The Iowa Learning Farms conservation webinar taking place November 8 at noon will feature Katehrine Dentzman, Ph.D., assistant professor of rural sociology, Iowa State University. Dentzman specializes in transdisciplinary agri-food research at the intersection of environmental and social sustainability. Using mixed method designs and a grounding in critical theory, she has contributed a unique sociology perspective to nearly a dozen separate research teams.

In the webinar, “Community Approaches to Pesticide Resistance Management,” Dentzman will describe the ongoing issue of pesticide resistance – a complex situation for which there are no simple solutions, and discuss why individual management approaches have been ineffective in preventing resistant weeds, insects and pathogens from continuing to spread across agricultural lands. She will highlight the impact of larger factors such as farm sizes, crop prices and market volatility which can limit management choices available to farmers, crop advisers, and other agricultural stakeholders. Dentzman will also discuss the potential of community-based management as one possible avenue for dealing with this landscape-scale issue.

“There is increased evidence that pesticide resistance is an issue that cannot be managed through individual efforts, but improving understanding of collaborative community-based approaches among stakeholders may help break through the current barriers and provide systemic improvements,” said Dentzman. “I hope that participants in this session will come away with a better understanding of the struggles different stakeholders face in managing resistance and how a collaborative approach can assist in overcoming these barriers.”

Shortly before noon CST, click the link below or type this web address into your internet browser: https://iastate.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_xtAwWXycQZW8iwtNLz34GA#/registration