December 16, 2024 • 21 mins
Managing a hub of innovation is no small feat, but for Eric Elsner, superintendent of the J. Phil Campbell Research and Education Center, it’s a daily opportunity to make an impact. In this episode, Eric shares how he oversees multidisciplinary research projects designed to tackle real-world challenges Georgia farmers face. From managing collaborative studies to supporting student workers in unique hands-on learning experiences, Eric highlights how the center serves as a bridge between cutting-edge science, practical Extension work and the farming community. Join us as we explore his passion for fostering connections between research, education and community-building and how the center’s efforts are shaping a stronger future for agriculture in Georgia.
Resources:
- CAES Research and Education Centers
- J. Phil Campbell REC
- Finding UGA Cooperative Extension County offices
- Oconee County Extension office
Content from UGA/CAES:
- Photo and video from tour of J. Phil Campbell REC cotton harvest
- Superintendent builds upon mission at research and education center (feature story)
---
Produced by Jordan Powers and Emily Cabrera
Edited by Jordan Powers
Music and sound effects by Mason McClintock, an Athens-based singer, songwriter and storyteller who creates innovative soul-pop music that transcends traditional genre boundaries. Hailing from small-town Southeast Georgia, Mason's influences range from the purest pop to the most powerful gospel. Mason is a former Georgia 4-H'er and University of Georgia graduate! Listen to his music on Spotify.
Almanac is an annual publication that provides a window into the work being done at CAES to make the world increasingly healthy, equitable and sustainable. We are pleased to announce that the 2024 edition is now available online. Explore stories of science in service of humanity and the environment.
Get social with us!
Follow CAES on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn and check out UGA Extension on on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn for the latest updates.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Sound Effect (00:00):
[music]
Jordan Powers (00:00):
Welcome to Cultivating Curiosity where we
get down and dirty with theexperts on all the ways science
and agriculture touch our lives,from what we eat to how we live.
I'm Jordan Powers.
Emily Cabrera (00:12):
And I'm Emily Cabrera. We're from the
University of Georgia's Collegeof Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences.
Sound Effect (00:19):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (00:20):
Emily and I had a chance to visit the J. Phil
Campbell Senior Research andEducation Center in
Watkinsville, Georgia, where wespoke with Eric Elsner,
superintendent of the center.
One of the core missions of CAESis to seek, verify and apply
knowledge related to agricultureand the environment, and to
disseminate this knowledgethrough student education and
public outreach programs, theresearch and education centers,
(00:42):
or RECs, play an integral rolein providing faculty and
students with the opportunity toconduct experiments across a
wide range of productionsystems, soil types and
climates. The college has eightoff campus REC facilities
located throughout the state,including the 1700 acre J. Phil
Campbell Sr. REC. Now on to theshow.
Sound Effect (01:03):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (01:05):
So thanks so much for having us out to the center
today, Eric, we reallyappreciate it, As we kick off,
can you tell us about thefunction of a Research and
Education Center and its role insupporting the colleges three
missions of research, educationand Extension and addressing
local production concerns?
Eric Elsner (01:21):
You bet, I'll be glad to. Thank you guys for
coming out, for having me on theshow. Been looking forward to
it. You know, my staff spendtheir whole day actively
supporting research projectsfrom the College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences.
They're strategically locatedaround the state, in part to
address local concerns, right?
(01:41):
The limestone valley hasdifferent challenges than
Attapulgus, Georgia has, and sowe're there in both of those
places. Georgia Mountain inBlairsville [Georgia Mountain
REC] clearly has differentchallenges than some of the
other places have. So we're inthose strategic locations to
address those local concerns.
Extension, with respect to JPC[J. Phil Campbell REC], that's
an easy one too. We house theOconee County Extension Service
(02:02):
in our building. So when youguys came in this afternoon, you
walked through the Extensionoffice in down here. Around the
state, Extension agents,Extension specialists, we work
with them closely to supporttheir demonstration projects.
They work with us to support ourfield days, to transfer
knowledge that's being gained onthe station out into the public,
(02:22):
right? So we work hand in handwith Extension agents and
specialists on a daily basis,and we rely on that network of
Extension agents. They havetheir finger on the pulse of the
communities, the ag industrythere, and so that's what we
rely on is our sort of litmustest for how is ag going, and
what are the emerging problems.
Sound Effect (02:45):
[chime]
Emily Cabrera (02:47):
UGA Cooperative Extension encompasses three main
program areas; agriculture andnatural resources, family and
consumer sciences, and 4-H.
County offices are the home basefor these agents who serve their
communities as an extension ofthe University of Georgia.
Agents work directly withresidents and tend to have a
broader scope of informationaddressing a variety of topics
within their subject area.
(03:09):
Whereas Extension specialistsare faculty members or
researchers based at theUniversity who focus on
developing expertise in specifictopics. Specialists support
agents with complex questionsand help solve local challenges
through targeted research. Whileagents work directly with the
community to deliver hands oneducation, specialists support
those efforts through focusedexpertise and research.
(03:31):
Together, they create a valuablenetwork that helps translate
university knowledge into realworld solutions. An extra note
for our Georgia listeners willinclude a link in the show notes
on how to find your countyExtension agent.
