Progress 07/01/24 to 01/07/25
Outputs
Target Audience:There were a variety of target audiences that were focused on through this funding. Overall, our organizations mission and annual conference targets beginning and new producers, commercial producers, small- to mid-scale producers, students, universities, underserved communities, urban and rural producers,international, nonprofits, for-profit entities, and educators. All these target audiences were relayed information and provided and opportunity to join the 13th Annual Aquaponics Conference in various capacities. However, under the grant funds, there was a specific target audience that benefited from grant funds. This is described below: 1) Travel Reimbursement for Conference Participation Funding allocations for this objective was targeted towards, Underserved Communities (i.e Native American), Nonprofits, Students, and Innovative Producers (i.e. Automation). This included: - inviting and fully funding (2) Native American Tribal members (Seminole and Muscogee)involved in aquaponics to the conference to present and attend the conference. - inviting and fully funding (4) nonprofits (New York Sun Works, FoodChain, Hope for Small Farm Sustainability, and ECOLife Conservation) involved or interested in using aquaponicsto benefit the community to present and attend the conference. - inviting and fully funding (2) students (Tarleton State University and Texas State University) involved in aquaponics to present and attend the conference. - inviting and fully funding (2) for-profit entities involved usinginnovative production technologies (Symbiotic Aquaponic and Aquaculture Systems Technologies) such as automation and integrating the technologies into aquaponic system design and production to present and attend the conference. 2) On-Farm Producer Tours Funding allocations for this objective were targeted towards the entire conference audience, as described above, but specifically focused on showcasing local small- to mid-scaleproducers using aquaponics to the general conference audience. This included using funding to partially offset costs of an on farm-tour of Timberview Farmstead, which integrates aquaponics into the community using education, demonstration, and commercial production. Changes/Problems:Nothing of major sigificance to report here. However, we did want to cover a couple of challenges/events of significance as well as future improvements based on attendee feedback: 1) Weather Impacted Attendance We did run into some issues affecting attendance due to acts of god from the hurricane and other weather related events. This is a historical issue due to the timing of the conference. However, the conference has consistently been hosted in the month of September, with consideration to other major conferences that may overlap with our attendee base, and therefore changing the month may cause a further loss of attendance. 2) Venue Environmental Issues The conference hotel had A/C issues which led to uncomfortable climatic conditions within our event space during the first day of the event. This was resolved through proper conference management and a friendly relationship with our hotel point of contacts. The result led to the hotel compensating our attendees with cold beverages and additional food as well as some reduction in overall costs for our organization. 3) Survey Results and Changes to Future Programming - Based on the post-conference survey, we will seek to: a) expand our pre-conference workshop to enable more attendees have access to this programming, b)utilize a better location and conference space to better accommodate attendees needs(food access, social activites, etc.) throughout the event, and c) develop better workshopping, hands-on learning, and new content to better serve our diverse range of attendees. - Future funding for conference related grants will consider more partial funding for targeted audiences rather than more full-funded opportunities as well as new initiatives to better involve targeted audiences (i.e. student scholarship presentation competition; i.e. hands-on workshop during conference for new and beginning/underserved producers) What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?No training opportunities were provided as part of this project; however, several professional development opportunities were provided that are described below: 1)Skills gained during conference tours Several skills and production techniques were demonstrated to attendees during the (2) tours of local commercial farms during the conference. The tours included 1) Eden Green, a commercial vertical hydroponics greenhouse operation, and 2) Timberview Farmstead, a bio-integrated farm using commercial aquaponic greenhouses as a cornerstone for agritourism. During the Eden Green Tour, attendees were shown several novel techniques/skills for plant propagation, plant harvesting, and marketing. Additionally, Eden Green showcased their Intellectual Property (IP) system design, which integrates vertical systems and environmental control systems within greenhouses. During the tour of Timberview Farmstead, skills involving Integrated Pest Management (IPM), farm waste management, and fish handling and processing were demonstrated to attendees. Additionally, attendees gained perspective from Timberview's unique agritourism business model, which integrates commercial aquaponics with several other livestock and outdoor farming operations to achieve profitability. Timberview uses this bio-integrated farm for hosting events, youth education and demonstration, community outreach, as well as product sales. 