Progress 09/15/22 to 09/14/23
Outputs
Target Audience:The MU Extension & Engagement Week: All Things Food was a three-part conference series anchored by the University of Missouri's Extension & Engagement Week in October 2022. The purpose of this three-part conference series is to bring together research and extension faculty and staff from the four University of Missouri System institutions and MU Extension, state agencies, partner organizations, private industry, and Cooperative Extension colleagues nationally to address improving food access, security, availability, and its impact on the overall health of Missourians. With the resources, expertise, and perspectives presented during the conference, participants will achieve the goal of working toward a shared vision of an improved food system. MU Extension and Engagement Week is hosted annually by the University of Missouri Office of Extension and Engagement. Beginning in 2019, MU's Office of Extension & Engagement began to host annual conferences on topics of critical issue to Missouri as well as the nation and abroad. In 2019, the conference focused on broadband access and the digital divide. In 2020, the conference focused on workforce development and in 2021, the focus was health. The focus of the 2022 conference was "All Things Food" and presented an opportunity for extension faculty, many of whom are jointly appointed research faculty, to deepen their learning and professional network with colleagues throughout the state and nationally through supplementary sessions focused on food and nutrition issues. The conference series was anchored with the MU Extension and Engagement Week and included pre- and post-conference virtual sessions that use the core conference topics as a touchstone to more deeply explore on the food system as a supply chain that operates within broader economic, biophysical, and sociopolitical contexts in Missouri. Over 625 individuals registered for conference sessions. Of all conference participants, 468 individuals identified that they worked for or were affiliated with Cooperative Extension. Other participants included UM System faculty and staff, state and local agency staff, and community members. Each participant averaged registering for eight of the sixteen total sessions. The three presentations that were most attended were 1) Climate Markets and Politics: Food and Agriculture at a Generational Crossroads (504 in-person participants plus 138 virtual attendees); 2) From Problem/Opportunity/Collaboration: Building Resilient Community Food Systems in Missouri (443 in-person participants plus 98 virtual attendees); and 3) Adding Value to Agriculture (415 in-person participants plus 87 virtual attendees). The sixteen conference sessions, including pre- and post-conferences sessions, included 62 total presenters. The presenters were from diverse backgrounds, including 7 University of Missouri faculty members; 11 UM System faculty (UMKC, UMSL and MS&T); 18 Extension faculty; 9 partner agency staff; 6 community members; 1 elected official; and 10 external subject matter experts. Twenty-nine presenters were female and thirty-three were male. Sixteen percent of the presenters were presenters of color (6 African American; 2 Asian and 2 Latino). To promote the conference and activities during the conference, social media was used with a total reach of 102,516. Below is the breakdown of the pre-conference marketing reach/impressions by platform. Twitter 11,448 impressions, engagements, retweets Facebook 19,942 posts, engagements, impressions, shares--organic 69,168 posts, engagements, impressions, shares--paid Instagram 1,264 posts, impressions, clicks--organic 694 posts, impressions, clicks--paid Webpages were also used to market the "All Things Food" Conference, including pre- and post-sessions. Below is a report of the page views from July 12 to October 31, 2022. This data does not include any marketing of post conference sessions. Community Connect Analytics Pageviews UM System 14,466 MU 1,502 UMKC 7,739 S&T 4,584 UMSL 2,371 Note: Timeframe 7-12-22 to 10-31-22 Changes/Problems:While it was felt that the "All Things Food" Conference was highly successful, there are always ways in which you would like to improve upon. First, the conference committee liked the addition of pre- and post-conference sessions. This was the first year for such sessions, especially given that these events spanned from August 2022 to April 2023, approximately one per six to eight weeks. The committee is recommending that pre- and post-sessions are continued but potentially hosting fewer and more targeted topics or for a specific audience. The second recommendation would be to have events tailored to specific audiences--Extension, resident faculty/staff, community members, and industry. By more clearly defining sessions for specific audiences will allow more in-depth conversations and panel sessions specifically relating to target audiences. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The conference committee as well as participants and Extension Sr. Program Directors have reviewed the conference evaluations to determine opportunities for on-going professional development. Given that food and health continue to be grand challenges not only for Missouri but nationally and internationally, the opportunity for professional development and development of new collaborations will continue for the foreseeable future. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Recordings of each of the pre- and post-conference sessions were made publicly available for those who were not able to attend on the day of presentation or who may not have been aware of the sessions previously. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The overall evaluation was very positive with 73.5% of participants submitting evaluations rated the conference either Excellent or Good. Total registration of 625 more than doubled the average attendance (250-300) of recent past conferences. Participants have a better understanding of community partners in which they can engage to develop local educational programs and applied research. In the year following the conference, an increased interest in Farm-to-Institution programs from both producers and institutions, including schools, early childhood centers, and emergency food systems. A delegation of MU Extension faculty and external community partners traveled to Costa Rica to determine how they can work together with local partners to increase food security. The Missouri Food Entrepreneur Network (MO-FEN) which includes Deans and Department Chairs of Agriculture of higher education, state agency partners and Extension have met to determine how they can work more closely together to provide opportunities for students and community members. Through MO-FEN is the first time all Missouri higher education institutions with agriculture departments/colleges have come together to meet.
Publications
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