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In May, 1981, Dr. Daniel Badger, Oklahoma State University,
Department of Agricultural Economics, Chair of the American Agricultural
Economics Association (AAEA) Literature Retrieval Committee (now
called Economic Statistics and Information Resources Committee),
with the assistance of Barbara Hensley, Librarian of the University
of Missouri, Department of Agricultural Economics, invited representatives
of all the departments of agricultural economics libraries/reference
rooms to the University of Missouri. He hoped to start a dialogue
among the group so that we could become aware of and use the latest
reference tools, databases, and new technologies. About 20 Representatives/Librarians
from the United States attended.
Among the representatives and librarians were later members
of the Agricultural Economics Reference Organization (AERO), including
Judith Siess, Librarian, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign,
who formally organized and named the organization. Letters were
sent to departments of agricultural economics announcing the formation,
the mission, and an invitation to join; more than 40 worldwide
responses were received. The main purpose of AERO would be to
inform its members through the newsletter; to facilitate communication
among agricultural economics information workers; to communicate
with information providers such as the USDA; and to possibly hold
on-line information retrieval workshops or other meetings. To
this end, she started the newsletter and held the first workshop/meeting
at Urban in April 1983. About 15 people participated. Farm Foundation
in Chicago graciously provided seed money to cover transportation
expenses for some embers who otherwise would not have been able
to attend.
The second AERO Workshop/Meeting was hosted by Louise Letnes, Librarian, University of Minnesota, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, St. Paul, in September, 1985. Twenty-two participants attended from 14 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada. Louise contacted Roger Dahlgren of the AAEA Information Retrieval Committee to request from Farm Foundation grant money for travel to give some members partial financial assistance to attend the Workshop/Meeting.
There are no membership dues. Ccurrently, AERO has more than 60 members from the United States and other countries.
Membership in AERO is open to information providers representing the departments of agricultural economics and related institutional libraries and reference rooms.
The conference, hosted by an AERO member, is held every 18-24 months.
(Revised 10/03)
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