2)Knowledge gained during preconference workshop The preconference workshop was hosted at Texas A&M Dallas Agrilife Center. The program included a tour of the Agrilife center and current research projects, (5) hours of classroom presentations, and a tour of Eden Green Technologies. The tour of the Agrilife center allowed for attendees to gain valuable insights regarding the role of extension as well as learn about research regarding plant varieties compatible for soil-less systems, automation and lighting technology integration into production, and aerobic mineralization of aquaculture fish waste. Classroom learning included topics such as benefits of aquaponic production, basic aquaponic system design, plant and fish selection, plant and fish husbandry and harvesting techniques, water quality management and monitoring techniques, innovative technology integration, and organic certification for producers. Attendees were provided digital copies of the presentations after the workshop as an archive of their information for future knowledge gain. Due to size restrictions of the preconference workshop space, there were limited spaces available. However, 15/87 participants of the post-conference survey indicated they would attend preconference workshop if there was more space. These results also give our organization valuable insight for future workshops and ensuring adequate space. 3)Knowledge and networking gained during conference Over the course of the conference a total of (63) presentations, (5) special sessions, and (8) hours of networking led to significant knowledge gain and networking exposure for attendees. The conference presentations included a keynote session from researchers and leaders at Auburn University, providing an inspiring data driven perspective on aquaponic projects at their institution. The remaining presentations consisted of five topic tracks: Education, Nonprofit/Community, Commercial Growing, Alternative Growing, and Research. This allowed for attendees to consume information from a variety of perspectives as they moved around the conference venue. The special sessions included topic areas on: Ask-The-Expert, Navigating USDA Grants Panel, Empowering Communities with Aquaponics, Innovations in Design, Processes, and Production, as well as Purdue Universities Blue is Green USDA Grant Initiative.In addition to the presentations, there was ample opportunity for attendees to network during the breakfasts, banquet dinner, farewell luncheon, tours, and exhibitor happy hours each night. As indicated by the post-conference surveys, the conference program allowed for significant increases in knowledge and networking, likely leading to changes in behaviors. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?(5) social media posts through our network as well as our marketing partners networks, (2) post-conference emails to our 1,500+user list, and (3) monthly webinars(100+ people total in attendance for all three webinars) were used to disseminate information about the results of this project and our 13th annual aquaponics conference to a wide variety of stakeholders. All attendees to the conference were also provideddigital copies of presentations (if approved by presenter) were provided by our organization. Additionally, ablog was createdthat was disseminated through our website and social media highlighting the conference grant and ways to be involved with USDA programs (https://aquaponicsassociation.org/articles/generating-ideas-at-the-13th-annual-aquaponics-conference). This will allow for communities of interest to understand our platform and the role we can play in supporting them for future events. This blog also highlights the benefits of USDA grant funding and enables stakeholders of interest to utilize our organization as a resource to navigate grant funding and provide a platform to connect with individuals and other organizations. Lastly, we covered the cost of filming and photography throughout the conference. This digital imagery has been compiled internally and will serve our organization to disseminate the results of the conference through advertising for future events and showcasing the benefit of our annual conference. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Numerous accomplishments were achieved under the goals of this project. These are described in detail below: 1) Significant Cost Savings for Attendees of 13th Annual Aquaponics Conference ~$7,403 was allocated toward covering travel costs for grant targeted audience, ~$4,289 was allocated toward covering lodging costs for grant targeted audience, and ~$8,718 was allocated towards ticket discounts for grant targeted audience. This resulted in a total of $20,410 saved for the targeted attendees of the conference due to the conference grant. Overall, full funding (travel, lodging, and tickets) accounted for 75% of the total amount saved ($15,582). This full funding was provided to the following: (3) individuals from nonprofits (2 urban; 1 rural) that currently are/are interested in utilizingaquaponics to better serve their communities; (2) individuals from Tribal Nations (Seminole, Muscogee) that are utilizing aquaponics to feed their tribes; (2) individuals from for-profit businesses involved in automation