Sustainable Farmer Educator Grants
The challenge
Some of our best farmers get overcommitted with speaking engagements and with requests for information. They spend a lot of time with other farmers and with extension educators; one farmer we know of holds his own field day that draws visitors from all around the Northeast and beyond. These farmers are usually not compensated for the information and help that they give to others, except for occasional speaking fees when they are offered.
The remedy
In 2001, Northeast SARE’s Administrative Council sent out an open call to farmers around the Northeast and selected three farmers who had expertise in the areas of managed grazing, horticultural crops, and no-till and soil conservation. These Sustainable Farmer Educators (SFEs) have logged many hours with extension, farmers, and producer groups, and all three have reported that the grant support has allowed them to focus on their educational work better. It is no longer an unpaid “extra,” but a task they welcome, since it is now recognized and compensated. The primary concerns are that more SFEs are needed in a wider range of disciplines and that geographic coverage across the whole region needs to be addressed.
Currently there are four Sustainable Farmer Educators with expertise in farm-based marketing, horticultural crops, organic farming and grazing and pasture management.
Activities in the field
Sustainable Farmer Educators both initiate contact with extension and farmers and respond to inquiries, making the SFE model more proactive than a speaker’s bureau but similar in intent. Typically, the farmer educators travel to conferences, workshops, pasture walks, field days, and other gatherings and also respond to individual inquiries via e-mail and telephone. SFEs work as independent contractors, compensated at the rate of $200 per day plus expenses up to a maximum of $8,000 per year. Grant funds can also be used for telephone, postage, and other communications expenses.
The role of the SFE is as a source of knowledge, but the SFEs do not, and should not, advise individuals in a specific way or act as any sort of consultant. They are there to educate, and not to resolve particular problems on a particular farm. For example, an SFE would not recommend to a farm family that they sell their cows and raise milk goats. Instead, the SFE’s role is to provide information, direct the family to other sources, and help them come up with an informed course of action. In the same vein, an SFE would not make specific agricultural chemical recommendations — for fertilizer or pesticides (herbicide, fungicide, insecticide) — although a description of how the SFE uses these materials and his or her approach to using them is fine. In many states giving agrichemical recommendations requires a license and liability insurance.
It is expected that the SFEs will continue farming and accept responsibility for setting their own speaking schedule as time allows. More speaking engagements will likely occur during the winter months and fewer during the growing season.
Activities within Northeast SARE
SFEs also have a role in alerting SARE staff and leadership to new issues in sustainable agriculture, shifts in practices, and emerging talented farmers. There is an expectation that the SFEs will attend at least one SARE regional meeting each year to talk about what they are hearing in the field and whether there are farmers or groups in the region that SARE should be talking to or in partnership with. This annual discussion will be supplemented by frequent casual contact with the SARE office.
The SFEs may also be asked to help screen and evaluate new applicants to the program, to comment on the design of the SFE effort, and to help SARE staff and leadership in determining what types of skills are to be recruited.
Specific outcomes
The Northeast SARE outcome statement says that agriculture in the Northeast will be diversified and profitable, providing healthful products to its customers; it will be conducted by farmers who manage resources wisely, what are satisfied with their lifestyles, and have a positive influence on their communities and the environment.
There is an expectation that, as a result of contact with each SFE, farmers will shift or improve their practices in ways that advance this statement. The SFEs are asked to keep records of farmer contact so that SARE staff can evaluate the effectiveness of the SFE initiative to see if it is serving the SARE mission.
Terms and conditions
Each year, the SFEs are asked to sign a Memorandum of Understanding that outlines the tasks, reimbursement plan, and overall terms and conditions of the SFE program; SARE may, at its option, extend the initial appointment twice, for a total of three years of service. Each SFE may claim up to $8,000 annually on a reimbursement basis—SFEs send in invoices, receipts, and other evidence of their SFE expenses. In general, all invoices are paid within 15 business days.
To learn more
To find out more about the SARE program and the Sustainable Farmer Educator program, call 802-656-0471 or send e-mail to david.holm@uvm.edu.
Click here to view current Sustainable Farmer Educators.
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