Global population pressures on both food production and natural resources will be a major driving force in shaping the future of the nation's agricultural colleges, according to UC Davis Chancellor Emeritus James H. Meyer. Population pressures are manifested in developing nations as the basic struggle against starvation. In the United States and other developed nations, population growth is responsible for the friction that results when urban development presses into fertile agricultural land and natural ecosystems, notes Meyer. In the recently published report, "The Historical Trek of the Land Grant College of Agriculture: Past, Present and Future," Meyer recommends ways in which agricultural colleges should evolve in order to help society solve such dilemmas. "Farming has never been more important, as the growing world population continues to increase its demand for food," says Meyer. "But agricultural colleges need to reorient their efforts into a management context in which agricultural land is considered a natural resource." Such a reorientation would focus the efforts of agricultural colleges not only on ecologically designed agricultural systems but also on ecological restoration and improvement of nonagricultural resources, suggests Meyer. "Through research, teaching and outreach efforts, agricultural colleges can help society harmonize the public needs for food and nutrition, natural resources, environmental quality for habitation and quality of life for both rural and urban environments," he says. Copies of the report may be obtained by contacting Meyer.