Suzanne Thornsbury
0000-0002-8911-7920

Specialist

FRED profile

Publications

Measuring Agriculture Research and Development Return on Investment: Relevance for Florida

Julia Delaney Ulrich, Suzanne Thornsbury, Christa Court, and Amanda B. Heinzmann

This publication describes why science and research are critical to the future success of agriculture. It provides an overview of challenges to evaluating outcomes of research investments and some common approaches to measuring returns. The authors summarize emerging federal science and research priorities significant for Florida agriculture. The publication is intended as a helpful reference for Florida producers, taxpayers, and state government agencies. It is part of a series that examines federal policies relevant to specialty crops.

Payments for Ecosystem Services in Florida’s Landscape: Concepts and Principles

Youmin Li, Weizhe Weng, Jared Gars, Michael T. Olexa, and Suzanne Thornsbury

Ecosystem services are the direct and indirect benefits that ecosystems provide humans. Florida is known for its diverse landscape, which includes valuable ecosystem services such as water storage, soil conservation, and biodiversity. A Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) policy approach aligns economic incentives with environmental goals, encouraging landowners to participate in conservation while potentially reducing cost of land use. This publication is the first article of a series titled Payments for Ecosystem Services in Florida’s Landscape. It introduces the concept of PES and is intended for Extension agents, government decision-makers, landowners, and researchers to help them understand the concepts and principles underlying PES programs and how they contribute to both previous and ongoing conservation efforts in Florida.

Specialty Crops and the Farm Bill

Suzanne D. Thornsbury

This publication provides Florida specialty crop producers with an overview of major policy approaches in the Farm Bill and a description of how they have evolved over time to address some of the unique characteristics of specialty crops.