The 7th Annual APIO Training Conference

"Diversity In Conservation"

August 8-12, 2005
Wichita, KS 

Program Agenda   Conference Pictures

Kansas: Growing Wheat, Corn, and.... Cultural Diversity?
While Kansas has longtime been known for its extensive wheat and aircraft production, the Sunflower State became the host of the Asian Pacific Islander Organization’s (APIO) Seventh Annual Training Conference during the second week of August 2005.  Established in May of 1998, the APIO is primarily composed of (but not limited to) staff from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and strives to provide an expanding forum for employees to exchange ideas, network, mentor, and train its members, thereby adding value to the agency’s outreach and performance. Through its training conferences, the organization focuses on ways to address the under-representation of Asian Pacific Islander employees and serve in an advisory role to address methods of recruitment, retention, and promotion.
Conference was well attended with several field staff from the Pacific Basin Area, also known as the “Pac Basin” and converged in Wichita for the training conference.  This year, part of the program was devoted to informing attendees of current conservation issues in the Pac Basin.  Peter Bautista (District Conservationist from Guam), Jed Johnson (Outreach Coordinator from the Pohnpei field office in Micronesia), and Kurencio Ngowskl (Program Specialist from Guam) presented brief overviews of the various islands comprising and conservation efforts within the Pac Basin.		Pam Aguon (SC,Saipan), Joshep Takai (SC,CA),Jackie Bamba (SC,Guam)
APIO President, Pooh Vongkhamdy, opened the second day of the training conference before USDA-NRCS, Chief Bruce Knight took the stage.  In his special remarks, the Chief spoke of the challenges that the agency faces and stressed the importance of organizations such as the APIO, in reaching out to small and minority farmers.
NRCS Chief Bruce Knight	The Chief then presented the NRCS Asian Pacific Islander (API) scholarships to this year’s recipients:  Chadwick Cordes (Honolulu, Hawaii), University of Hawaii at Manoa Sangeetha A. Gummadi (Little Canada, Minn.), University of Minnesota at Twin Cities Kari Ann Kumashiro (Riverfalls, Wis.), University of Hawaii at Manoa Nagata Morri-Ann (Captain Cook, Hawaii), University of Hawaii at Hilo Tria Yang (Statesville, N.C.), North Carolina A&T University
Each year, the host state takes conference participants on a Conservation Tour of the area.  Harold L. Klaege, Kansas State Conservationist and Gary Parks, Conference Chairperson, chose the Cheney Lake Watershed Project as the focal point for the conservation tour.  The Cheney Lake Watershed (North Fork Ninnescah River) covers 633,000 acres within five counties in south central Kansas.  Over 99% is used for agricultural purposes.		MN-STC Bill Hunt, ND-STC J.R. Flores, KS-STC Harold Klaege
The watershed drains into Cheney Reservoir, which was designed and constructed as a 100-year multi-purpose project for water supply, wildlife area, and flood control.  The City of Wichita draws 70 percent of its daily water supply from the reservoir.
Chris G. Tecklenburg KS Range Management Specialist	The attendees and conference planners were impressed with the genuine interest of Kansans to accommodate our needs; it may be years before Kansas hosts its next APIO training conference. By changing the locations of the annual training conferences, APIO can educate conference attendees on the various ecosystems and conservation planning initiatives in the regions where USDA-NRCS operates. How appropriate that this year’s training conference, titled “Diversity in Conservation” was geographically located in the middle of America.  From the Kansas State Conservationist Harold Klaege’s welcoming address to the hotel’s kitchen staff’s preparing of miso soup and other ethnic dishes (supplied by the planning committee), the cultural exchange did not stop.
Like most national conferences, the 2005 APIO training conference included networking sessions, poster-viewing session, awards, a lively auction, and a banquet.  The banquet allowed participants to enjoy the end of the training portion of the conference as dessert took on a Middle Eastern and East Indian feel.  Dancers from Amira Dance Productions brought the attendees to their feet and had hands clapping as they vibrantly and joyfully performed dances from Middle Eastern region of the world.		Performed by Amira Dance Productions
Kent Matsutani introduced Dr. Lum	Following their performance of older and modern traditional dances from the Middle East, the mood of the hall changed as Mr. Francis Lum, SCS/NRCS Assistant Chief, Emeritus, took center stage.  As the API employee to achieve the highest position with the agency, conference planners thought it was important to learn about his personal experience and views of his work with the agency.  While Mr. Lum recognizes that times and NRCS policies have changed over time, he clearly stated that he never experienced unequal or special treatment as a result of being Asian. Equally, Mr. Lum emphasized the importance of developing strong leadership skills while working with people on an individual level.  He also advised not letting your ethnicity impede your career advancement.  Learning how to do precisely that is what the APIO offers to its members.
Since its establishment, APIO’s membership has grown to over eighty members, including 16 Lifetime members from across the country.  And while each conference has its own tone and memorable moments, the general message to the API community remains the same.  Members and supporters will be excited to know that the APIO will be joining the American Indian/Alaska Native organization in Anchorage for the 2006 annual training conference.  The cooperative spirit between the two organizations will bolster the APIO’s purpose of providing “a forum for employees to exchange ideas, network, mentor, train, and add value to the agency by being a linguistic, cultural and ethnic bridge to our communities and other employee organizations.”
APIO National Council had a meeting with NRCS Chief Bruce Knight during the Training Conference.  Click below to read the discussion items presented to the chief. Discussion Paper on Outreach and Work Force Diversity

