Women for the Land: Helping Women Farmers Advance Soil Health in Pennsylvania

Milestone 1: Establish advisory group; adapt Learning Circle curriculum for cohort (Engagement)

1. 6-8 advisory group members (four farmers and five service providers):
   • Our advisory group was established in early 2022 and has provided support for curriculum development and learning circle coordination. One of the farmers identified in our original application (also a service provider working for NRCS) determined that the work of the project was too close for her to work as a grazing specialist for NRCS and was concerned about a conflict of interest; she declined to participate as an advisory group members. In general, our advisory group has been active in supporting the project. Mary Barbercheck of WaGN and Penn State replaces Kathy Braiser on the advisory group. 

   • Update 1/2024: For 2024, we are working on reconstituting our advisory group due to non-participation from the original farmer members. For the second year of implementation, advisory group members will not be involved in curriculum development, so their main role will be to assist with continued participant engagement and connections to other programs and resources.

2. Farmers will engage with the curriculum to learn why soil is important in farming operations, soil health terminology, general soil health, and how to implement soil health practices, including cover crops, water quality, nutrient management, and how to communicate with landowners about soil health practices
   • 3/21/22 update:
     • See attached curricula, including overall project curriculum and more detailed individual session curricula.  Because the content of the learning circles is somewhat responsive to identified participant needs, participant agendas are being developed in preparation for each learning circle.
     • Attachments: Milestone 1 Soil Health Learning Circle Curriculum.docx Milestone 1 October 26 Participant Agenda.docx Milestone 1 January 6 Participant Agenda Milestone 1 December 1 Participant Agenda

   • Status 1/31/24: Complete, except for rebuild of advisory group

   • Accomplishments 1/31/24:
     • The Women for the Land model focuses on preparing discussion leaders – often highly skilled resource professionals -- to engage with participants in a unique way. During a learning circle, participants and discussion leaders are encouraged to introduce themselves personally, and to interact with one another as peers. While discussion leaders bring technical expertise and knowledge of available resources, participants bring lived experience and wisdom to a conversation on any conservation topic. In addition, while learning circles may focus on conveying specific information, they also emphasize sharing experiences, intensive question-and-answer periods, and connecting farmers to resources and to one another. The curriculum that was developed through this project was driven largely by the participants’ needs and interests, as identified in the needs assessments they completed prior to the beginning of the cohort. Each learning circle, whether virtual or in-person, included similar components and structure, including extensive introductions and check-ins, a focused presentation and discussion with a knowledgeable resource professional on a particular topic identified by the cohort, and next steps/ homework that kept participants engaged until the next learning circle session. 
     • Creating an adaptable, responsive curriculum focused on participant needs and peer-to-peer support, including ample time for co-learning and skill building, enabled cohort participants to “live into” soil health assessments, principles, and practices. Participants increased their fluency in the language and practice of soil health, enabling them to communicate more effectively with technical service providers and consultants about their farm’s specific soil health needs and goals. Discussion leaders became trusted advisors, and several expressed that the learning circle cohort was a rewarding professional experience for them as technical assistance providers in addition to a valuable teaching tool for participants.
     • Our final surveys and interviews with cohort participants demonstrate the effectiveness of the curriculum One hundred percent of survey respondents rated their knowledge of soil health principles and practices as “better” or “much better” than before the learning circle series. Eighty-three percent said that they were “much more interested” in trying new soil health practices on their farms, and the same percentage responded that they felt “much more connected” with other women farmers working to improve their soil health. One hundred percent said that they were either “more aware” or “much more aware” of financial and technical assistance resources available to support them in improving the health of their soils, and every respondent rated the learning circle approach as “excellent” compared with other types of farmer education in which they had taken part.
     • Attachments: Aug 29, 2023, Twilight Learning Circle @ Hill Creek Farm April 11 Participant Agenda March 15 Participant Agenda February 15 Participant Agenda January 6 Participant Agenda

Milestone 2: Identify and recruit participants for Learning Circle cohort (Engagement) 

