Source: UNIV OF WISCONSIN submitted to NRP
DEVELOPING RESEARCH AND EXTENSION COLLABORATIONS TO SUPPORT CLIMATE ADAPTATION BY MIDWEST ORGANIC VEGETABLE PRODUCERS
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1031171
Grant No.
2023-51300-40952
Cumulative Award Amt.
$49,982.00
Proposal No.
2023-04439
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Sep 1, 2023
Project End Date
Aug 31, 2024
Grant Year
2023
Program Code
[113.A]- Organic Agriculture Research & Extension Initiative
Recipient Organization
UNIV OF WISCONSIN
21 N PARK ST STE 6401
MADISON,WI 53715-1218
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Organic vegetable growers are uniquely susceptible to the projected impacts of climate change. Across the Upper Midwest, models predict higher annual temperatures with shorter, warmer winters, more hot days (over 95° F) and extended hot spells. Projections also show increased winter, spring and fall precipitation, greater frequency of extreme rainfall events and more dry spells during the summer. These changes can mean shifting planting and harvest windows, more dangerous conditions for outdoor field work, an increased need for irrigation or artificial drainage, increased insect and disease pressure, and reduced produce quality and marketability. The emphasis on soil health and systems diversity in organic agriculture is likely to provide some inherent resilience. However, most organic vegetable growers manage a diverse crop portfolio, leading to frequent and intensive tillage, undermining resilience to unpredictable precipitation. Organic vegetable growers need support to develop effective tools and strategies for climate resilience.Adapting our regional food system to the effects of climate change is an inherently complex problem, involving a wide network of stakeholders including growers, Extension professionals, researchers, regulatory agencies, grower organizations, private companies, and nonprofits. Many groups are still assessing stakeholder needs and defining their roles in this work. The critical next step is to weave these various networks together to facilitate regional coordination. Managing the impacts of complex issues like climate change cannot be achieved solely through traditional research and extension approaches. Instead, these goals must be achieved through creating and applying agroecological knowledge throughout webs of partnerships in which the ways of knowing and experiences of growers, scientists, organizations, industry leaders, and public officials are upheld and utilized. By drawing on principles from social network analysis and "network weaving", we hope to share knowledge and work together productively to facilitate more effective groups and collaborations, ultimately better identifying the research and extension needs related to climate resilience for Midwest organic vegetable farms.Through this planning proposal, we aim to: define climate resilience-related research priorities for Midwest organic vegetable growers; focus and strengthen efforts of individuals, organizations, and existing groups engaged in climate resilience outreach and education; learn from one another about best practices for climate adaptation outreach and building research networks with meaningful grower participation; and coordinate our efforts to use funding resources and expertise more effectively.We will coordinate a series of structured meetings to assess research, extension and outreach needs and efforts across the Midwest region on climate adaptation for organic vegetable producers, identifying priorities for future collaborative work. Based on findings from surveys, polls and facilitated discussions coordinated around these meetings, we will develop and publish two peer-reviewed papers outlining research, education and extension priorities to support organic growers in developing climate resilient diversified food production systems. Finally, we will develop and submit an Integrated Project proposal to the USDA NIFA OREI program in 2024 to pursue the research, education and extension priorities that emerge from this planning project.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
20514991060100%
Knowledge Area
205 - Plant Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
1499 - Vegetables, general/other;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems);
Goals / Objectives
The long-term goal of this proposal is to support Midwest organic vegetable growers' adaptation to a rapidly changing climate. We aim to do this through a "network weaving" engagement process to define research and outreach priorities for this audience, allowing us to write a well-coordinated full proposal to OREI in 2024.Our objectives are to:Coordinate a series of structured meetings to assess research, extension and outreach needs and efforts across the Midwest region on climate adaptation for organic vegetable producers, identifying priorities for future collaborative work;Develop and publish two peer-reviewed papers outlining research, education and extension priorities to support organic growers in developing climate resilient diversified food production systems; and,Develop and submit an Integrated Project proposal to the USDA NIFA OREI program in 2024 addressing research and extension priorities identified in OREI program objectives 1, 6 and 7.
Project Methods
Methods for this planning project are primarily techniques for facilitating discussions among a diverse group of participants to ensure that all voices are represented. By using inclusive methods, we expect to draw together perspectives from people with a wide range of experiences in organic vegetable production. This is an essential foundation to ensure relevance of future research and extension activities with Midwest vegetable growers.Methods include:social network survey to map target participant groups, key communications channels, and educational resources;Open Space discussion to allow participants to explore emergent themes from lightning talks; modified 'data jam' approach to collaboratively summarize our coordinated and participatory agroecological approaches to extension and outreach efforts;world cafe discussion to identify existing efforts, gaps, and priorities related to climate resilience research for organic vegetable growers;polling tools like Menti-meter to gather feedback about research priorities and outreach processes;post-meeting surveys to assess participant perceptions of meeting outcomes and priorities.Data collected using survey and polling tools will be summarized using descriptivestatistics in a program such as R.