Conservation Tour of Kansas

The conservation tour was focus on some innovative conservation practices and ways of implementing structural practices in Cheney Lake Watershed Area. We made six stops during the conservation tour.

• EQIP Grazing System
• WHIP Shallow Water Area
• Soil Quality Demonstration/Discussion
• Sheep Lot
• Dairy Waste Management System
• Wichita WATER Remediation Center

General Session Topics

• NRCS Programs/Farm Bill Update - Sara Braasch
• National Conservation Planning Database & eGov - Jeff Hart, James Krueger
• AAPI Where Are We Now Part II - Virginia Lewis
• Conservation in the Pacific Basin - Peter Bautista, Jed Johnson, Kurencio Ngowakl
• Conservation Partnership Panel

Workshop Topics

• RUSLE2 - Dave Lightle
• Economics of Conservation - Liu-Hsiung Chuang
• Application Process - Debbie Kaiden
• Grazing Land Mgmt - Activities around the Country and WEPS
                   - Reggie Blackwell, Arnold King
• Preparing for the Job Interviewing - Jane Medina
• Unconscious Discrimination - Kim Bradford
• GPS/GIS Technology in NRCS Field Office Operations - Travis Rome, Chad Volkman
• New Technologies in NRCS Engineering - Robert Snieckus
• Water Conservation Quality and Quantity - Chad Milligan
• Career Enhancement - Charles Adams

Poster Presentations

• Connecticut’s Streamwalk Program - Jewel McKenzie
• Conservation in Guam/Marianas Island / Pac-Basin - Peter P. Bautista, Jacqueline Flores
• Ecological Landscaping Network (ELN) - Jewel McKenzie, Vivian Felten
• My Life as an Asian American Soil Scientist - Suzy Park
• The Mobile Irrigation Lab - Elwood Holzworth
• Nutrient Management Considerations in Conservation Planning - Pooh Vongkhamdy
• TSP Display - Liu Chuang
• Earth Team Volunteers Display - Lonnie Miller
• Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative - Kim Stine
• Civil Rights is For Everyone - Shawna Carter

Other Activities

• Contracting - Lorna
• APIO Web Page - Yi Kum
• Program design - Hope Tran, Jewel McKenzie, Yi Kum, Joe Takai, Jacquelyn Drake