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University of Michigan (U-M) students visit community-based organizations in Detroit on a weekly basis to work on projects aimed at improving the well being of children and their families, such as tutoring youth in after school programs. Their site visits are supplemented by relevant readings, class discussions and written reflections on topics such as developmental psychology, poverty, and education, which connect what they are learning in class to what they experience in the field. U-M students with social identities that have historically experienced conflict and differential status come together to engage in critical self-reflection and purposeful dialogue to better understand each other's point of view and solve problems regarding race relations. Using case studies, U-M students learn about the multiple and often competing viewpoints of stakeholders in land management. They attend a local planning commission meeting and reflect on the economic, scientific, and moral implications of various land use proposals.

This background paper from the Center on Education Policy (CEP) examines the origins, history, and evolution of federal land grants for public schools, as well as their significance as an early example of the federal role in education. It is intended to serve as a more detailed companion to another CEP paper, "Get the Federal Government Out of Education? That Wasn't the Founding Fathers' Vision" (CEP, 2011), which mentions land grants as part of a broader look at the historical federal role in education. Several key points can be drawn from this paper: (1) Federal support for public schools is not a modern concept; (2) The nation's founders saw these land grants as a way to encourage public education and incorporate the principles of democracy throughout the vast western territory; (3) The policy of land grants for education continued to be endorsed in federal laws spanning from the Jefferson Administration through the Eisenhower Administration; (4) Land grants were an early example of the federal government using a carrot-and-stick approach with states; and (5) Federal land grants continue to generate revenues for education. A table showing basic information about which states received federal land grants, which lands were granted to these states for use of the public schools, and which federal act granted these lands is appended. (Contains 2 tables and 5 footnotes.) [For the companion report, "Get the Federal Government out of Education? That Wasn't the Founding Fathers' Vision," see ED518386.]

The paper explores how continuously expanding world demand for food, feed, and fuel is generating pressure to restructure agricultural land use. In addition, problems related to transfer of agricultural crop land to energy crops are discussed. The technology of energy crops has developed to the point where large-scale commercial production of alcohol from high-yielding energy crops appears to be favorable. As gasoline prices reach $2.00 per gallon, gasahol becomes not only feasible but profitable, particularly when factors such as subsidies and by-product credit are considered. National plans to produce energy crops have been formulated in the United States, South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia. Brazil has already implemented a large scale alcohol fuel program based principally on sugar cane. On the negative side, however, Brazil has already felt the impact of rapidly increasing food prices. The millions who are at the bottom of the economic ladder in Brazil and elsewhere, will be increasingly squeezed as the more affluent increase their claims to cropland. The conclusion is that decision makers in developing and developed nations should carefully assess the impact of energy crop iniatives on food prices and availability before encouraging widespread conversion of cropland into energy crops. (DB)

This workshop collection contains four case studies regarding particular relationships between specific resources and clientele or user groups, and three discussions based on those four papers and/or conference discussions. The first paper discusses urban land use origins and compares urban policies with rural policies suggesting that future rural land use should not be based on urban policies. Focusing on poverty and coal mining in Kentucky, the second paper, by Cynthia L. Duncan and William A. Duncan, supports community-oriented development policies. The third paper, by Joe B. Stevens, provides an historical overview of the Pacific Northwest's economy; discusses the current status of forest, human, and community resources with a focus on poverty; and, through operationalizing the concept of "income distribution," suggests that multiple definitions are needed to examine the impact of forest-related policies. Focusing on blacks, the final case study, by T. T. Williams, Richard Morse, and Avery Webber, is concerned with the impact of government policies on minority rural land ownership, management, and use. After a brief history, the paper looks at contemporary black rural land tenure in the South and suggests implementation of policies designed to strengthen the capability of small farmers to increase their total output, thus enhancing economic viability of black farmers. Comments focus briefly on major points from the case studies and suggest areas for further investigation. (PM)

