The Scout Report -- Volume 27, Number 20

Climate change does not just impact the environment in the natural sense; it also impacts social and historical environments. Archivists, climatologists, and sociologists may enjoy Material Memory, a podcast that explores this link between climate change and cultural memory. Currently on its second season, the show focuses on climate crises and cultural heritage, exploring questions including: "How does climate change threaten our records and traditions?" and "what is the relationship between memory and disaster?" Hosted by Nicole Kang Ferraiolo, Material Memory welcomes guests with expertise from the Arctic to Africa. Readers will also find an archive of episodes from the first season (hosted by Joy Banks), which centered on "the UN-designated Year of Indigenous Languages," with six episodes covering the preservation and restoration of Indigenous languages. The podcast is a project of the Council on Library and Information Resources (an educational nonprofit) and is also available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Podchaser, and Castbox. [EMB]

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As an "interactive documentary" and teaching tool, People Not Property: Stories of Slavery in the Colonial North describes the history of Northern colonial enslavement. The horrific history of slavery is often focused on the South, and, as this project highlights, "erasing northern slavery from textbooks compounded the injustice." Produced by Historic Hudson Valley, a New York-based nonprofit organization, this project provides an important platform for education and reflection. The highly interactive resource provides a social, legal, political, economic, and historical framework through which users can better understand colonial labor systems and "the difficult realities of enslaved life." The resource is divided into four chapters: Defining Slavery, Being Enslaved, Choosing Resistance, and Pursuing Justice. People Not Property also includes several supplementary tools (e.g., a chronological map, Bibliography, Glossary, and classroom materials). Funding for the project was provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the New York State Council on the Arts, and ArtsWestchester. [EMB]

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Memes may often be lighthearted graphics and jokes, but sometimes they represent something deeper, as a "succinct and poignant storyteller about our shared assumptions about people and society during these uncertain times." As for uncertain times, COVID-19 certainly fits the bill. As schools, businesses, and society adapted in light of the pandemic, individuals searched for respites of connection and communication. And in the 21st-century, what better outlet to turn to than internet memes. Dr. Heidi A. Campbell created Social Distancing in the Time of Memes to record and study "the dominant stories told about social distancing," within this medium. Three central themes about social distancing emerged from the project: its effect on social behavior, impact on religious practices, and reliance on the (often pre-existing) use of humor as a coping mechanism. Readers can view collection highlights on the website and also download the project as an e-book in PDF or EPUB form. Plus, the site links to a Social Distancing Memes Database app and Facebook page. The project was funded by the Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research based at Texas A&M University. [EMB]

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Educators engaged in open pedagogy, or interested in becoming more engaged in the process of bringing open educational resources (OER) to their classrooms, may want to explore the Open Pedagogy Notebook. Here, visitors will find a great introduction to open pedagogy principles and examples of open pedagogy in practice. Participation is one of the pillars of OER, and the Open Pedagogy Notebook puts that into practice by welcoming user annotations throughout. For example, the What is Open Pedagogy? tab poses the questions "what are your hopes for education, particularly for higher education?" and "what challenges do your students face in their learning environments, and how does your pedagogy address them?" Readers can browse different perspectives and responses. Additionally, users are welcome to submit their own open pedagogy templates and resources. Speaking of resources, after browsing the entirety of this section, readers may want to explore the various materials currently available under the Examples tab. These materials include assignment prompts and syllabus structure ideas. Open Pedagogy Notebook is co-operated by Rajiv Jhangiani (Kwantlen Polytechnic University in British Columbia) and Robin DeRosa (Plymouth State University in New Hampshire). [EMB]

