Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
In the southern region, farmers and ranchers continue to face stressors including reduced farmland, natural disasters such as tornadoes, flooding, drought, rising prices related to supplies like fertilizers and feed, and decreasing farming profits. These stressors contribute to increased risk of suicide and poor mental and physical health outcomes for farmers and ranchers. The combination of stressors and elevated risk for suicide make southern region efforts efforts more critical than ever to help alleviate some of the risk facing farmers. The southern region is called SAgE (Stress Assistance Ag Exchange) and this networkalso emphasizes resources targeted to historically marginalized groups to address issues related to continuing racial inequity in southern states. This includes identifying and promoting resources and research efforts focused on African American farmers throughout the southern region including the Virgin Islands as well as Hispanic/Latino farmers specifically in Puerto Rico as well as in other states including farm workers.In order to address farmer and rancher stress in the southern region, we plan to promote SAgE resources that were developed in previous rounds of funding. This includes the hotline that provides crisis intervention as well as case management services to farmers and ranchers, their family members, and professionals. The SAgE website includes a list resource by state that identifies services that provide support to root causes of farm stress. This resource list will continue to be enhanced through partner engagement with stakeholders and farmers throughout the southern region with a particular focus on states that have had limited engagement with SAgE to date. The hotline and the website will be promoted through local, state, and regional events throughout the southernregion that focus on farmers and ranchers. The findings from applied research projects that were previously funded will continue to be disseminated through webinars and Extension publications. Additional emphasis will be placed on strengthening mental health services for farmers and ranchers throughout the region through trainings, education, and engagement of peer support networks.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
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Applied
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Developmental
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Goals / Objectives
Goal 1: Enhance a diverse, regionally representative network of member organizations.Objective: To have a strengthened network with increased engagement from southern region states and territories who have had limited involvement in the network to date.Goal 2: Maintain a clearinghouse of farmer assistance programs in the region.Objective: Incease accessibility and engagement by Extension and farmers in the southern region with the SAgE website resources.Goal 3: Educate individuals/teams about FRSAN activities and how they can access and use existing resources and programs in their work with agricultural workers and communities under stress.Objective: Increase awareness and engagement with hotline and website resources by Extension and farmers in the region.Goal 4: Provide a range of services referenced in the legislative authorities.Objective: Address farmer stressors through services such as the hotline, website with a list of resources, translation and application of research findings, and expansion of peer support networks.
Project Methods
This project focuses on promotion and outreach about mental health services to farmers and ranchers as well as professionals who work directly with farmers and ranchers. Methods will focus on outreach and engagement of these groups through events, website and social media campaigns, dissemination of related research through webinars and Extension publications, and hotline and case management services. Methods will be evaluated through surveys, tracking of engagement through analytics such as likes and follows, and tracking of number of people who are reached at events and through webinars and publications.