Increasing Understanding of Public Problems and Policies--1990.

Overview & Synopsis

This collection of papers aims to improve the policy education efforts of extension workers responsible for public affairs programs. The first section, "An Evolving Public Policy Education" examines the history of public education; address current issues such as leadership models, ethics in policy formation and policy education; and forecasts future development of public education. The second section, "Safe Food and Water: Risks and Tradeoffs" presents different perceptions of health risk relating to food and water from the perspectives of consumers, scientists, and producers. Effective communication between the groups and extension education are emphasized as options to deal with the problems. The third section, "Balancing Environmental and Social Concerns with Economic Interests in Agriculture" addresses the concerns for environment in connection to agricultural development. The role of policy education in this connection is discussed. The fourth section, "Structural Change in Food Industries and Public Policy Issues "includes articles on specific issues of public education relating to food industries. Papers are presented from six workshops covering the topics of federal and state mandates, youth at risk, waste management and rural development. The final section, "Toward a New Europe," addresses implications of changes in Europe for U.S. policies on agriculture and agribusiness. (KS)