Progress 09/01/23 to 08/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience: This project serves organic vegetable producers in the Midwest United States; agriculture professionals who serve their educational needs, including Extension and non-profit staff; and researchers who focus on organic vegetable production systems. The project team and audience are located in the Midwest, and focused on production systems, educational needs, and research needs specific to this region, yet the consultative and network weaving approach taken by this project can be applied across multiple regions. Network building specific to this project began when Wisconsin organic vegetable producers met with Extension educator Claire Strader and researcher Rue Genger to discuss concerns about extreme weather events in 2018, leading to a 2019 climate resilience forum held at the Organic Vegetable Production Conference in Madison WI. This group has built a producer community of practice centered on peer learning and collaborative research into reduced tillage methods for organic vegetable production. Many of these producers sell directly to consumers and retailers in local and regional markets and thus are critical to stable regional food systems. Group members share production practices and research trial outcomes through online and in-person presentations. Concurrently, the Risk to Resilience program in Minnesota, co-led by the University of Minnesota Extension and the Land Stewardship Project, has supported 20 specialty crop farms in developing detailed climate resilience plans with goals, specific practices, timelines for implementation, and plans for evaluation. These producer networks have been important for consultation on project activities as well as promotion and implementation of project events. Extension and producer education professionals in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, Illinois, North Dakota, and South Dakota with interests in climate adaptation for organic vegetable growers have been served by this project. Similarly, Midwest-based researchers active or interested in climate adaptation for organic vegetable growers have benefited from the project's activities. This project has connected researchers and extension professionals from a wide range of Federal, State, University, and non-profit organizations, and has developed a framework for on-going collaboration. The project's consultative activities have extended our network across disciplines relevant to agroecosystem health, identified gaps in knowledge and expertise, and identified priorities for future research. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Event attendees heard presentations on climate science, climate adaptation strategies for organic vegetable production, and climate adaptation outreach and education efforts for organic vegetable producers. By convening organic producers, educators, and researchers and providing structured opportunities to discuss strategies, needs, and practices, we enabled these professionals to engage in peer-to-peer learning and to find commonalities and opportunities for collaboration in their future work. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Outcomes from each meeting were summarized and distributed to participants via email. A publication on the first event (focused on needs of producer educators) has been accepted by the Journal of Extension and is awaiting publication, and a second publication (focused on research needs) is in preparation. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? We convened a networking and needs assessment process for extension and grower education professionals from across the Upper Midwest. We invited educators, researchers, and staff from 1862 LGUs and non-profit organizations serving organic vegetable growers in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota, staff from the USDA Midwest Climate Hub, and representatives from five Tribal Extension, government, or inter-Tribal coalitions engaged with specialty crop growers. Our team developed and distributed a needs assessment and social network analysis survey which was completed by twenty-two people. We then hosted a follow-up retreat in Cloquet, attended by 20 of those individuals. At the event, participants heard presentations on ongoing climate adaptation outreach and education efforts for organic vegetable producers, reflected on survey results together, and summarized priorities and takeaways through World Cafe discussions. The project was deemed "not human research" by the University of Minnesota Institutional Review Board (study #00020130). Outcomes of the process indicated that a networked, collaborative approach is critical for supporting organic vegetable growers in adapting to climate change across the Upper Midwest. We learned that most grower educators are seeking to adapt tools and resources for their audiences but are also underutilizing existing resources dedicated to climate resilience for growers in the Midwest. Funding is a key limitation to doing this work, and channeling funds directly to producers is necessary for timely climate adaptation. Training and resources on effective climate communication is needed. More work is needed to bring underserved communities into the existing network of grower educators serving organic vegetable growers. Developing programs and tools specifically for these audiences is critical, and those programs must be language-accessible and culturally appropriate. Networks of grower educators must also address larger food system barriers to climate resilience in addition to working directly with farmers. Our team convened a session at the 2024 Marbleseed Organic University (OU) on the topic "Climate adaptation for Midwest organic vegetable growers: grower experience, current research and future priorities". This event brought together organic farmers and organic agriculture professionals from across the Midwest region. We also recruited attendees from Midwest farmer-serving organizations with a focus on food justice, equity, and environmental stewardship, as well as Tribal food and agriculture affiliates. Eighty-eight attendees pre-registered for the session and attendance was approximately 80-90 people. Attendees heard presentations on climate science and research on production strategies for organic vegetables and on managing climate-related health risks in agricultural work. Through surveys and small group discussion, the following research needs were prioritized: Water management; Resilient crop varieties and species; Pest management; Worker health and labor concerns; BIPOC inclusion; Soil health; Season extension. Attendees identified resource limitations - particularly capital outlay - as obstacles to implementing climate adaptation recommendations and pointed to a need for accessible educational resources delivered through strong positive relationships with producer educators, and for more consultative and collaborative approaches to research into climate adaptation to ensure recommendations are adapted to on-farm needs.

Publications