The overall purpose of the Workgroup is to facilitate research and extension education activities that add to the rural and agricultural sectors through the development of agri-and eco-tourism. Mission: The mission of the workgroup is to add value to rural communities and agricultural and natural resource based operations through collaborative research and education programs oriented to the identification, development and adoption of “Best Practices” in ecotourism and agricultural tourism that will generate significant positive outcomes for California society. Vision: Our vision is of a more integrated rural/urban interface in which consumers and other groups interact more directly with agricultural producers and natural resources stakeholders, to generate increased incomes for agriculture and rural communities, improved mutual understandings between the various interests, and public policies that enable producers, resource owners, the environment and consumers to derive positive benefits from the interactions brought about through eco-and agricultural tourism. Justification: With agricultural commodity markets experiencing low prices, in the context of generally increasing input prices, farm incomes have been declining. California’s agriculture revenues, according to Bankamerica Corporation’s, Vernon Crowder, declined by 6 percent-- about $1,5 million between 1997 and 1998. But farm profits dropped by 43 percent – the steepest decline since 1991. Agriculture, in general, has been insulated from the economic boom of the past decade. The exceptions to this general pattern comes from specialty crop operations and farms engaged in direct marketing. Agricultural tourism is another form of direct marketing that offers significant opportunities to enhance farm revenues and economic activity in rural communities and agricultural areas on the urban fringe. Existing operations indicate the potential to exploit opportunities provided by large, proximate urban populations with potential demand for the farm and rural experience and direct engagement with producers and agricultural ambiance. The Gizdich Ranch, for example, has diversified from selling apples wholesale to processors to selling U-Pick apples, berries, processed value-added products and specialty products and enjoy revenues estimated at in excess of a million dollars. One apple ranch near St. Louis, Missouri, a similar kind of agritourism operation, grosses over $3,000,000 dollars. Congruence with DANR Program Priorities: Ecotourism appeals to the fundamental desire of urbanites to engage more directly with natural environments. Ecotourism products may include hikes, camping, educational tours, kayaking, educational experiences in forests, estuaries, lakes and other natural amenities including heritage events – e.g. Native American historical practices and the like. Agritourism products include: farm trails, festivals, U-Pick operations, educational tours, farm stays (including Bed and Breakfasts), cattle drives, etc. Value-added products marketed in conjunction with agritourism add to the revenue potential of agricultural operations. The Ag-and Eco-tourism Workgroup’s mission and objectives are significantly congruent with DANR’s priorities as articulated in “Program Priorities” – March 1999. These areas of congruence include: Natural Resources: Issue 5, Goal 1, Actions 1,2,3; Issue 5, Goal 2, Action 1; Issue 1, Goal 1, Action 1,3. Human Resources: Supportive Environment, Goal 1, Action 1.2; Action 1.3; Economically Viable Families and Communities – Goal 2, Actions 2.1, 2.2; Goal 3, Action 3.1; Human-Environment Interaction – Goal 1, Action 1.1; Goal 2, Action 2.1; Goal 3, Action 3.1; Agricultural Resources: Issue 1, Actions 8+9; Issue 3, Action 1; Issue 4, Action 2; issue 5, Action 3, and Issue 7. Clearly the programmatic foci of the Eco-and Agritourism Workgroup cover a cross-section of issue areas embraced by DANR. This explains the multidisciplinary nature of the membership and the skills and specialization’s they bring to the group and the issues (see Membership list attached). The membership includes not just a wide diversity of DANR professionals, but also a significant swath of stakeholders from the agriculture and ranching industry, tourism, and state and local governments. The foci encompassed by the Workgroup will touch on – natural resources conservation, economic and enterprise development, entrepreneurial education including – business planning, risk management, food safety, marketing, customer relations, product development, diversification and value added; the regulatory system, the viability and preservation of farms and ranches; policy analysis and education; professional development and networking; and public education. E. Workgroup Structure and Operational Procedures: The Eco-and Agritourism Work Group developed out of the USDA funded, three-year project “Agricultural Tourism and Value-Added Production – A Collaborative Approach Based on Agricultural Tourism.” That project entailed pilot projects in San Diego and the Central Coast, and a statewide effort focused on research and education. Marin/Sonoma has been incorporated into the project through a partnership with efforts in those counties, and a Central Valley effort is envisioned for the 1999/2000 periods. The Workgroup will pursue additional sources of funds for supplementing the effort beyond March 2000 when the USDA grant ends. Potential sources include USDA-AMS, the National Research Initiative, and the Great Valley Center. Workgroup funds from DANR will be leveraged with extra-mural resources. The UC Workgroup: “The Workgroup” embraces some 85 persons including Extension specialists, advisors, campus faculty, representatives from the agricultural industry, from the tourism sector and Chambers of Commerce of various cities. The Workgroup has communicated through meetings and an e-mail list serve. It has a Web Page. So far it has identified applied research topics, and conducted research conferences and workshops. Educational resources have developed significantly with articles, websites, and a list of experts. Our activities have generated a large number of popular articles in the mass media including newspapers, and radio stories as well as interviews. We have also facilitated professional development. Peer reviewed research is underway. A recent article was published in the December issue of California Agriculture. Planning Implementation and Coordination: The Continuing Conference each year will provide a concentrated opportunity to plan on a 1-2 year horizon. But planning and implementation will be on ongoing activity facilitated by the Steering Committee and the various functional committees – Research, Education, Professional Development and Outreach. These committees will ensure that outcomes, to the maximum extent possible, will match the Activities Plan.