Team of UT Soil Scientists Visit South Africa and Lesotho
April 17, 2007
A University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) team of soil scientists visited South Africa and Lesotho from March 13 to March 31, 2007. The objective of the trip was to develop and strengthen a partnership between UTIA and several Universities, researchers, extension personnel and farmers in the region.
Opportunities for student exchanges and internships with our partners were explored and materials collected to increase undergraduate understanding of the issues facing farmers in Africa. The team explored collaborative opportunities in conservation agriculture (CA) between the National University of Lesotho, the Lesotho Ministry of Agriculture, and UTIA. The team of soil scientists provided technical support to several non-government organizations (NGO’s), farmers’ groups and Lesotho and South African government workers. They also presented several workshops on manure management and the development and adoption of no-till crop production in Tennessee.
The UTIA soil scientists from the Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science Department represented all three components of the Land Grant University mission (teaching, research and extension) with experience in both small-holder and commercial scale agriculture both in Africa and the United States.
Dr. Neal Eash (left) represented Research and Teaching. It was also helpful that Dr. Eash could communicate in Sesotho even though his training in Setswana (he was a volunteer in Botswana from 1981-1984) was more than twenty-five years ago. Being able to greet people in their local language and marginally communicate proved to be an asset when we got to the remote areas.
Dr. Forbes Walker (center) represented Extension. His more than ten years of experience in Africa was very useful when he conducted a rapid rural appraisal exercise during our farmer meeting in Tebellong.
Dr. Donald Tyler (right) represented Research. All of the researchers and farmers were impressed by the breadth of no-till knowledge which Don has acquired over the past 30 years of research at UT.
Part of the funding for the trip came from a University of Tennessee Ready for the World grant.
Neal Eash
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