Focusing on cultural influences and minority control over water and mineral resources, this workshop collection contains two papers and two sets of comments regarding those papers. Studying the relationship between rural poverty and water resources in the Southwest, the first paper, by Helen Ingram and five others, examines how water is important to the poor and basic preconditions to improved water use by the poor. After identifying the Southwest's poor as mostly Indian and Hispanic people, the paper discusses regional patterns of water control, water use by the poor, economics of water, the poor who do and don't control water, and communal values of water. Conclusions suggest water control by poor people and strong community in-put regarding water allocation could positively affect economic development. Proposing areas of policy analysis based on current issues confronting natural-resource-owning Indian tribes as landowners and governments, the second paper, by Susan Williams, provides an historic overview focusing on tribes as landowners and their different resources including water, and minerals. It then suggests a research agenda and concludes that although resource development demands careful consideration by tribal members, resource-owning tribes can improve their economic well-being. Comments provide examples of cultural differences illustrating difficulties any outside intervention may face. (PM)

After 20 years, the "green revolution" is generally referred to as a milestone in the international agricultural movement. The introduction of new varieties of wheat and rice, along with fertilizers, pesticides, and mechanized farm equipment has produced a dramatic increase in world food production. This paper assesses the successes of the green revolution in light of its effect upon third world countries. It cautions that the revolutionary gains in agricultural production have not been distributed evenly. This uneven distribution of productivity is discussed in the first chapter, "Productivity Reconsidered." The second chapter, "Beyond the Green Revolution," considers the need for new crop varieties and technologies (including biotechnologies) but argues that tomorrow's innovations must be more consistent with regional agricultural traditions. This approach will help to avoid some of the environmental and social costs associated with the agricultural technologies utilized during the green revolution. The third chapter, "Rediscovering Traditional Agriculture," examines the benefits and limitations of traditional methods of agriculture, indicating that these practices should provide the basis for new practices, rather than be swept aside as archaic. "Toward Appropriate Biotechnology" discusses some of the possible contributions offered by biotechnology as tools for more efficient and sustainable agriculture. The document concludes with a call for additional research in sustainable agriculture productivity. (TW)

This report summarizes the findings of one of fourteen panels that studied progress in space science applications and defined user needs potentially capable of being met by space-system applications. The study was requested by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and was conducted by the Space Applications Board. The panels comprised user specialists drawn from federal, state, and local governments and from business and industry. In this report, the Panel on Land Use Planning defines the land use planning discipline; defines the current state-of-the-art as it may make use of information obtained by remote sensing; presents a 5- to 15-year scenario for the impact of remote sensing from air and space platforms on land use planning; and identifies critical factors in the applications of remotely sensed data to land use planning. (MH)

As Ethiopia has designed and implemented numerous intensive (geographically concentrated) and minimum-package rural development programs between 1967-75, the purpose of this monograph is to: (1) trace the evolution of these package projects; (2) analyze package performances; and (3) identify the implications for Ethiopian planners and policy makers. The monograph's 7 sections are identified as follows: (1) Introduction; (2) Three Major Integrated Rural Development Projects (discussion of intensive packages focusing on organizational frameworks and major components which include: development of an improved technological package; dissemination of new practices; farm credit; lending policies; performance of the credit program; output marketing; and other components); (3) The Minimum Package Project (MPP's organization and major components); (4) Overall Assessment of the Ethiopian Package Projects (agricultural output and income; income distribution; employment; and local participation); (5) the Extension and Project Implementation Department of the 1975-80 Period (role of the intensive package projects and MPP's proposed rate of expansion); (6) Some Current Rural Development Issues (land tenure, reform, trained manpower, transportation, marketing, new technology, peasant associations, dissemination of innovations, and administrative organization); (7) Summary. (JC)

