Historian and professor Scott Peters has dedicated over two decades to examining the dynamic relationships that scientists, scholars, and extension educators at land-grant universities have with the communities they serve. 

Credit: Lee Wexler/Provided

In this episode of “Extension Out Loud,” a podcast by Cornell Cooperative Extension, Peters traces the history of extension systems and engages with the difficult question: what exactly is extension work? He says, “the work of extension isn't about just extending stuff from the lab and the campus. It's about extending this idea that if we come together and pool and share our knowledge and do some experiments together … perhaps we'll be able to make some progress on understanding and addressing problems we're facing.” In this episode Peters highlights the ways that extension educators and programs enable communities to work together with land-grant universities to respond to some of the biggest challenges we face today. 

This conversation with Peters is the fourth episode of the latest “Extension Out Loud” series, “Leading Through Extension,” which features key CCE voices discussing their approaches to extension work and how history – and this past tumultuous year — are shaping the organization’s path forward.  

Listen to this and earlier episodes of Extension Out Loud on:

• Apple Podcasts
• Google Podcasts
• SoundCloud
• Spotify