Sound Effect (03:42):
[chime]
Eric Elsner (03:44):
Teaching is another easy one for JPC. We're so close
to main campus here in Athensthat we get a lot of traffic
from college level academicclasses. We're a place for an
outdoor lab. Beyond that, mostresearch and education centers
work hand in hand again throughtheir Extension agents in the
local counties supporting 4-Hprogramming. You work with your
(04:07):
local schools, and you'resupporting FFA [Future Farmers
of America] programming. We allhave some iteration of a third
grade Ag Day or, you know,right? Kids come out to touch a
tractor, all the way up throughhigh school. And even adult
programming, a lot of times,hand in hand with Extension,
again, Master Gardener programs,those sorts of things. If the
college can dream it up, right?
It's an outreach or aneducational program, then a lot
(04:30):
of times a Research andEducation Center is the place
where it's happening.
Jordan Powers (04:35):
It's really cool to see an environment where
there is that combination of somuch local input and local
participation, but then it'salso this statewide network
right where you're able tomaybe, even if the concerns
aren't the same, work with yourcolleagues across the RECs on a
broader scale. So it's reallycool to see something that is
(04:56):
both so local and statewide.
Eric Elsner (04:58):
Yeah, statewide variety testing. They're growing
the same varieties of corn inAttapulgus [REC] that they're
growing in Blairsville.
Jordan Powers (05:05):
Wow.
Eric Elsner (05:06):
Huge difference in climate between those two
locations. And so the farmers inBlairsville are getting
literally the same informationthat the farmers in Attapulgus
are getting, but it's tailoredto their growing environment.
And so the guy in Attapulgus orthe gal is probably picking a
different variety of corn thanthe person in Blairsville is.
(05:28):
And we talk about, right,Extension being the technology
transfer arm of that process,the land grant process, right
the county delivery system.
We're finding the answers on theResearch and Education Center.
And that's also the place, in alot of instances where the
technology is being transferredto the public.
Emily Cabrera (05:45):
Mm hmm. And I'm wondering, so with all of these
different research projectsthroughout the centers, your
role as a superintendent, whatdoes the day to day look like
for you? What is your role assuperintendent?
Eric Elsner (05:58):
Which day?
[everyone laughing] My job asthe superintendent is first and
foremost to make sure that Icreate an environment where a
scientist has the opportunity toconduct successful research. I
can't conduct that research forhim. I can't make them
successful, but I can create anenvironment where they have the
(06:19):
opportunity to be successful.
That means a lot of differentthings. Late winter, early
spring, I'm working reallyclosely with faculty to get an
understanding of what they needto do this year. A lot of that
in the spring, as they're goinginto planting season, through
the growing season, we provide alot of the management of the
(06:42):
crops that are growing or thecattle that are subjects of the
research. And so I engage withmy staff. I have some folks that
are primarily responsible for mysmall plot research at our West
Unit. I have a farm manager whohas a primary responsibility for
our cattle herd. I have a farmmanager at the Iron Horse Farm
who's responsible for overseeingthose operations, and so I'm in
(07:05):
close contact with those folks,right? Just like that local
Extension agent's taking pulses,I'm taking pulses too. I'm not a
micro manager. I'm empoweringyou to do your job. Come see me
if you need me. Otherwise,you're better at it than I am.
Go do it. Right? I'm managing,okay? We're a working farm,
livestock too. So we don't havean off season. If we were
strictly row crop, then we'd bewinding down right now. Harvest,
(07:29):
and then put everything in theshop and start working on things
that broke. With livestock,Christmas Day, somebody's here,
right? New Year's Day,somebody's here. We never stop
coming to work. 365 days a yearI have somebody here in
Watkinsville.
Emily Cabrera (07:43):
Wow.
Jordan Powers (07:44):
That is a big lift indeed. So you just
mentioned a couple components ofthis, of different research
plots and Iron Horse [Farm],etc. How many projects are
happening at the center at anygiven time?
Eric Elsner (07:56):
This year, we have about 65 individual research
projects, and those are spreadbetween here and Iron Horse.
It's not uncommon for us toencompass all but maybe one or
two of the academic departmentsin the college, and it's the
same this year. We spanentomology, crop and soils,
plant pathology, ag econ, animaland dairy science, horticulture.
(08:19):
We're supporting researchprojects from all of those
schools, along with a few fromthe Franklin College too. The
geology folks are out here fromtime to time. Plant bio
[biology] folks are out here aswell.
Sound Effect (08:30):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (08:32):
Part of the reason we came out to JPC to
record today instead of thestudio, is because, in addition
to helping manage all thefaculty led research projects
Eric just mentioned, he and histeam also work year-round to
produce commodity crops, likecotton.
Emily Cabrera (08:45):
Right, so they manage all aspects of
production, from field prep andplanting through harvest, just
like cotton producers around thestate. Sales from cotton grown
at UGA Research and EducationCenters cover operational costs
for equipment, crop inputs andother necessary production
related materials.
Jordan Powers (09:03):
And today, we had the opportunity to watch a
cotton module builder in action.
Ambient Sound (09:10):
[field machinery in operation]
Jordan Powers (09:11):
Okay, so Eric, we are out here in the field. I am
gonna admit I don't fully knowwhat I'm looking at, but I see a
tractor. I see a whole lot ofcotton, and it looks like it's
compacting it down. Can you tellus what's actually happening out
here?