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This Teacher Resources section of the Milwaukee Art Museum (MAM) website provides a selection of materials designed primarily for K-12 teachers, but also of interest to anyone involved in teaching both formally and informally. As a bonus, many of the resources can be used in online learning environments. Several types of materials exist, including some curated to align with works of art from the Museum's collection. For example, the Baylor Coloring Pages provide downloadable coloring book pages based on different artists' works. Currently, there are coloring pages for Kehinde Wiley, Pablo Picasso, and Joan Miro, among others. Under Teaching with Art, visitors will find three teaching strategies: Inquiry, Visual thinking, and Choosing a Work of Art. Finally, the Writing + Art section provides more than two dozen examples of exercises that merge creativity and communication skills. One prompt asks students to write a letter to persuade an adult in their life why they would love a particular work of art and compare that letter with a text they might send to a friend their own age. Another puts writers into the shoes of Ernest Hemingway, with only six words to write the life story of a portrait from MAM. [DS]

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Think Facebook, but specific to farmers. Founded by Pat Rogers, a family farmer in South Carolina, AgFuse fills the need for a convenient platform to share agricultural knowledge. Like any other social platform, AgFuse is designed for connection, with the ability to tailor one's feed based on location and interests. Interested readers will be welcomed into a network of more than 5,000 professionals hailing from 64 countries. Once users create a free account, they have the ability to share agriculture tips, seek advice, follow other allied professionals, form groups, and promote research or businesses. For a sneak preview of the valuable content found on the site, check out the "Popular Articles on AgFuse" section of the landing page. Additionally, users new to the site may want to begin by browsing the AgFuse Help Center (found via the menu icon in the top right corner), a helpful guide that explains the platform's key features. AgFuse is available on the Apple Store and Google Play, or at the link above; plus, users can connect with the platform on Facebook and Twitter (@AgFuseNetwork on both). [EMB]

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The COVID-19 pandemic affected nearly every industry, and agriculture was no exception. However, the agricultural sector is no stranger to dealing with the impacts of disasters, particularly with heightened vulnerability from climate change. This data summary from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations explores the economic and nutritional consequences of disasters within the agricultural sector. The summary focuses on "the top five most impactful disasters (in terms of their toll on agricultural production systems) to strike least developed countries (LDCs) and low to middle income countries (LMICs) from 2008-2018." These five disasters are drought, floods, storms, pests, and wildfires. In addition to text summaries, the resource also embeds audio from farmers around the world, adding first-hand narrative to the story. Readers will also find informational figures detailing nutritional loss resulting from these disasters. Collectively, this information informs disaster management, and key management strategies are highlighted at the conclusion of the piece. Also available at the conclusion of the piece is a link to download the full report. [EMB]

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Food is both a necessity and "a topic of endless discussion." Readers interested in food production and selection, from agriculture to nutrition, may enjoy this resource. The Canada Agriculture and Food Museum's Food for Health portal is packed full of interesting content, from practical tips like how to read a food label to a historical look at the evolution of food safety. The portal is divided into five sections: Food and Farming, Labels and Packaging, Food Safety, Health and Nutrition, and Food for Thought. Of course, the Food and Farming section is particularly on theme. Here, readers can explore various agricultural models, browse planting tools, and introduce themselves to biotechnology and other aspects of agricultural science. Educators and caregivers will also want to scroll to the bottom of the portal and click on the "For Teachers" link, which pulls up lesson plans and activities for young learners. Food for Health is funded by Nestle, the Government of Canada, and Bernardin. The site can also be accessed in French, using the button in the top right corner. [EMB]

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The Acres of Ancestry Initiative highlights the "400-year Black agrarian liberation struggle," and "re-centers ecocultural traditions in collaboration with rural communities throughout the Black Belt region," through various projects. For example, the Return of the Bees Multimedia Project tells the story of "southern Black agrarian material culture," sharing the perspectives of heritage quiltmakers who used their artistry to supplement their farming incomes and further the Civil Rights movement. In addition to the text summary, readers will find two embedded videos; the first is the short film Return of the Bees, a compilation of interviews and stories related to the project, and the second features an interview with Cookie Washington, a fiber artist. Another project, Gunny Sack of Wisdom, uplifts the voices of Black social thinkers, including activists, farmers, and writers. Named for the burlap bags used during chattel slavery and sharecropping, the project honors Ancestors who, "like the sturdy gunny sacks that carried their daily labor," remained committed to each other and future generations. Readers will also find information about upcoming Events, a collection of relevant news stories (under Press), and links to various social media channels. Black Belt Justice Center, a legal and advocacy nonprofit organization supporting African American farmers, landowners, and communities in the Black Belt region, serves as the fiscal sponsor. [EMB]

