ESCOP PLANNING COMMITTEE
ANNUAL REPORT
2001

Chair: Eric Young, North Carolina State University

Activities during the year:

The minutes of all Committee meetings and various working documents referenced below, are available on the Committee web site accessible from the ESCOP homepage or using the direct URL of http://www.escop.msstate.edu/committee/plan00.htm#Action.

Continuing the Committee's charge of linking planning with budget development, future research priorities (2005-2010) that were identified by the Directors at the September, 2000 SAES/ARD Workshop in New Orleans. This priority list developed from breakout group input at the Workshop by Dick Lower, Tom Payne, Terry Nipp, May Naddaf, and Eric Young and all the raw material from the breakout groups was reviewed and refined. The resulting ESS research priority list is available on the ESCOP Workroom web site at http://www.escop.msstate.edu/draftdoc.htm. These priorities were presented to, and approved by, the ESCOP Executive Committee.

The Committee also has refined the flow chart outlining the interaction of ESCOP Core Committees in developing program and budget initiatives. This flow chart is available at http://www.escop.msstate.edu/committee/pl-joint-initiative.pdf. A potential timeline for the process flow and explanatory statement to accompany the flowchart will be developed.

Due to the timeliness and importance of interaction with extension, the Committee decided to focus its immediate future activities on joint planning with ECOP-SPC. Potential topics include:

  1. Joint priority setting through reconciling the current priorities of ESCOP and ECOP.
  2. Futuring activities focused on information technology needs in the 21st century.

The ECOP / ESCOP Joint Planning Committee (JPC) completed its focus on the future of biotechnology through a futuring process designed to look 20 to 50 years into the future. This session was facilitated by Gil Meyer of DuPont. Areas of discussion included potential ethical, social, scientific, economic, political and environmental issues and the impacts of biotechnology advancements. This session was held in February 2001 and the results transmitted to the Biotechnology Implementation Task Force for their consideration.

The ESCOP-Executive Committee asked the JPC to develop an action plan and desired outcomes to address recommendations made in the Strategies for Enhanced Engagement report (available at http://www.escop.msstate.edu/committee/engage.pdf). This plan has been completed (available at http://www.escop.msstate.edu/committee/engagement-action-plan.pdf) and covers four aspects of implementing the report’s recommendations:

  1. Strengthening authentic partnerships with stakeholders
  2. Creating a culture for engagement
  3. Achieving funding for effective engagement
  4. Enhanced accountability
The plan is intended to be used as a roadmap for enhancing engagement at the institutional, state, regional, and/or national levels by the research and extension system in conjunction with its partners. It is also intended to facilitate an ongoing effort of continuous improvement in following the principles and practices of engagement

The JPC has been asked to follow-up on two priority action items from the Partnership Workshop held in February 2001:

  1. Develop a shared vision for the partnership.
  2. Establish a formal joint priority and initiative setting process.
The JPC agreed that the shared vision should concentrate on the areas where the partners overlap; include aspects of accountability and budget for partnership activities; and consist primarily of an operational vision aimed at how programmatic goals are accomplished. The joint priority/ initiative setting process should identify and move forward initiatives where partners overlap while maintaining each partners unique priority areas. The JPC will address both of these items at its next meeting in October, 2001 and make recommendations to ECOP and ESCOP.

The JPC has also recently developed a document outlining the charge, roles, and responsibilities of the joint committee. This document was presented at the ECOP/ESCOP joint meeting in July, 2001 and accepted by both executive committees and is available at http://www.escop.msstate.edu/committee/planjointcharge.htm.

Plans for the coming year:

The ESCOP-PC will continue to facilitate the budget priority setting process held at the SAES/ARD Workshop in September. The Committee will also work to refine the flow chart of Core Committees interaction and develop an accompanying timeline and explanatory text.

The ECOP/ESCOP Joint Planning Committee will develop a draft partnership vision statement and a process for setting joint priorities and initiatives. The JPC will also continue its futuring activities an another programmatic area of high priority for both research and extension, possibly food safety.

Committee membership changes:

Kristine Perry replaced Don Latham as the CARET representative.

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