Eric Elsner (09:25):
Sure. That's a module builder that you're
looking at, and we use it whenwe're harvesting cotton. So when
we run a cotton picker over thecrop, the picker obviously
collects the cotton, but it'sloose cotton, by definition, or
nature, is really fluffy, and soin order to efficiently store
(09:48):
the cotton, we pack it intowhat's called a module. It's a
little bit of an oldertechnology. Modern cotton
pickers are making their ownround module that you see when
you travel through the southernpart of the state. This is an
older technology that is, we'reusing a module builder, and
(10:08):
either our cotton picker or ourboll buggy will pull up to this
module builder and actually dumpall of the cotton that we just
harvested into the modulebuilder. And then we have a
gentleman on top of the modulebuilder, operating some
hydraulic cylinders and a bigpress that is just almost
(10:29):
constantly packing that cotton,packing that cotton, packing
that cotton, probably down tothree or four times less volume
than it would take if we justdumped it without packing it.
Jordan Powers (10:44):
How do you measure how much cotton is
there? Is that pounds? Or isthat? How is that? I don't even
know how to explain how muchcotton I'm looking at.
Eric Elsner (10:51):
Okay, so cotton is sold and marketed by the bale,
and for all intents andpurposes, a bale of cotton is
500 pounds. And in this modulethat we're looking right here
with the yellow tarp on it, Ican't give you an exact number.
You'll never know an exactnumber until it's ginned, but
(11:11):
I'm going to tell you thatthere's probably 12 to 14 bales
of cotton inside that module.
Jordan Powers (11:18):
Wow. That's a lot of cotton.
Eric Elsner (11:20):
It is a lot of cotton.
Jordan Powers (11:22):
Awesome. Thanks, Eric.
Eric Elsner (11:23):
You're welcome.
Emily Cabrera (11:27):
We'll put a link in the show notes so you can
watch the module builder inaction. And now let's get back
to the interview.
Sound Effect (11:33):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (11:35):
Can you tell us about a research project or two
that you might be particularlyexcited about this year? I don't
want to get anybody feeling badif you don't talk about their
project.
Eric Elsner (11:43):
I love them all, right? [everyone laughing].
They're all my favorite.
Emily Cabrera (11:46):
That's a diplomatic answer.
Eric Elsner (11:49):
I've always kind of had a soft spot for genetics,
the ability of our scientists inthe college to literally go back
in time, to ancient times andcherry pick genes that will help
us today. I'm easily impressed,maybe, but they're literally
able to reach back in time,10,000 years, grab a gene that
(12:10):
we need today and put it in aplant that can help a farmer
today. That's incredible to me.
Also, this is our first year,Dr. Donglin Zhang, from
horticulture, has his first hopsyard out at our West Unit. I
think there's a hops yard now atthe Durham Horticultural Farm,
and there are plans for a hopsyard at the Georgia Mountain
Research and Education Center,too. So we've started a breeding
(12:31):
program, he has, to try toidentify some lines of hops that
will produce in the southeast,right? They're in the Pacific
Northwest, usually. So we'retrying to find some stuff that
works down here, and maybeinvolve some of the local
brewing companies, that sort ofthing. Generate some interest
there in some Georgia Grownhops.
Emily Cabrera (12:53):
Well, speaking of Georgia Grown, you're a Georgia
boy.
Eric Elsner (12:56):
I'm Georgia Grown.
Emily Cabrera (12:58):
[laughter] You're Georgia Grown. And we learned
that you grew up here in OconeeCounty, and knowing that farming
tends to be a family endeavor,that not only did you grow up in
Oconee, but your family had afarm, and your father was also a
UGA faculty member. So how didthis combination influence your
educational and careertrajectory?
Eric Elsner (13:18):
Gosh, we could talk about this, whichever rabbit
hole you guys want to go down.
Emily Cabrera (13:22):
[overlapping talk] Let's go down both.
Eric Elsner (13:22):
For the next 30 minutes, then we can talk about
it for a while. So my dad wasfaculty in, at that time it was
the Agronomy Department. He wasthe weed scientist when my
sister and I were born, andtransitioned from that into the
state soybean specialist in the70s, and then transitioned from
that to state of Georgia,Georgia Seed Development
(13:44):
Commission. So when I was ayoung child, like 4, 5, 6, 7
years old, I literally grew upriding a rolling chair around
the third floor of the MillerPlant Sciences Building in the
fourth floor.
Jordan Powers (13:57):
[laughter] Wow.
Eric Elsner (13:58):
And so names like Kim Tan, and Roger Boerma, and
Harold Brown and some of these,some of those giants, at least
in my mind, giants of theagronomy department, those
folks, they're part of thefabric of my life. And so, I
mean, what did Eddie Van Halen'sson do? Right? He's playing the
guitar. So what do you thinkEarl Elsner's son's gonna do?
(14:19):
He's gonna, you know, kind ofthat sort of thing. You just
sort of follow in footsteps. Soit was just a natural
progression to me in 1980 - I'lldate myself - in 1988 my dad,
because he was an academic, puta lot of emphasis on when I went
to college, he wanted me to goto a place where there was a lot
of knowledge stored. In 1988 youneeded a library for that. And
(14:42):
so the fact that the Universityof Georgia had the library
system that it has made that theobvious choice. And he was, you
know, I could have done whateverI wanted to do, but it was
pretty, it was uh, he's probablygoing to hear this, so I'm
looking for the right words.
[everyone laughing] It wasencouraged, I think probably, to
go to University of Georgia, andso that's what I did. I love the
smell of fresh turned earth, andI just grew up around it, and
(15:06):
it's part of who I am.
Emily Cabrera (15:08):
That is so wholesome.
Eric Elsner (15:09):
University of Georgia too, you know, for that
matter.
Jordan Powers (15:12):
So we know that you also worked at this, this
exact center as a student. Doesthat experience continue to
inform you in your role now as asuperintendent?
