News
New taro variety developed at ASCC-ACNR
January 26, 2024
American Samoa’s loss of all traditional taro varieties in the 1990s due to taro leaf blight disease has necessitated the need for taro crop improvement. Taro, the staple food crop of American Samoa, is subjected to changing climate, soil, pest and disease conditions. Production and evaluation of new taro varieties is important to identify varieties with acceptable eating quality and tolerances to heat, salinity, pests and diseases.
4-H Charter Club established at Fa'asao Marist High School
November 8, 2023
The American Samoa Community College (ASCC) – Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Division 4-H Program celebrated the establishment of the Fa’asaō-Marist High School (FMHS) 4-H Charter Club with an induction ceremony for its student members on October 25th. The FMHS 4-H Charter Club is the second 4-H High School Charter Club in American Samoa and will focus on providing opportunities for FMHS students to learn about agriscience while developing skills to create sustainable community change.
ASCC-ACNR's Daniel Helsham selected as SARE Fellow
October 27, 2023
The American Samoa Community College (ASCC) – Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Division’s Media Specialist, Daniel Helsham, has been selected by the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program as a member of its SARE Fellows program, representing the Western region, from 2024-2026. Helsham is the first Samoan/ Pacific Islander SARE fellow and the first to be selected from any of the US Pacific territories.
ASCC-ACNR & ASEPA host three-day pesticide training
October 24, 2023
The American Samoa Community College (ASCC) - Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Division’s Agriculture Extension Program (AEP) in partnership with the American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA) hosted a three day training conducted by collaborative efforts of Michigan State University (MSU) and the University of Arizona (UA) Extension Programs. The training provided a comprehensive overview of pesticide safety and workers protection.
New interactive tool enables assessment of sea-level rise in American Samoa
September 25, 2023
The American Samoa Relative Sea Level Rise Viewer is a new interactive tool that will allow stakeholders to assess the local vulnerability to sea-level rise.
STEP-UP students present research at 2023 STEP-UP Symposium
August 9, 2023
Four high school student participants in the STEP-UP program presented the results of their studies at the 14th Annual STEP-UP Symposium held at the American Samoa Community College – Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Division on July 29, 2023 and will now be traveling to the mainland to present their research.
ASCC-ACNR hosts workshop addressing concern over childhood obesity
April 14, 2023
In late March, the Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) division of the American Samoa Community College hosted a special workshop to address the ongoing concern of childhood obesity in American Samoa.
ASCC-ACNR hosts Food Safety Training conducted by the University of Idaho
March 10, 2023
Representatives from several local government departments along with staff from the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) – Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Division completed a Food Safety Training conducted by the University of Idaho (U of I) and hosted by ASCC-ACNR. The three-day training focused on enhancing food safety in American Samoa and is part of the University of Idaho’s “Customized Food Safety Education Strategy for Hard-to-Reach Audiences in the Western Pacific Islands” project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
2022 American Samoa Forest and Inventory Analysis Completed
December 23, 2022
The American Samoa Community College (ASCC) – Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Forestry Program, in partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) – U.S Forest Service (USFS) has completed the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) project for American Samoa. Implemented every ten years, the last FIA in the territory was in 2012.
ASCC-ACNR conducts 2nd Swine Artificial Insemination Project to improve local swine production
December 19, 2022
The American Samoa Community College (ASCC) – Agriculture, Community and Natural Resources (ACNR) Division has completed its second Swine Artificial Insemination (AI) Project for local pig breeders. The three-month-long project familiarized pig farmers with AI as a scientific method to alleviate inbreeding and enhance sow fertility, genetics, and production.