The New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids (NJPHK), a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, hosted the Building a Culture of Health in New Jersey Conference on Dec. 2 at the Pines Manor in Edison… “The many advocates and supporters who work diligently to make a difference in the health of our communities are to be commended for their efforts – both in the field and behind the scenes,” said Anderson. During the conference, the inaugural “Culture of Health Champion Awards” were presented to four organizations/affiliations for outstanding efforts in four categories: Community: The Rutgers Cooperative Extension recognized for providing leadership, collaboration and science-based education through partners – NJPHK and Department of Health; implementation of Get Moving – Get Healthy New Jersey; and partnering in advancing environment and policy change.
Archives for December 2015
In Memoriam: Mary Jane Willis – 40 Years of Service to Rutgers Cooperative Extension
Associate Director of Rutgers Cooperative Extension (RCE) Mary Jane Willis (1948–2015), who for 40 years has served RCE with diligence and dedication, passed away on December 5, 2015. Mary Jane’s outstanding service to RCE began as an extension home economist in October 1975, a position she held until she became a Foods and Nutrition Program […]
What Are the Odds of Having a White Christmas in N.J.?
If you’re dreaming of a white Christmas this year, you might want to hit the road and visit friends or relatives in Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Maine or upstate New York… Those are among the places in America with the highest probability of having 1 …
Saving Shore Communities a Risky, Expensive Proposition
The sea is rising. The land is sinking. Entire mid-Atlantic communities are anchored in between, bookended by certain disaster unless a way is found to turn back the tide and save the shore… Build levees and dikes. Erect bulkheads around entire towns. Construct dunes in the marshes to absorb flooding from the west. Transform low-lying areas into amphibious suburbs. Admit defeat and retreat… “The bayside is basically the Achilles’ heel of New Jersey,” said Michael Kennish, a research professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University. “It’s a crisis scientists are concerned about. People are more concerned about what they’re going to eat two days from now.”… Kennish said most experts advocate what he calls “a practical view,” endorsing infrastructure improvements to stormwater drainage systems and the installation of pumping stations, along with raising roads and houses.
Rutgers Cooperative Extension FCHS Members Awarded at National Conference
Rutgers Cooperative Extension Family and Community Health Sciences (FCHS) Department members, along with other team members, won national and regional recognition at the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Annual Session in West Virginia in November. (FCHS department members are listed in bold) Karen Ensle, Michelle Brill, Alexandra Grenci & Kathleen Morgan. 1st […]
The Record: Controlling Sewage
When it rains, as it often does in North Jersey, that can mean trouble regarding sewage discharge for many towns still operating with ages-old wastewater infrastructure. During heavy storms especially, these systems can become overwhelmed, resulting in raw sewage flooding into the state’s waterways, where it can create both environmental and health problems for thousands of people.. The problem is especially evident in Paterson, where antiquated pipes are connected to old sewer and stormwater systems. During heavy rains, the extra surge of water overwhelms the system, dumping a toxic mix of ordinary street pollution with sewage through 24 so-called overflow pipes that lead directly into the Passaic River… Encouragingly, Chris Obropta, an environmental sciences expert at Rutgers, has met with Paterson Mayor Joey Torres on ways the city can improve the situation. They talked about rain gardens, which Obropta said would “not only capture rainwater but clean the air and provide wildlife habitat.”
For African Cooks, One New Jersey Farmer Has What They Need
Tomatoes, corn, and peaches are the staples of New Jersey agriculture. But at Morris Gbolo’s farm in the state’s southern tip, crimson-hued amaranths and plump Liberian bitter ball are the prized crops… Gbolo is the first farmer to introduce his country’s bitter ball to New Jersey. The African eggplant (also known as garden egg or jilo) is especially prized by Liberians, whose numbers have been swelling in nearby Philadelphia… “Ethnic farms like Morris’s cater to recent immigrants who cannot find the fresh specialty produce [of] their homelands,” says Richard VanVranken, an agricultural agent at Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Atlantic County who has studied New Jersey’s ethnic food industry since the 1980s… VanVranken hired Gbolo to work in his extension program in 2006 and soon realized it was an opportunity to study African crops and learn from Gbolo, who had been a farmer and agriculture educator in Liberia.
New Steps to Keep Sewage from Passaic River
During heavy rains, Bergen and Passaic county towns along the Passaic River are the recipients of raw sewage swirling down the river from Paterson… The issue affects communities that have what’s known as combined-sewer overflow pipes, which handle bo…
College Corner: Rutgers’ Reed Wins Prestigious Award
The consummate team player on the pitch, Brianne Reed earned the ultimate individual honor off it. After leading the Rutgers women’s soccer team to the NCAA Tournament semifinals, the Tinton Falls native and Red Bank Catholic graduate earned the Division I Senior CLASS Award… “I put in a lot of hard work at this university, and for it to show on and off the field, in the classroom and in the community is truly an honor,” Reed said… Off the field, the public health major is a three-time Dean’s List selection who has served on Rutgers’ Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. In the community, Reed has volunteered with Read Across America, the Elijah’s Promise soup kitchen and local hospitals in New Brunswick, and has participated in toy and book drives and visits to area schools.
With China’s GMO Sector in Limbo, Local Seed Firm Targets U.S.
A Chinese biotech seed firm is aiming to launch the country’s first genetically modified corn products overseas on the home turf of the world’s top agricultural companies, as Beijing’s reticence over GMO food keeps the domestic market off limits… The plan by Beijing-based Origin Agritech to test its technology in the United States, which has dominated the sector with GMO giants such as Monsanto, is the latest effort by a Chinese firm to enter the global industry… “The only way they might be able to break into the market is if their technology fees are going to be cheaper than Monsanto,” said Carl Pray, professor at Rutgers University’s agricultural, food and resource economics department… Referring to seed firm Beijing Dabeinong Technology Group’s agreement to test its technology in Argentina, Pray said competition was tougher in the United States. “It’s one thing to do this in Argentina, and another to go into the U.S.”