Eric Elsner (15:21):
One hundred percent. For reasons that you
may not realize. And I'm gonnatry to find a really good way to
say this too. I always had areally good work ethic, and my
dad was a known quantity to thepeople that worked at this
station. He was a known quantityto faculty that worked on
campus. And so that priorexisting relationship cracked
(15:43):
doors open for me, but it was myresponsibility to stay in the
room, right? It opened doors,but once I got in the room, it's
my responsibility to stay there.
I always had a good work ethicoutside of work sometimes, let
us say I would make less thanideal decisions for my late teen
and early 20s years [everyonelaughing].
Jordan Powers (16:05):
Didn't we all?
Emily Cabrera (16:06):
No shame.
Eric Elsner (16:08):
And so, in spite of that, I always showed up and
always got after it when I wasat work. I didn't really know
what specific direction I wantedto go in. I just showed up to
work and built fence, and I didit good, and I did it hard. But
I didn't really know whether Iwanted to be president, or a
rock star, or a superintendent,right? I'm just trying to figure
(16:28):
all that out and making some baddecisions in that process. But
the people that I worked for sawsomething in me that I didn't
see. I didn't know was thereyet. I won't call names, but
there's some significant peoplein my life that did and so all
of that to say, it turns out I'mnot the only person that had
some of those challenges. Andwhen I hire student workers,
(16:49):
sometimes they'll I'll hirestudent workers that already
have it all figured out. Lifejust goes, click, click, click,
click, click, and that's great,you know. But I also hire some
student workers who remind me alot of me, still trying to
figure it out. If you work forEric, and you show up to work
and get after it, you can screwup a little bit. That's fine,
because I see something and, youknow, I kind of pay that
(17:11):
forward. You get a shot tofigure it out. Makes sense?
Jordan Powers (17:15):
Yeah, it makes perfect sense. And I feel like
it's safe to say we need morepeople in the world operate that
way of creating a safe space togrow. I mean literally. I mean
we're growing things in theground, but for our students to
grow into who they're going tobecome, that's exciting.
Eric Elsner (17:30):
One hundred percent.
Emily Cabrera (17:31):
And learning from mistakes. You know, mistakes
were made, you said, and I'msure those were some of the
biggest learning opportunitiesfor yourself.
Eric Elsner (17:38):
And some of the best times. [everyone laughing]
Jordan Powers (17:43):
That took a turn you weren't expecting, Em.
Eric Elsner (17:46):
Sorry, dad.
Emily Cabrera (17:47):
So what do students gain from having these
opportunities to participate inresearch projects at RECs?
Eric Elsner (17:54):
They're introduced to a lot of things. It's up to
them to decide what they absorband what they do with it, right?
So first and foremost, you'reintroduced to a working farm if
you've never been introduced toone before. And what that means?
That means 630, or seven o'clockin the morning, cold, hot, wet,
rainy, whatever, you've gotthings that have to happen.
There are things out there thatare alive, that are relying on
(18:15):
you. Right? Prettystraightforward. You're
introduced to the scientificmethod. Why do I have to treat
this one the same way that Itreated that one? I'm tired now.
Can I do this half as good as Idid the one before? You're
introduced to the scientificmethod and what that means, and
to some really criticalthinkers, you're introduced to
some people that are some ultrahigh achievers, and they expect
(18:36):
things to be done a certain way,and they expect them to be done
right now, and they expect themto be done right. And so, you
can be exposed to theconsequences of not living up to
people's expectations or notdoing the job that you're
getting paid to do. Learningexperiences.
Jordan Powers (18:52):
Well, I feel like we could talk all afternoon. I
mean, the stories that you haveand the research that's
happening here, we could talkfor hours. But we also want to
be sensitive of time, because weknow the work never stops. Is
there anything that we'vemissed?
Eric Elsner (19:05):
One of my priorities here, I have to tell
a bit of a story to get to it.
So indulge me. This facility hasbeen in continuous operation
since 1937 and has been one ofthe pieces of fabric of this
community ever since then. I wasworking here as a student worker
on 9/11. I can tell you where Iwas when that happened. Within
(19:26):
two days of 9/11, the federalgovernment had literally put
gates up and closed them aroundthe building that we're sitting
in right now to prevent access.
And I understand why they didthat. That coincided, at least
in Oconee County, with a time ofrapid growth of the population
(19:49):
here. And so this facility wentfrom being a part of the fabric
of the community almostovernight to becoming an odd
collection of buildings on thehill, and nobody knew what
happened there. So I have apicture in the office of the old
house that was here, themanager's house, and there's a
sign in front of it that says,"Visitors Welcome." And so one
of my goals when I took this jobin 2012 was to try to push this
(20:11):
facility back into the communityand sort of reintegrate it into
the community. That's why wehave a corn boil. That's why I
think it's important to have theExtension office here, because
there's constant traffic of thecommunity onto this site and
into that Extension office. Andso if there's a legacy that Eric
leaves, that's favorable, I hopethat we've taken this facility,
(20:32):
over time, back into thecommunity from being an odd
collection of buildings on thehill.
Jordan Powers (20:37):
Absolutely, it's such an important part of the
community. And we'll also makesure that we link the website
for JPC and for the Extensionoffice in the show notes, so
that folks out in the public canfigure out how to get involved,
whether it is just stopping bythe Extension office, or I can
personally say I've come to thecorn boil, and it is phenomenal.