The report identifies regions in which deserts and arid zones are increasing; discusses social and climatic causes of deserts; and suggests ways to cope with and reverse problems of famine, malnutrition, and drought. Increasingly, land is being sapped of its ability to sustain agriculture and human habitation north and south of the Sahara, in Iraq, India, the Argentine, Chile, Australia, and the southwestern United States. This is due to overgrazing, soil erosion caused by improper cultivation, and farming without proper soil renewal. Soil cannot hold rainwater in devegetated areas and natural droughts create disasters because water stores become depleted. Underdeveloped countries with large nomadic populations living on arid land have not acquired attitudes of food production for the benefit of the society in general. In these countries, production for individual survival has created problems of unnecessarily large herds and overcultivation. Although technology exists to develop better farming and animal husbandry techniques, people must first accept the resultant change in lifestyle. Solutions include establishment of herding cooperatives, tree planting programs, agricultural modernization, and improvement of grain reserve facilities. (Author/AV)

Major arguments and background of the worldwide land reform debate are reviewed. In developing nations in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, the control of farmland remains a principal key to wealth, status, and power. Rural landless peasants at the bottom of the socioeconomic ladder, estimated by the World Bank at more than 600 million people, are unable to meet basic needs such as food, fuel, shelter, education, health care, and family planning. Review of international agricultural output data indicates that the economic case for land reform often rivals the social case for redistributive policies. Not only do grossly skewed land ownership and oppressive tenancy conditions have social consequences, they also result in a system which uses land and capital less efficiently than small family farms. In addition to increased crop output, the economic case for land reform also rests on self-propelled economic development, full employment, and political and economic stability. However, although United Nations officials and diplomats from developing countries realize the contribution that land reform can make to agricultural progress, land reform is generally avoided by political maneuvering. The conclusion is that if developing nations combine land redistribution with population stabilization and intelligent use of foreign capital, they will generate more equitable and efficient land use. (Author/DB)

Although soil erosion is a natural process, it has increased to the point where it far exceeds the natural formation of new soil. However, with only occasional exceptions, national agricultural and population policies have failed to take soil depletion into account. Projections of world food production always incorporate estimates of future cropland area, but what has been lacking has been an effort to project changes in inherent productivity of the projected cropland area. To help remedy this shortcoming in world food supply projections, an estimate of the worldwide loss of topsoil from cropland is presented. Areas discussed include: (1) the causes of soil erosion; (2) dimensions of the problem in various countries; (3) the effects of erosion (particularly related to loss of topsoil) on agricultural productivity; (4) the effects of erosion on other areas (indicating that the loss of topsoil that reduces land productivity may also reduce irrigation, electrical generation, and the navigability of waterways); (5) economic aspects of soil conservation; (6) the role of governments; and (7) global aspects of the problem. (JN)

This document deals with efforts aimed at reforesting large areas of degraded lands. It includes sections on: (1) tree cover trends; (2) fuelwood challenges of the future; (3) the need to supply industrial wood; (4) stabilizing soil and water resources; (5) forests and climate change; and (6) mobilization for reforestation. (TW)

Considerable prior analysis has gone into the study of zoning restrictions on locational choice and on fiscal burdens. The prior work on zoning--particularly fiscal or exclusionary zoning--has provided both inconclusive theoretical results and quite inconsistent empirical support of the theory. More importantly, none of this work addresses important questions about the level and distribution of public goods that are provided under fiscal zoning. Since fiscal issues and Tiebout demands are central to much of the motivation for exclusionary zoning, we expand the theoretical analysis to encompass the interplay between land use restrictions and public good provision. In this, we focus on schooling outcomes, since the provision of education is one of the primary activities of local jurisdictions. We develop a general equilibrium model of location and the provision of education. Some households create a fiscal burden, motivating the use by local governments of exclusionary land-use controls. Then, the paper analyzes what the market effects of land-use controls are and how successful they are. The policies considered (minimum lot size zoning, local public finance with a head tax, and fringe zoning) demonstrate how household behavior directly affects the equilibrium outcomes and the provision of the local public good.