Welcome to this episode of the American Cattlemen Podcast.  Our series from Gale's recent trip to San Antonio, TX for NCBA CattleCon 2025 brought Jeff Geider, the director of TCU Institute of Ranch Management, to discuss the history of the program. Geider, a TCU graduate from 1981, shared insights into the university's ranch management program and its evolving mission. The TCU Ranch Management Program, founded in 1956, was originally designed as a training center for ranch managers focused on holistic land and livestock stewardship. Over the years, the program has adapted to technological advancements while maintaining its core purpose of developing multifaceted agricultural professionals. The Institute of Ranch Management, established about 20 years ago, serves as an outreach arm of the program. It focuses on bringing educational opportunities both domestically and internationally, with partnerships spanning from the Botanical Research Institute of Texas to international organizations like the University of Panama and the James Hutton Institute in Scotland. A key emphasis of the institute is field research on sustainability and regenerative agriculture. They conduct comprehensive studies on working ranches, examining soil health, forage production, pollinators, rainfall data, and carbon sequestration. Their goal is to develop scalable, practical approaches that help commercial ranchers improve profitability while enhancing land stewardship. Geider highlighted the importance of consumer awareness in modern agriculture. The institute even teaches a cross-disciplinary class on global food production to non-agricultural students, helping bridge the knowledge gap between consumers and agricultural practices. Looking forward, the institute aims to expand its international research, develop more living laboratories across Texas, and continue bridging the perceived divide between environmental sustainability and agricultural production. Guider believes producers are making significant progress in understanding and implementing sustainable practices that meet both environmental and economic needs.

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