So we'll put that out there sothat folks can keep an eye on
those calendars and come on outwhenever they need to.
Eric Elsner (20:58):
Super
Jordan Powers (20:59):
Well, Eric, thank you. It is always wonderful to
get to come out and spend sometime with you, whether we're
with a touring Africandelegation or whether we're here
today, just sitting here thethree of us having a
conversation. So it is always awonderful time. Thank you for
taking the time out of your busyday to have us out today.
Eric Elsner (21:13):
One hundred percent my pleasure. You guys are
welcome back anytime.
Jordan Powers (21:16):
We'll take you up on that.
Sound Effect (21:17):
[music]
Jordan Powers (21:17):
Thanks for listening to Cultivating
Curiosity, a podcast produced bythe UGA College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences. Aspecial thanks to Mason
McClintock for our music andsound effects. Find more
episodes wherever you get yourpodcasts.
[music]
Jordan Powers (00:00):
Welcome to Cultivating Curiosity where we
get down and dirty with theexperts on all the ways science
and agriculture touch our lives,from what we eat to how we live.
I'm Jordan Powers.
Emily Cabrera (00:12):
And I'm Emily Cabrera. We're from the
University of Georgia's Collegeof Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences.
Sound Effect (00:19):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (00:20):
Emily and I had a chance to visit the J. Phil
Campbell Senior Research andEducation Center in
Watkinsville, Georgia, where wespoke with Eric Elsner,
superintendent of the center.
One of the core missions of CAESis to seek, verify and apply
knowledge related to agricultureand the environment, and to
disseminate this knowledgethrough student education and
public outreach programs, theresearch and education centers,
(00:42):
or RECs, play an integral rolein providing faculty and
students with the opportunity toconduct experiments across a
wide range of productionsystems, soil types and
climates. The college has eightoff campus REC facilities
located throughout the state,including the 1700 acre J. Phil
Campbell Sr. REC. Now on to theshow.
Sound Effect (01:03):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (01:05):
So thanks so much for having us out to the center
today, Eric, we reallyappreciate it, As we kick off,
can you tell us about thefunction of a Research and
Education Center and its role insupporting the colleges three
missions of research, educationand Extension and addressing
local production concerns?
Eric Elsner (01:21):
You bet, I'll be glad to. Thank you guys for
coming out, for having me on theshow. Been looking forward to
it. You know, my staff spendtheir whole day actively
supporting research projectsfrom the College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences.
They're strategically locatedaround the state, in part to
address local concerns, right?
(01:41):
The limestone valley hasdifferent challenges than
Attapulgus, Georgia has, and sowe're there in both of those
places. Georgia Mountain inBlairsville [Georgia Mountain
REC] clearly has differentchallenges than some of the
other places have. So we're inthose strategic locations to
address those local concerns.
Extension, with respect to JPC[J. Phil Campbell REC], that's
an easy one too. We house theOconee County Extension Service
(02:02):
in our building. So when youguys came in this afternoon, you
walked through the Extensionoffice in down here. Around the
state, Extension agents,Extension specialists, we work
with them closely to supporttheir demonstration projects.
They work with us to support ourfield days, to transfer
knowledge that's being gained onthe station out into the public,
(02:22):
right? So we work hand in handwith Extension agents and
specialists on a daily basis,and we rely on that network of
Extension agents. They havetheir finger on the pulse of the
communities, the ag industrythere, and so that's what we
rely on is our sort of litmustest for how is ag going, and
what are the emerging problems.
Sound Effect (02:45):
[chime]
Emily Cabrera (02:47):
UGA Cooperative Extension encompasses three main
program areas; agriculture andnatural resources, family and
consumer sciences, and 4-H.
County offices are the home basefor these agents who serve their
communities as an extension ofthe University of Georgia.
Agents work directly withresidents and tend to have a
broader scope of informationaddressing a variety of topics
within their subject area.
(03:09):
Whereas Extension specialistsare faculty members or
researchers based at theUniversity who focus on
developing expertise in specifictopics. Specialists support
agents with complex questionsand help solve local challenges
through targeted research. Whileagents work directly with the
community to deliver hands oneducation, specialists support
those efforts through focusedexpertise and research.
(03:31):
Together, they create a valuablenetwork that helps translate
university knowledge into realworld solutions. An extra note
for our Georgia listeners willinclude a link in the show notes
on how to find your countyExtension agent.
Sound Effect (03:42):
[chime]
Eric Elsner (03:44):
Teaching is another easy one for JPC. We're so close
to main campus here in Athensthat we get a lot of traffic
from college level academicclasses. We're a place for an
outdoor lab. Beyond that, mostresearch and education centers
work hand in hand again throughtheir Extension agents in the
local counties supporting 4-Hprogramming. You work with your
(04:07):
local schools, and you'resupporting FFA [Future Farmers
of America] programming. We allhave some iteration of a third
grade Ag Day or, you know,right? Kids come out to touch a
tractor, all the way up throughhigh school. And even adult
programming, a lot of times,hand in hand with Extension,
again, Master Gardener programs,those sorts of things. If the
college can dream it up, right?
It's an outreach or aneducational program, then a lot
(04:30):
of times a Research andEducation Center is the place
where it's happening.
Jordan Powers (04:35):
It's really cool to see an environment where
there is that combination of somuch local input and local
participation, but then it'salso this statewide network
right where you're able tomaybe, even if the concerns
aren't the same, work with yourcolleagues across the RECs on a
broader scale. So it's reallycool to see something that is
(04:56):
both so local and statewide.
