Integrated Resource Management (IRM)

Faculty

Joe Brummer
I grew up in southcentral Kansas near the small town of Zenda on a small dryland wheat and livestock operation. We ran about 40 head of Angus and Angus/Hereford cross cattle. In addition, we also raised a few hogs (when the price was right), chickens for both eggs and butchering, and had a big garden as well as some fruit trees. We were essentially self sufficient except for a few of the staples like sugar and salt. I originally thought I wanted to be a forester, but changed my mind when I got to college (not unusual). I decided to get into something I at least knew a little about, so I changed my major to range management. All three of my degrees are in range with emphasis in grazing management related issues for both my master's and Ph.D.

I have worked in the shortgrass, midgrass, and tallgrass prairies, the Nebraska Sandhills, and high elevation mountain shrub and grasslands. I gained a lot of practical experience working with improved forages in both the subirrigated hay meadows in the Nebraska Sandhills and the mountain hay meadows in western Colorado. Working with improved forages has allowed me to combine my interests in agronomy with pasture and livestock production. I am particularly interested in livestock/plant interactions, selection of forage species for different objectives, seeding methodology, improving forage quality by interseeding of legumes into grass stands, and the use of alternative forages for extending the grazing season. In my free time, I like to hike, backpack, and snowshoe in the mountains. My wife and I also like to travel throughout the West visiting Native American ruins and identifying and photographing plants and birds along the way.

Mark Enns
Mark Enns, Assistant Professor of Animal Sciences, was born and raised in Enid, Oklahoma. Growing up, Mark worked on the family's wheat and cattle farm. He received dual degrees in Biology and Natural Science - Chemistry from Tabor College, Hillsboro, Kansas (1987). After a year working in private industry, he entered the graduate program in Animal Breeding and Genetics in the Department of Animal Sciences at Colorado State University. He completed his M.S. in 1991 under the supervision of Dr. Jim Brinks, and in 1995 he completed his Ph.D. with co-advisors Drs. Jim Brinks and Richard Bourdon.

Mark's research focuses on methods to genetically evaluate and select animals that fit their production environment both biologically and economically. These efforts include development of new methods for evaluating and improving cow and heifer fertility, cow maintenance requirements, time to finish in the feedlot; and development of methods to better use economic information in selection decisions for increased profitability of beef production.

Dana Hoag
Dana Hoag grew up in the Colorado Mountains. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees at CSU in agricultural economics, specializing in production and farm management. He received his Ph.D. from Washington State University where he worked on soil conservation and the conservation reserve program. He developed an interest in how policies affect land management, especially conflicts and complementarities between conservation and working lands.

He works on farm and ranch management issues where innovation and integration are important, including: farm and ranch management, risk and uncertainty, finding ecosystem services such as hunting and sequestering carbon on private lands, soil and water conservation issues, and policy issues related to managing private lands, including water, price and income supports, taxes and subsidies, and innovations.

Catherine Keske
My research uses economic theory and modeling to solve resource and environmental management issues. I often collaborate with physical scientists and engineers on projects involving land use, energy, recreation, nutrient management, biochar, and ecosystem services. My energy projects involve work with anaerobic digesters, harvesting algae for energy, biofuel production from oilseeds, and climate change.

One USDA AFRI (formerly NRI) project examines the sustainable economic benefits that alpine environments can provide to mountain communities in the Intermountain West. Preliminary results indicate that high mountain recreation is relatively "recession proof", and hikers place a high value on these experiences, even in times of economic decline. We hope that results from this study will yield sustainable job growth to rural Colorado during the next five years. This study is an extension of a recent non-market valuation project on Colorado Fourteeners, mountains whose summits rise above 14,000 feet.

One paper published from the mountain ecosystem project revealed that mineral extraction and recreation can co-exist when both industries have the backing of the community. We gathered this data using an audience response system, known informally as "clickers". Links to this paper, and other high alpine recreation papers: Collaborating with Communities, Keske and Smutko 2010.

I have also conducted work in decision analysis and small business development. This interest stems from ten years of experience in the corporate world. One USDA Risk Management Agency project involved multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional collaboration to develop risk management tools for agricultural producers. These tools are available to the public and can be found on the website.

Jay Parsons
Jay Parsons is an agricultural production economist and risk management specialist with Colorado State University. He has given hundreds of risk management workshops and informative presentations throughout the country on managing and understanding risk. He enjoys helping people help themselves by making better use of the information that is available.

Jay was raised on a diversified crop and livestock farm in the southwestern panhandle of Nebraska and has attended Hastings College and Colorado State University earning a bachelor's degree in mathematics and mathematics education, a master's degree in mathematics, and a Ph.D. in agricultural economics. He is an active member of several professional and producer organizations including the Decision Analysis Society of the Institute for Operations Research and Management Science and the Colorado Wool Growers Association. He also remains very active as a stake holder in the family farming operation in Nebraska.

Kraig Peel
I grew up in Texas farming and raising cattle. I went to San Angelo, Texas for an undergraduate in animal science from Angelo State University. I took my first full time job as a county extension agent in Del Rio, Texas which is on the border with Mexico. I was a county agent for 3 years and then took a job managing a 74,000 acre ranch north of Del Rio. This ranch was very diversified with meat goats, hair goats, sheep, hunting, and cattle.

It was a great experience but my wife and I decided to go to graduate school at Texas A&M. I earned a master's degree in ruminant nutrition and a Ph.D. in meat science. I have been at CSU for 8 years. My research interests are with reproductive strategies to help producers streamline the breeding process, minimize labor, and be profitable. I enjoy working with a variety of people and disciplines. I am married to an amazing lady (21 years) and we have 4 kids (Shayla, Keri, Kace, and Sawyer). I am passionate about my faith, family, and work in that order.

Bob Woodmansee
My professional/education interests are currently and passionately focused on developing Virtual Field Trips for anyone who is interested and as a support tool for classes, both on-line and face-to-face. Since retiring, for "real-person" enjoyment I like to botanize, hike, play with our dogs, ski, canoe, explore wild places, work on finishing our new house in the mountains, eat good food, drink good beer and wine, and encourage our daughters to figure out what the hell to do with their lives.

Most of all my wife and I enjoy doing all of these things in one of the most beautiful places on earth - southern Routt County. Before retiring, in addition to doing all the professional stuff, my wife and I ran a small farm (started out as 105 ac) north of Fort Collins, raised our girls in a rural environment, and learned how to lose money and repair old, used equipment. Now that we live near Steamboat Springs, I look out on the immense hay fields around here and fantasize about what it must be like to cut hay with one of these fancy, new swathers with air conditioning and an audio system you can hear.