The University of Missouri’s Center for Agroforestry’s 2024 symposium, Silvopasture in Practice, is slated for Wednesday, Jan. 17, and will feature a full day of presentations, panels and discussions on long-term silvopasture research, early adopters and innovators, intergenerational land management approaches, regional insights and challenges, and the environmental, economic and social impacts of silvopasture as a land-management strategy.
This marks the 15th annual Agroforestry Symposium hosted by the Center for Agroforestry. Each year, the center aims to grow connections and raise awareness about important work in agroforestry. It is always free and open to the public, and in-person and virtual options are available.
This year’s symposium will take place 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 17. In-person participants may join at the Center for Missouri Studies, 605 Elm Street, Columbia, Mo with lunch provided. Registration is required of all participants; virtual participants will be prompted to submit additional registration via Zoom.
Silvopasture is the intentional combination of livestock, forage, and trees managed as part of integrated farm systems. Silvopastoral systems are highly adaptable to various farm contexts and scales, and have the potential to diversify farm income while providing environmental benefits.
The symposium will explore how silvopasture practices have emerged as some of the most critical agroforestry tools for carbon sequestration and farm system integration. As funding and technical assistance for silvopasture establishment becomes more readily available within new and existing incentive programs, the need to convey the complexity of these integrated systems, the challenges producers face and stories of success are increasingly important. In addition to sharing farm-level insights, this year’s Symposium will bring together the country’s leading scientists and practitioners exploring the complexities, promise and potential of silvopasture.
The Center for Agroforestry is an MU College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources Program of Distinction. The goal of the Center is to initiate, coordinate and enhance agroforestry activities to meet the environmental, social and economic needs of land management worldwide. It is focused on serving as a preeminent global center in agroforestry research, education and training with comprehensive programs that encompass ecological and economic sustainability, specialty crop research, environmental conservation and stewardship and integrated farm system management.
The Center, created in 1998, supports the long-term future of rural and urban working farms and forests by achieving economic, environmental and social sustainability.
Learn more about the Center for Agroforestry by visiting its website.