Eric Elsner (04:58):
Yeah, statewide variety testing. They're growing
the same varieties of corn inAttapulgus [REC] that they're
growing in Blairsville.
Jordan Powers (05:05):
Wow.
Eric Elsner (05:06):
Huge difference in climate between those two
locations. And so the farmers inBlairsville are getting
literally the same informationthat the farmers in Attapulgus
are getting, but it's tailoredto their growing environment.
And so the guy in Attapulgus orthe gal is probably picking a
different variety of corn thanthe person in Blairsville is.
(05:28):
And we talk about, right,Extension being the technology
transfer arm of that process,the land grant process, right
the county delivery system.
We're finding the answers on theResearch and Education Center.
And that's also the place, in alot of instances where the
technology is being transferredto the public.
Emily Cabrera (05:45):
Mm hmm. And I'm wondering, so with all of these
different research projectsthroughout the centers, your
role as a superintendent, whatdoes the day to day look like
for you? What is your role assuperintendent?
Eric Elsner (05:58):
Which day?
[everyone laughing] My job asthe superintendent is first and
foremost to make sure that Icreate an environment where a
scientist has the opportunity toconduct successful research. I
can't conduct that research forhim. I can't make them
successful, but I can create anenvironment where they have the
(06:19):
opportunity to be successful.
That means a lot of differentthings. Late winter, early
spring, I'm working reallyclosely with faculty to get an
understanding of what they needto do this year. A lot of that
in the spring, as they're goinginto planting season, through
the growing season, we provide alot of the management of the
(06:42):
crops that are growing or thecattle that are subjects of the
research. And so I engage withmy staff. I have some folks that
are primarily responsible for mysmall plot research at our West
Unit. I have a farm manager whohas a primary responsibility for
our cattle herd. I have a farmmanager at the Iron Horse Farm
who's responsible for overseeingthose operations, and so I'm in
(07:05):
close contact with those folks,right? Just like that local
Extension agent's taking pulses,I'm taking pulses too. I'm not a
micro manager. I'm empoweringyou to do your job. Come see me
if you need me. Otherwise,you're better at it than I am.
Go do it. Right? I'm managing,okay? We're a working farm,
livestock too. So we don't havean off season. If we were
strictly row crop, then we'd bewinding down right now. Harvest,
(07:29):
and then put everything in theshop and start working on things
that broke. With livestock,Christmas Day, somebody's here,
right? New Year's Day,somebody's here. We never stop
coming to work. 365 days a yearI have somebody here in
Watkinsville.
Emily Cabrera (07:43):
Wow.
Jordan Powers (07:44):
That is a big lift indeed. So you just
mentioned a couple components ofthis, of different research
plots and Iron Horse [Farm],etc. How many projects are
happening at the center at anygiven time?
Eric Elsner (07:56):
This year, we have about 65 individual research
projects, and those are spreadbetween here and Iron Horse.
It's not uncommon for us toencompass all but maybe one or
two of the academic departmentsin the college, and it's the
same this year. We spanentomology, crop and soils,
plant pathology, ag econ, animaland dairy science, horticulture.
(08:19):
We're supporting researchprojects from all of those
schools, along with a few fromthe Franklin College too. The
geology folks are out here fromtime to time. Plant bio
[biology] folks are out here aswell.
Sound Effect (08:30):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (08:32):
Part of the reason we came out to JPC to
record today instead of thestudio, is because, in addition
to helping manage all thefaculty led research projects
Eric just mentioned, he and histeam also work year-round to
produce commodity crops, likecotton.
Emily Cabrera (08:45):
Right, so they manage all aspects of
production, from field prep andplanting through harvest, just
like cotton producers around thestate. Sales from cotton grown
at UGA Research and EducationCenters cover operational costs
for equipment, crop inputs andother necessary production
related materials.
Jordan Powers (09:03):
And today, we had the opportunity to watch a
cotton module builder in action.
Ambient Sound (09:10):
[field machinery in operation]
Jordan Powers (09:11):
Okay, so Eric, we are out here in the field. I am
gonna admit I don't fully knowwhat I'm looking at, but I see a
tractor. I see a whole lot ofcotton, and it looks like it's
compacting it down. Can you tellus what's actually happening out
here?
Eric Elsner (09:25):
Sure. That's a module builder that you're
looking at, and we use it whenwe're harvesting cotton. So when
we run a cotton picker over thecrop, the picker obviously
collects the cotton, but it'sloose cotton, by definition, or
nature, is really fluffy, and soin order to efficiently store
(09:48):
the cotton, we pack it intowhat's called a module. It's a
little bit of an oldertechnology. Modern cotton
pickers are making their ownround module that you see when
you travel through the southernpart of the state. This is an
older technology that is, we'reusing a module builder, and
(10:08):
either our cotton picker or ourboll buggy will pull up to this
module builder and actually dumpall of the cotton that we just
harvested into the modulebuilder. And then we have a
gentleman on top of the modulebuilder, operating some
hydraulic cylinders and a bigpress that is just almost
(10:29):
constantly packing that cotton,packing that cotton, packing
that cotton, probably down tothree or four times less volume
than it would take if we justdumped it without packing it.
Jordan Powers (10:44):
How do you measure how much cotton is
there? Is that pounds? Or isthat? How is that? I don't even
know how to explain how muchcotton I'm looking at.
Eric Elsner (10:51):
Okay, so cotton is sold and marketed by the bale,
and for all intents andpurposes, a bale of cotton is
500 pounds. And in this modulethat we're looking right here
with the yellow tarp on it, Ican't give you an exact number.