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Designed for middle school classrooms, this agricultural curriculum covers ecosystems, animal behavior, and symbiosis, using prairie chickens as the main characters. The red box labeled "Ecosystem Dynamics & Interactions" links out to a Google document that neatly categorizes everything that educators will need. The "Unit Overview and Front Matter" and "Unit Skeleton" items, located at the bottom of the document under Additional Resources, are great places to start. Here, educators can find a summary of the core themes addressed in each lesson plan before committing to the materials. The entire unit contains 17 lessons, each with its own teacher guide, lesson presentation, and student handouts. The box at the top of each teacher guide also indicates how long the lesson is expected to take (generally a couple of days). Educators can sift through resources individually or download the entire package via Google Drive. The unit was created by the Food and Agriculture Center for Science Education in collaboration with several other agricultural groups. [EMB]

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CollectionBuilder is a Jekyll-based static site generator that produces metadata-driven digital exhibitions and digital collection websites. Users create a CSV file that describes the images, documents, and other media to be included on a site. From this file, CollectionBuilder generates a complete static site. In addition to item-level information pages, CollectionBuilder can also produce a number of different visualizations and navigation aids such as maps, timelines, subject-based browsing pages, and several different kinds of tag clouds. The CollectionBuilder documentation provides step-by-step instructions describing three different types of installation: using GitHub Pages, as a standalone tool to use on any site, or as a skin for data stored in a CONTENTdm instance. The project front page links to example sites employing each of these configurations and describes what use-case each is best suited for. In the GitHub Pages installation type, no software is required beyond a web browser. The other installation types require git, Ruby, and Jekyll. Instructions for how to install the required software are provided for Windows, macOS, and Linux systems. [CRH]

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Dasel (short for "data selector") is a data query and editing tool that provides a uniform syntax for working with multiple document formats. The platform currently supports JSON, YAML, TOML, XML, and CSV. In the dasel documentation, users can locate a detailed reference manual describing the query syntax. A number of examples are provided that show a set of dasel selectors for common tasks (e.g., selecting a single value, selecting a given array index, etc.) and the corresponding jq and yq syntax for comparison. Examples are also provided that demonstrate the dasel put syntax that can be used to modify a document. Dasel's GitHub releases page provides compiled binaries for Windows, macOS, and Linux systems. [CRH]

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Fittingly first featured for World Food Day (see the 10-16-2020 Scout Report), this scholarly journal spans several relevant themes, from sustainable food systems to farming practices. Since its feature, the journal published its Winter 2020-2021 Special Issue focused on the COVID-19 pandemic's effect on worldwide food systems.

As the name implies, the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development (JAFSCD) contains a bevy of agricultural research, as well as articles on related topics. This open-access journal (as of 2018) "is the world's only peer-reviewed, transdisciplinary journal focused solely on food and farming-related community development." Scrolling down the Home page, readers will find recent articles highlighted. Visiting the Archives page allows users to browse by volume (from 2010 to present). Articles of interest can be easily downloaded or printed. Readers interested in publishing with the journal should check out the Submissions tab. JAFSCD is currently led by Editor-in-Chief Duncan Hilchey (from the Thomas A. Lyson Center for Civic Agriculture and Food Systems). Financial support is provided by the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, the Kwantlen Polytechnic University's Institute for Sustainable Food Systems, the University of Vermont Food Systems, the Center for Environmental Farming Systems, and Clemson University's Land-Grant Local Food Systems Solutions. [EMB]

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