation's full press release: Two Central Valley Farms Protected from Development

→ Download the final report on the Great Valley Center’s Agricultural Transactions Program (ATP): Solid Ground: Land Conservation Models From California's Agricultural Heartland

GVC Report: Greatest Road Block to Connecting Kids with Outdoors is Transportation

Press Release
Modesto, CA (May 12, 2009) - The detriments of a generation of young people disconnected from nature include a rise in obesity, attention deficit, and depression as noted by author Richard Louv in Last Child in the Woods. A sedentary lifestyle, characterized by staying indoors, is the norm for many youth in an increasingly high-tech society. There is also connection between a lack of interest in environmental stewardship and a lack of contact with the outdoors. Schools and youth-serving organizations long to provide young people with meaningful outdoor experiences that would foster a more active lifestyle and concern for the natural world that surrounds them, but are frequently stymied by one important factor: transportation.

Transportation Challenges & Opportunities: Connecting young people to the great outdoors, a new report available now at www.greatvalley.org, commissioned by the Great Valley Center, the Stewardship Council, and PG&E—reveals these findings. This practical report assesses the most common problems of cost, availability, and administrative procedures, such as insurance and finding appropriate drivers, that schools and youth-serving organizations face when arranging transportation—for even a day trip—and that often become limiting factors in the successful implementation of an outdoor venture.

Materials & Resources

→ Read the Press Release

→ Download the report: Transportation Challenges & Opportunities: Connecting young people to the great outdoors

May 2009

Press Release
STEWART RESNICK TO RECEIVE RECOGNITION FROM THE REGION

Central Valley Philanthropic Champion to Receive Giant of the Valley Award

Modesto, CA (May 4, 2009) The 2009 Sequoia - Giant of the Valley Award will go to prominent businessman and dedicated philanthropist Stewart Resnick. Chairman of Roll International Corporation, the holding company for businesses such as Paramount Farms and POM Wonderful, Resnick will be honored Thursday, May 7 in Sacramento at the Great Valley Center’s annual conference, 20/20 Foresight: A View of the Valley in a Decade.

→Read the full article

May 2009 Media Advisory

Our monthly media advisories are chock-full of information about what's coming up for GVC this month as well as other interesting happenings and trends in the region.

Highlights in our May advisory include briefs on:

• SB 375 Regional Targets Advisory Committee Meeting: May 5
• Great Valley Center’s 12th Annual Conference: May 6 and 7
• First Lady Michelle Obama at UC Merced: May 16
• New Publication: Energy Primer
• New Publication: Transportation Challenges and Opportunities for Connecting Young People to the Great Outdoors

Materials & Resources

→Read the full Great Valley Center May 2009 Media Advisory

April 2009

Press Release
REGIONAL BOARD OF ELECTED OFFICIALS ADOPT SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY BLUEPRINT PLAN THAT WILL INCREASE DENSITY

Selected growth scenario at odds with recommendations

Fresno (April 1, 2009) – A crucial vote in planning for the future of the San Joaquin Valley took place today when the San Joaquin Valley Policy Council voted to adopt a future growth scenario that would increase the housing density to 6.8 dwelling units per acres over the next four decades. This adopted scenario, known as scenario B+, will serve as a guide for the Valley’s local jurisdictions with land use authority as they update their general plans.

→Read the full article
→Learn more about Blue Print



Press Release
REGIONAL CONFERENCE LOOKS TO FUTURE FOR INSIGHT INTO TODAY’S ACTIONS


Great Valley Center Annual Conference 20/20 Foresight: A View of the Great Valley in a Decade to take place May 6 and 7 in Sacramento

MODESTO (April 10, 2009) - What would the Central Valley be like if the trends of the past decade continue until 2020? We’d be in a heap of trouble, among the poorest regions in the nation, in danger of having a sub-standard workforce, short on water and long on chronic medical problems.

On May 6 and 7 at the Sacramento Radisson, the Great Valley Center will be presenting the vision of thought leaders on dozens of elements of society and the economy, which will be augmented with forecasts about what the Valley will be like in the year 2020. Through these visions and data, people and organizations in the Valley can collaborate on priorities for the next ten years.

→Read the full article

20/20 Foresight on May 6&7

Great Valley Center's 12th Annual Conference
“20/20 Foresight: A View of the Great Valley in a Decade.”

Take a small leap forward with regional experts, data, and workshops. Looking ahead beyond the current issues and politics, conference will focus on five broad areas where short term actions can have longer term effects.

* Health and Community Well Being
* Transportation, Land Use and Housing
* Energy, Environment and Agriculture
* Water, Air and Natural Resources
* Workforce preparedness and Education


When: May 6 and 7
Where: Radisson Hotel, 500 Leisure Lane, Sacramento
Price: $245/$295.
Press passes available to working journalists who intend to cover the event.
More info at: www.greatvalley.org

Keynote speakers include:
Quentin Kopp, California High Speed Rail Commission
AG Kawamura, California Department of Food & Agriculture
Jeff Mount, Center for Watershed Sciences
Dr. Richard Pan, UC Davis Medical Center
Melanie Briones, Central Valley Health Policy Institute
L. Hunter Lovins, Natural Capitalism Solutions

February 2009

Press Release
FAMILY AGRICULTURAL PROPERTIES IN MERCED, STANISLAUS COUNTIES ARE PERMANENTLY SHIELDED FROM DEVELOPMENT

Sacramento, CA (February,25 2009) – Two Central Valley family agricultural properties – one in Merced County, the other in Stanislaus County – have been permanently set aside for agriculture.

“These are two significant projects,” California Department of Conservation (DOC) Director Bridgett Luther said. “Our California Farmland Conservancy Program has protected farmland all over the state, but the Menghetti farm near Modesto marks our first project on irrigated cropland in Stanislaus County. We’re also very excited that the Jorgensen ranch near Gustine is shielded from development because of the family’s century‐long stewardship of the land.”

→Read the full article