You'll never know an exactnumber until it's ginned, but
(11:11):
I'm going to tell you thatthere's probably 12 to 14 bales
of cotton inside that module.
Jordan Powers (11:18):
Wow. That's a lot of cotton.
Eric Elsner (11:20):
It is a lot of cotton.
Jordan Powers (11:22):
Awesome. Thanks, Eric.
Eric Elsner (11:23):
You're welcome.
Emily Cabrera (11:27):
We'll put a link in the show notes so you can
watch the module builder inaction. And now let's get back
to the interview.
Sound Effect (11:33):
[chime]
Jordan Powers (11:35):
Can you tell us about a research project or two
that you might be particularlyexcited about this year? I don't
want to get anybody feeling badif you don't talk about their
project.
Eric Elsner (11:43):
I love them all, right? [everyone laughing].
They're all my favorite.
Emily Cabrera (11:46):
That's a diplomatic answer.
Eric Elsner (11:49):
I've always kind of had a soft spot for genetics,
the ability of our scientists inthe college to literally go back
in time, to ancient times andcherry pick genes that will help
us today. I'm easily impressed,maybe, but they're literally
able to reach back in time,10,000 years, grab a gene that
(12:10):
we need today and put it in aplant that can help a farmer
today. That's incredible to me.
Also, this is our first year,Dr. Donglin Zhang, from
horticulture, has his first hopsyard out at our West Unit. I
think there's a hops yard now atthe Durham Horticultural Farm,
and there are plans for a hopsyard at the Georgia Mountain
Research and Education Center,too. So we've started a breeding
(12:31):
program, he has, to try toidentify some lines of hops that
will produce in the southeast,right? They're in the Pacific
Northwest, usually. So we'retrying to find some stuff that
works down here, and maybeinvolve some of the local
brewing companies, that sort ofthing. Generate some interest
there in some Georgia Grownhops.
Emily Cabrera (12:53):
Well, speaking of Georgia Grown, you're a Georgia
boy.
Eric Elsner (12:56):
I'm Georgia Grown.
Emily Cabrera (12:58):
[laughter] You're Georgia Grown. And we learned
that you grew up here in OconeeCounty, and knowing that farming
tends to be a family endeavor,that not only did you grow up in
Oconee, but your family had afarm, and your father was also a
UGA faculty member. So how didthis combination influence your
educational and careertrajectory?
Eric Elsner (13:18):
Gosh, we could talk about this, whichever rabbit
hole you guys want to go down.
Emily Cabrera (13:22):
[overlapping talk] Let's go down both.
Eric Elsner (13:22):
For the next 30 minutes, then we can talk about
it for a while. So my dad wasfaculty in, at that time it was
the Agronomy Department. He wasthe weed scientist when my
sister and I were born, andtransitioned from that into the
state soybean specialist in the70s, and then transitioned from
that to state of Georgia,Georgia Seed Development
(13:44):
Commission. So when I was ayoung child, like 4, 5, 6, 7
years old, I literally grew upriding a rolling chair around
the third floor of the MillerPlant Sciences Building in the
fourth floor.
Jordan Powers (13:57):
[laughter] Wow.
Eric Elsner (13:58):
And so names like Kim Tan, and Roger Boerma, and
Harold Brown and some of these,some of those giants, at least
in my mind, giants of theagronomy department, those
folks, they're part of thefabric of my life. And so, I
mean, what did Eddie Van Halen'sson do? Right? He's playing the
guitar. So what do you thinkEarl Elsner's son's gonna do?
(14:19):
He's gonna, you know, kind ofthat sort of thing. You just
sort of follow in footsteps. Soit was just a natural
progression to me in 1980 - I'lldate myself - in 1988 my dad,
because he was an academic, puta lot of emphasis on when I went
to college, he wanted me to goto a place where there was a lot
of knowledge stored. In 1988 youneeded a library for that. And
(14:42):
so the fact that the Universityof Georgia had the library
system that it has made that theobvious choice. And he was, you
know, I could have done whateverI wanted to do, but it was
pretty, it was uh, he's probablygoing to hear this, so I'm
looking for the right words.
[everyone laughing] It wasencouraged, I think probably, to
go to University of Georgia, andso that's what I did. I love the
smell of fresh turned earth, andI just grew up around it, and
(15:06):
it's part of who I am.
Emily Cabrera (15:08):
That is so wholesome.
Eric Elsner (15:09):
University of Georgia too, you know, for that
matter.
Jordan Powers (15:12):
So we know that you also worked at this, this
exact center as a student. Doesthat experience continue to
inform you in your role now as asuperintendent?
Eric Elsner (15:21):
One hundred percent. For reasons that you
may not realize. And I'm gonnatry to find a really good way to
say this too. I always had areally good work ethic, and my
dad was a known quantity to thepeople that worked at this
station. He was a known quantityto faculty that worked on
campus. And so that priorexisting relationship cracked
(15:43):
doors open for me, but it was myresponsibility to stay in the
room, right? It opened doors,but once I got in the room, it's
my responsibility to stay there.
I always had a good work ethicoutside of work sometimes, let
us say I would make less thanideal decisions for my late teen
and early 20s years [everyonelaughing].
Jordan Powers (16:05):
Didn't we all?
Emily Cabrera (16:06):
No shame.
