Interactive Displays on Environmental Stewardship for General Agricultural Audiences

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Extension displays are not always easy to develop. Interactive displays for general audiences are even more difficult. Each year, the University of Nebraska – Lincoln develops multiple displays for Husker Harvest Days, a Nebraska-based agricultural trade show. The University’s 2012 theme was “Strengthening the State of Beef”. The Animal Manure Management workgroup, along with others working in environmental stewardship at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln came together to develop a backdrop titled “Nebraska’s beef industry thrives by its stewardship”. Along with the backdrop, multiple interactive displays were used to grab the attention of an agricultural audience not necessarily involved with beef production. The Animal Manure Management workgroup’s displays focused on the value of manure and the nutrients it contains. The display included demonstration of manure related iPad apps and a manure jeopardy game as well as a display that visually showed the amount of nutrients in two different types of manure, stockpiled and freshly scraped manure. Glass containers held corn, soybeans and fertilizers containing equal nutrient contents of each other. We engaged the audience by asking them which vessel contained more nitrogen or phosphorus. Mostly people were surprised at the nutrient content of the manure relative to bottles of corn or fertilizer.

Education

Interactive Displays on Environmental Stewardship for General Agricultural Audiences
Leslie J. Johnson and Charles A. Shapiro, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

The display reached a general
agricultural audience, including
FFA students and farmers, that
may or may not have livestock.
It also reached policy makers
including the governor of
Nebraska (above).

Participants were asked to
“guess which has the most
nutrient” (below). They
were surprised at the
nutrient content of the
manure relative to the jars
of corn, soybeans or fertilizer.
The above poster was accompanied by multiple interactive displays
including a “guess which one has the most nutrient” display,
iPad app demonstrations, and a Manure Jeopardy game.
The media was interested in learning
more about the display (left). Manure Jeopardy (right) quizzed the audience as
they tried to answer manure related questions.
While the majority of the questions were not
difficult, some answers challenged the audience.

Jars containing soybeans, corn, fertilizer and two types of manure
for the “guess which has the most nutrient” display (left). Jars
Others involved during the display included: Aaron Nygren, Jill Heemstra, Jason Gross, Amy Schmidt, Terry Mader
and Dee Griffin. were grouped to have similar nutrient content, though many
Stewardship poster developed by David and Associates under the guidance of Extension professionals working in
areas related to environmental stewardship at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln.
guessed the fertilizer to have the most of a particular nutrient.

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