No area of public technology and environmental policy is more complicated and contentious than pest management. For almost 20 years in Washington, D.C., I have worked in all areas of policy arising from the intersection of agricultural production, food processing and marketing, natural resource conservation, the environment, public health protection and regulation – and pest management is the roughest for policy-makers and public institutions to deal with. The science is multifaceted and ever-changing, passions run deep and the stakes are often high.

For these reasons alone, it is important for professors and students to study how public policy shapes and influences pest management systems, reliance on pesticides, the nature of pesticides applied and their associated risks and who bears the risks. But there are two other less-well-known reasons, each discussed in Pest Management at the Crossroads. Many chemical-intensive pest management systems are failing for one reason or another, and often several reasons (resistance; secondary pests; costs; worker-safety; health risks).

Second, pest management system choices drive many other important aspects of farm management; tillage and planting systems, rotations, cover crops, management of vulnerable parts of the landscape (streambank filter strips, grassed waterways, riparian areas that can harbor pests or beneficials), and what farmer and farm workers can do in the field and when. Choices about pest management systems tend to drive other areas of farming system design because pests have the potential to cause much larger economic losses than decisions associated with, for example, the selection of a tillage tool, a crop variety or a type of irrigation system or combine.

* An Invitation

I am interested in contributing to the development of undergraduate and graduate courses addressing the forces driving change -- or slowing it down -- in the nature of pest management systems. I am hopeful that Pest Management at the Crossroads will prove to be a useful resource in some courses, and I want to learn how future books from Consumers Union can be more valuable to students. And so, an invitation to participate in an online review and discussion of undergraduate and graduate courses addressing pest management systems and public policy. This page will post

• links to courses with web pages, like the "Pesticides, People and Politics" course taught by James Bingen, Michigan State University.
• access to online teaching materials and discussion of readings and the syllabus of related courses.
• reviews by students and professors of courses, ways to frame the issues and inquiry, and the usefulness of different teaching materials.
• suggested topics for term papers, in-class discussion and debate, and exams.

Depending on the reaction and interest in this experiment in online education, we might develop a section of the page devoted to what students have to say about these issues. If the response is positive enough, we will try to develop an interactive "discussion room" for students now taking similar courses across institutions and states, so that students will gain insight on the vast differences in pests, pest management systems and public policy issues across the country.

We might post the text of certain papers, research results and policy findings, exam answers, and other work products produced by students studying this area of policy. It's clear us "seasoned" experts don't have the answers fresh-thinking and new energy is the oil of the public policy process.

So, let me know what you think. Send us your course syllabus. Does your class have a web-page we could post?

* A Suggestion to Jim Bingen -- To provide a sense of how this page might work, excerpts from an exchange with Jim Bingen, Michigan State University follows. Jim is teaching a course this semester entitled "Pesticides, People and Politics." Jim sent me e-mail about a question on the impacts of H.R. 1627, "The Food Quality Protection Act of 1996" on fines farmers may face. In my response, I told him about the book PMAC and shared some thoughts about its possible use in a class like his. We also exchanged ideas about "live" online education. This lead to me proposing a set of term paper topics for the class, and an offer to post the student/team papers. The suggested topics/assignment follow:

"Divide the class into three teams, each responsible for preparing a strategic memorandum to a different association: (1) the pesticide industry trade association ACPA (American Crop Protection Association) ; (2) the Environmental Working Group (representing environmentalists); and (3) the Society of Risk Assessment and Good Government Professionals (hypothetical group representing risk assessment experts, 2/3 of members from government; 1/3 from academia). The Memorandum should address three questions:

1. Will passage of the tolerance-related provisions in H.R. 1627 advance the association's interests?
2. Based on conclusions in # 1, what position should the association take in the implementation process in 1997? Explain why.
3. In light of answer to number 2, what should the association should do in 1997 if it chooses to work toward/against timely and complete implementation of the new law's tolerance provisions? Be specific and explain how the resources described below will be used to heighten the chance of success.

The resources available to the associations are the same: a 10,000 strong membership base; a 6-member D.C. association staff (2 lobbyists; press person; director; constituent services); a 12-person board; two meetings in Washington, one during which 50 members will spend 2 days in town and an annual meeting, 2-days, drawing 300. In addition to these staff and member resources, each association/industry has committed $300,000. to the effort in 1997. How should the associations use their resources to attain their goals?"

I am looking forward to the class's response.

Please get in touch with Chuck Benbrook if you are interested in participating in an interactive exercise in the development and refinement of course curriculum.

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