Eric Elsner (16:08):
And so, in spite of that, I always showed up and
always got after it when I wasat work. I didn't really know
what specific direction I wantedto go in. I just showed up to
work and built fence, and I didit good, and I did it hard. But
I didn't really know whether Iwanted to be president, or a
rock star, or a superintendent,right? I'm just trying to figure
(16:28):
all that out and making some baddecisions in that process. But
the people that I worked for sawsomething in me that I didn't
see. I didn't know was thereyet. I won't call names, but
there's some significant peoplein my life that did and so all
of that to say, it turns out I'mnot the only person that had
some of those challenges. Andwhen I hire student workers,
(16:49):
sometimes they'll I'll hirestudent workers that already
have it all figured out. Lifejust goes, click, click, click,
click, click, and that's great,you know. But I also hire some
student workers who remind me alot of me, still trying to
figure it out. If you work forEric, and you show up to work
and get after it, you can screwup a little bit. That's fine,
because I see something and, youknow, I kind of pay that
(17:11):
forward. You get a shot tofigure it out. Makes sense?
Jordan Powers (17:15):
Yeah, it makes perfect sense. And I feel like
it's safe to say we need morepeople in the world operate that
way of creating a safe space togrow. I mean literally. I mean
we're growing things in theground, but for our students to
grow into who they're going tobecome, that's exciting.
Eric Elsner (17:30):
One hundred percent.
Emily Cabrera (17:31):
And learning from mistakes. You know, mistakes
were made, you said, and I'msure those were some of the
biggest learning opportunitiesfor yourself.
Eric Elsner (17:38):
And some of the best times. [everyone laughing]
Jordan Powers (17:43):
That took a turn you weren't expecting, Em.
Eric Elsner (17:46):
Sorry, dad.
Emily Cabrera (17:47):
So what do students gain from having these
opportunities to participate inresearch projects at RECs?
Eric Elsner (17:54):
They're introduced to a lot of things. It's up to
them to decide what they absorband what they do with it, right?
So first and foremost, you'reintroduced to a working farm if
you've never been introduced toone before. And what that means?
That means 630, or seven o'clockin the morning, cold, hot, wet,
rainy, whatever, you've gotthings that have to happen.
There are things out there thatare alive, that are relying on
(18:15):
you. Right? Prettystraightforward. You're
introduced to the scientificmethod. Why do I have to treat
this one the same way that Itreated that one? I'm tired now.
Can I do this half as good as Idid the one before? You're
introduced to the scientificmethod and what that means, and
to some really criticalthinkers, you're introduced to
some people that are some ultrahigh achievers, and they expect
(18:36):
things to be done a certain way,and they expect them to be done
right now, and they expect themto be done right. And so, you
can be exposed to theconsequences of not living up to
people's expectations or notdoing the job that you're
getting paid to do. Learningexperiences.
Jordan Powers (18:52):
Well, I feel like we could talk all afternoon. I
mean, the stories that you haveand the research that's
happening here, we could talkfor hours. But we also want to
be sensitive of time, because weknow the work never stops. Is
there anything that we'vemissed?
Eric Elsner (19:05):
One of my priorities here, I have to tell
a bit of a story to get to it.
So indulge me. This facility hasbeen in continuous operation
since 1937 and has been one ofthe pieces of fabric of this
community ever since then. I wasworking here as a student worker
on 9/11. I can tell you where Iwas when that happened. Within
(19:26):
two days of 9/11, the federalgovernment had literally put
gates up and closed them aroundthe building that we're sitting
in right now to prevent access.
And I understand why they didthat. That coincided, at least
in Oconee County, with a time ofrapid growth of the population
(19:49):
here. And so this facility wentfrom being a part of the fabric
of the community almostovernight to becoming an odd
collection of buildings on thehill, and nobody knew what
happened there. So I have apicture in the office of the old
house that was here, themanager's house, and there's a
sign in front of it that says,"Visitors Welcome." And so one
of my goals when I took this jobin 2012 was to try to push this
(20:11):
facility back into the communityand sort of reintegrate it into
the community. That's why wehave a corn boil. That's why I
think it's important to have theExtension office here, because
there's constant traffic of thecommunity onto this site and
into that Extension office. Andso if there's a legacy that Eric
leaves, that's favorable, I hopethat we've taken this facility,
(20:32):
over time, back into thecommunity from being an odd
collection of buildings on thehill.
Jordan Powers (20:37):
Absolutely, it's such an important part of the
community. And we'll also makesure that we link the website
for JPC and for the Extensionoffice in the show notes, so
that folks out in the public canfigure out how to get involved,
whether it is just stopping bythe Extension office, or I can
personally say I've come to thecorn boil, and it is phenomenal.
So we'll put that out there sothat folks can keep an eye on
those calendars and come on outwhenever they need to.
Eric Elsner (20:58):
Super
Jordan Powers (20:59):
Well, Eric, thank you. It is always wonderful to
get to come out and spend sometime with you, whether we're
with a touring Africandelegation or whether we're here
today, just sitting here thethree of us having a
conversation. So it is always awonderful time. Thank you for
taking the time out of your busyday to have us out today.
Eric Elsner (21:13):
One hundred percent my pleasure. You guys are
welcome back anytime.
Jordan Powers (21:16):
We'll take you up on that.
Sound Effect (21:17):
[music]
Jordan Powers (21:17):
Thanks for listening to Cultivating
Curiosity, a podcast produced bythe UGA College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences. Aspecial thanks to Mason
McClintock for our music andsound effects. Find more
episodes wherever you get yourpodcasts.
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