Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/116287
grapegrowing GRAPE COMMUNITY of PRACTICE GCoP improves outreach education for viticulture BY Eric T. Stafne, assistant extension professor, Mississippi State University, and project director, eXtension Grape Community of Practice C ommunities of practice are groups of people who have a shared passion for, or expertise in, a particular area of endeavor and want to learn how to improve what they do and convey it to others as they interact regularly. In 2009, the Grape Community of Practice (GCoP) was formed with grant funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture CSREES (Cooperative State Research, Educa tion and Extension Service), now NIFA (the National Institute of Food and Agriculture) and SCRI (Specialty Crop Research Initiative) to create online educational content for grape producers. On the eXtension website (extension.org), scientifically validated material can be used to produce new educational and information resources. The concept behind eXtension is to bring cooperative extension into the present day and deliver its best content in a digital format. Because cooperative extension is no longer the sole provider of information to the public due to the explosion of numerous websites of varying quality, an online presence was necessary to ensure that growers and producers obtain correct information. How did the GCoP begin? In 2006, the first National Viticulture Extension Leadership Conference was held to discuss potential opportunities for national or regional collaborative projects that could further extension efforts and enhance overall program effectiveness. The plan to develop a GCoP originated in the Extension and Outreach Education Committee of the National Grape and Wine Initiative (NGWI) in 2008, and the committee examined ways to improve cooperative extension's ability to meet clientele needs. One of NGWI's primary priorities has been extension and education—concentrating on ensuring that industry members are aware of, and have access to, findings from grape and grape product research. This committee addressed an overall priority of NGWI to enhance outreach education for grapegrowers. The GCoP currently is comprised of a North Americabased group of professionals with expertise in commercial grape production. All of the states involved have a grape industry, from very large (California) to very small (South Dakota); however, interest in grape production in all of these states is increasing. The GCoP has 89 members from 31 states and Canada who interact through a variety of online methods to collaboratively create content on the eXtension site. Expertise within the GCoP includes integrated pest management, plant pathology, food science, distance education/program evaluation, variety selection, canopy management and rootstocks, just to name a few. Often individuals possess expertise in more than one area, and expertise areas may overlap. In fact, many members of the GCoP have collaborated in the past on research and extension efforts. The GCoP strives to meet the educational needs of the grape industry as a whole—including industry partners, extension employees and consumers—by providing science-based information and learning opportunities through eXtension. This means that any viticulture professional, hobbyist or consumer will be able to access information about any aspect of growing and producing grapes at any time on any Internet-ready device and, by doing so, will increase their knowledge and be able to use the information as a way to improve their skills, life and/ or business. The GCoP is expected to become a comprehensive online resource for research-based information by providing viticulturists access to content addressing all aspects of grape production for viticulture information. It will also provide links to all state-based sites; integrate projects to increase networking, collaboration and co-learning; reduce redundancy across the country and create innovative learning opportunities. An online presence The eXtension Grapes site became available to the public Dec. 27, 2010, with an official launch at the Unified Grape and Wine Symposium (Jan. 27, 2011). The GCoP also launched a companion portal site to eXtension.org/grapes in 2011 called eViticulture.org, which leads users directly to viticulture-related information about the eXtension.org site without the need to navigate through other unrelated content. These new resources are directed toward commercial viticulturists who need solid, tested, science-based information to improve their skills in the vineyard. All content is collaboratively authored and peer-reviewed by our community of professionals with expertise in viticulture and related disciplines. The initial focus of the site was on articles, but increasing attention has been on adding videos, webinars, photos and more links to regional resources. All the information is designed for the web; it is easy to read, short and to the point. Further, it comes from trusted sources. 72 p racti c al w i ne ry & v i ne yard APRIL 20 13