FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Curt Rom, a University Professor of horticulture in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas, was a featured speaker at an Ecological Farming Association conference last month.

Rom, who is also associate dean in the U of A Graduate School and International Education, gave a presentation on "On-Farm Research: A Public-Private Interface for Innovation" at the 36th Annual Ecofarm Conference in Monterey, California. The conference is one of the largest farmer/producer conferences for sustainable, organic and alternative farming systems.

Rom's workshop was hosted by the Organic Farm Research Foundation, which has funded his research efforts several times over the last 15 years.

"It was an honor to be invited to participate in this vibrant conference," said Rom. "It was multi-generational and multi-ethnic. I sensed a strong energy and vitality among the participants and significant interest in conducting on-farm research. The conference gave the feeling there has been a rebirth of American agriculture and the food system."

The EFA focuses on ecologically sound, socially just and economically viable food and farming systems, including addressing reversing climate change to improve human health. The OFRF seeks to foster the improvement and widespread adoption of organic farming systems, and cultivates organic research, education and federal policies to bring more farmers and acreage into organic production.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.