Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT
(N/A)
BURLINGTON,VT 05405
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Small and medium-sized farm viability and farmer wellbeing research and extension programming is typically based on data from farmers who have persisted in farming. By neglecting the experiences of people who have exited early, current research skews our understanding of farm viability and farmer wellbeing. Furthermore, PI Leslie's food justice scholarship suggests that the additional barriers farmers of color, LGBTQ+ farmers, and women farmers face increase their likelihood of exiting early. This integrated research and extension project addresses these challenges through (1) an interview-based research study with early-exit farmers, oversampling marginalized groups, and (2) farmer and "train-the-trainer" extension programming and deliverables. Both are developed with Organizational Partners and an Accountability Committee of farmers and agricultural service providers who are people of color and/or LGBTQ+, some of whom are also women. Through rigorous qualitative research design and responsive extension engagement, this project addresses neglected issues of farm viability and farmer wellbeing - especially for socially marginalized farmers. Research results will be incorporated into extension curriculum and resources, and by the project's conclusion the team will deliver farmer education and service provider professional development that address business and quality of life concerns that affect persistence and early exit, particularly among farmers of color, LGBTQ+ farmers, and women farmers. This grant would lay the foundation for Leslie's research and extension career focused on small and medium-sized farm viability and farmer wellbeing in New England. This project increases New England's regional food system resiliency by fostering small and medium- sized farm economic viability while centering equity.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
0%
Applied
100%
Developmental
0%
Goals / Objectives
Our long-term goal is to increase equity and resiliency in New England's regional food system by improving small and medium-sized farm viability and farmer wellbeing. Our objectives are:Identify social and economic factors that contribute to early exits on New England's small and medium-sized farms (SMFs).Compare early exit factors with existing literature to illuminate possible oversights.Discern early exit factors specific to socially marginalized farmers.Use early exit research to develop extension curriculum and resource materials for farmers and agricultural educators and service providers (ASPs) who deliver extension, government and nonprofit farm business and agricultural viability programs.Deliver education and professional development to farmers and ASPs.
Project Methods
We will oversample underserved farmers, with a target of 20 farmers of color, 20 LGBTQ+ farmers, 20 women farmers, and 20 cisgender heterosexual white men farmers. Eighty interviews is ambitious, but this is a maximum; interviewees who identify with more than one of these groups will count toward the target number of both, reducing the number of interviews needed. To ensure an oversample of underserved farmers, we will follow the method Leslie successfully developed and piloted in New England. This approach relies on a "prescreening questionnaire," or an interview expression of interest form. This form has demographic questions to identify underserved farmers. By also collecting farm data, we can further achieve interviews about a diversity of farm types.After transcribing interviews, we will analyze interview data in NVivo through a coding strategy Leslie developed and piloted that combines three code types explained by Saldana (2013): "Thematic codes" (like "land access" and "farmer health") identify topical areas of farm viability and farmer wellbeing. "Simultaneous codes" (like "barriers," "strategies" and "discrimination") help make meaning of thematic codes. "In vivo codes" are short, direct quotes that succinctly summarize a main topic and help identify emergent themes. This three-part coding strategy combines inductive and deductive approaches, helpful for capturing unforeseen themes while ensuring data collection on established farm viability and farmer wellbeing themes.Extension components are grounded in best practices of farmer adult learning, providing a safe, participatory environment that effectively supports farmers in integrating new information and adopting new practices (McAllister and Bell, Brucker et. al). Organizational Partners will review preliminary research results to advise on the content and format of new print and video resources and educational offerings. We anticipate highlighting critical considerations related to both farm viability and farmer wellbeing, in ways that invite reflection, creativity, planning, analysis, and decision-making. Train-the-trainer curriculum and resources will further assist ASPs in supporting clients through these processes. Participants will primarily be recruited via digital communications developed by the Core team and distributed by the team, Organizational Partners, and Accountability Committee. We will offer at least two pilot farmer-oriented virtual workshops, using end-of-session polls and post-workshop surveys to solicit feedback on the style, language, ease of understanding, and cultural relevance of the materials and delivery. After integrating improvements based on farmer feedback, we will offer two pilot train-the-trainer workshops for ASPs. To accommodate the needs of non-English speaking audiences, the project includes funds both for translation of materials and interpretation during workshops/webinars.