or innovative technology integration into aquaponics; and (1) studentfrom a university (Texas State University) involved in research with aquaponics. Partial funding (discounted to fully covered ticket) accounted for the remaining 25% ($4,828) discountsthat were distributed to targeted conference attendees, whichincluded: (9) individuals from nonprofits operating around the country involved in aquaponics (7urban; 2 rural); (6) individuals that were classified asunderserved producers (Native American, African American; Veterans; Disabled); (4) individuals from universities or for-profit entities integrating technologies (automation, waste digestion, monitoring/sensors) into aquaponic system design; (8) students from various universities involved in aquaponics; (5) individuals that traveledinternationally who utilize aquaponics in their countries for various purposes; This partial funding was able to be allocated to individuals directlydue to the funding from the grant which enabled our organization to cover historical costs associated with the transportation for the annuallocal aquaponic farm tourintegrated into both the pre- and regular- conference programas well as covering costs for the labor associated with advertising and hosting the conference. 2) Increased Knowledge by attendees fromsessions,presentations, and tours hosted during the 13th Annual Aquaponics Conference At the end of our conference we distributed a post-conference survey seeking to gain insights from our attendees about ways to improve the conference programming, if they felt they gained knowledge from the conference program (special sessions, general presentations, as well as tours), and if the conference will create an action response for the attendee (i.e. vendor gained a new sale; producer will change harvesting methods based on new data from presentation, etc.). Of the 237 attendees, 84 submitted a survey response. In general, there was a positive response for the conference with 48 of the respondents ratedthe conference 5/5 in. This indicated significant value gained, reflecting strong content and networking opportunities.27of the participants rating the conference 4/5, reflecting quality content and networking, with still a value gained from the conference.5participants rated the conference 3/5 in reflecting a neutral feeling about the value gained from the conference and showing a need for improvement in the programming and content. The remaining 4 participants rated the conference below 3/5 reflecting a negative feeling about the programming and value gained from it. Results from the survey showed strong positive feedback from attendees with 53 respondents providing ways to improve the conference, indicating buy-in and appreciation to create an overall better conference experience. Participants also indicated a strong interest in the pre-conference workshop programming and more beginner level content. 2/3 of our respondents indicated they would be returning to the conference with the remaining 1/3 unsure with reasoning such as location, unknown schedule/content, or funding as being a potential roadblock for returning. 3) Historical sponsorship support and solid attendance for the 13th Annual Aquaponics Conference Overall, we had 237 attendees and 18 sponsors during the 2024 conference. While these numbers were slightly lower than what we had set our goals towards (300; 20), we are still satisfied with the turnout as our target levels were above average from years past. For example, 18 sponsors is the highest number of sponsors supporting the conference since its initiation. In terms of attendance, several attendees were unable to join due tohurricane Francine effecting swathsacross the southern US. Other attendees were unsure of participation due to various social aspects of the location (TX) where the conference was hosted at as well as conflicts with schedules. Initially we had created the following 6 outcome evaluators to determine if our overall project goal was reached. These outcomes were: 1) Full financial support for 3 Urban organizations; partial financial support for 8 2) Full financial support for 2 students; partial support for 10 3) Full financial support for 3 Native American organizations; partial support for 5 4) Full financial support for 2 producers using automation; partial support for 4 5) Increased knowledge from special sessions for >70% of attendees; and 6) 300+ attendees; 20+ sponsors for the event. Overall, we achieved 4/6 these outcomes (Outcomes 1 and 3-5). Outcome two was not technically achieved, as the student who was to be fully funded from Texas A&M ended up covering their own costs, voluntarily. However, we feel that the additional partial support we were able to provide for the others outlined above made up for the lack of (2) students being fully funded.Outcome six wasnot achieved as we were only able to draw in 237 attendees and 18 sponsors to the event this year. However, the response from survey participants along with other external factors will allow us to set more achievable targeted goals for conference attendance infuture programming.In general, we were able to accomplish what we set out to do and this projects funding significantly supported our historical hurdles hosting this annual conference and provided our organization with valuable insights to improve the conference in the future.
Publications
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