1. 10-15 women farmers
2. Through recruitment, women will become aware of the Learning Circle cohort and the new skills and resources that they will learn; interested women will sign up for the Learning Circle cohort
   • 6/30/22 update:
     • See attached recruitment materials, developed in consultation with our advisory group. Recruitment began in June of 2022 and extended through the summer. Advisory group members and cooperators assisted with outreach in targeted counties. 
     • The cohort structure was a new model for our Women for the Land work in Pennsylvania, so we experimented with a slightly different internal recruitment mechanism whereby women who used our WFL website link to express interest then went through a simple screening process to determine commitment to the cohort model and appropriateness for the project. See attached needs assessment survey, which helped identify level of familiarity with materials and commitment to soil health goals in participating farmers. We continued to cast a wide net for cohort participants until late October, when we hosted our first in-person soil health learning circle. 
     • Attachments: Milestone 2 Soil Health Social Milestone 2 WFL Soil Health Flyer MIF080~1
   • Status 1/31/24: Complete
   • Accomplishments 1/31/24:
     • In all, we ended up with a cohort of nine women farmers: two diversified vegetable and livestock farmers; two pastured livestock farmers; one vegetable farmer; one dairy, crop, and flower farmer; one beginning farmer with a focus on vegetable production and farm-based education; one small-scale organic grain producer; and one small-scale flower farmer. Participation was very high at the in-person and virtual learning circle events, and engagement was significant among cohort members on their own social media feeds outside of ‘official’ project communications channels. The needs assessment survey was useful both to help shape the curriculum to the experience and educational goals of the participants and also to ensure that registrants were engaged with the project from the beginning.
     • During the proposal writing process, we anticipated that our recruitment would result in a cohort of women who represented the largest commodity groups in Pennsylvania, including grains, poultry, dairy, and nursery crops and floriculture. However, our final cohort included only one small but groundbreaking organic grain operation and two small-scale flower growers. Our outreach focused on finding a soil health successful woman grain farmer (see Milestone 3) further illuminated the fact that female farmers, and likely particularly those who are seeking community and support, tend to be concentrated in less traditional production systems. According to a 2024 AFT report, The State of Gender Equity in U.S. Agriculture, “[W]omen tend not to be in primary leadership roles on larger-scale commodity-oriented farms and ranches....[W]omen-led operations...tend to be producing poultry, equines, small livestock, bees, and specialty crops and are less represented in leading commodity-oriented operations such as in dairy, cattle, pork, and row crops.” Further, according to the report, “[w]omen are more likely to lead small and medium-sized farms with lower farm sales. Among female owner-operators, the average farm size is about half that of their male counterparts. This has implications for the types of government programs, which often have a per acre incentive rate and may or may not be economically feasible for their operations, among other challenges related to economies of scale and access to markets. Research suggests that women are more likely to engage in less subsidized forms of agriculture on smaller farms that require less mechanization. These patterns may be because commodity crops typically require more mechanization, along with land and capital, and women have been historically excluded from spaces where farmers learn mechanical skills and machine operation, contributing to the coding of tractors and machinery as masculine realms. In addition, women have long experienced discrimination in land access and capital acquisition, especially through inheritance contributing to women-operated farms’ smaller on average size than those operated by men. These dynamics are exacerbated for women of color.”
     • The fact that the women in our cohort are faithful reflections of this national dynamic is not surprising. Their commitment to the learning circles and to one another, noted in their connections online and frequent “likes” and comments on one another’s social media posts (see Milestone 12 for details), was unexpected but speaks both to the desire of many women farmers for peer-led, nontraditional technical assistance and to their yearning for connection to each other. As we recruit for a new cohort of women farmers in Virginia, we are experiencing many of the same dynamics – women are not sure what to expect, they are excited for the connection to others but want to make sure the commitment is worth their time, and they are eager for access to specific resources (one PA cohort participant revealed that she was “just here to get some money for cover crop seed” early on, but has since become one of the most engaged and committed participants for reasons other than funding). Cohort participants in PA, however, are now asking whether there will be an additional opportunity for themselves or friends to participate in a learning circle cohort again, proving that these women can serve as effective recruiters themselves should we secure funding to continue this type of farmer-led co-learning in the region.

Milestone 3: Identify a soil health successful woman farmer for economic case study; conduct farmer interview; analyze data for soil health economic case study; finalize case and share with women farmers in cohort (Learning)

1. One woman farmer
2. Cohort of farmers will learn about the economic, water quality, and climate outcomes of a woman farmer in Pennsylvania who has successfully adopted soil health practices
   • 12/31/22; 3/31/23; 6/30/23; 9/30/23 update:
     • We began recruitment for a soil health successful woman farmer in early 2022, particularly working through our advisory group and other project partners. AFT's Soil Health Economic Case Studies model requires that the subject be a row crop farmer who has been implementing one or more soil health practices for between 4 and 15 years and has a positive soil health and economic story to tell. We were surprised by the challenge of finding a female row crop farmer who met the requirements of the case study. As of January 2023, we have done extensive interviews with a small-scale organic grain producer, Teena Bailey of Red Cat Farm. While Teena's operation ultimately does not appear to be a good candidate for a retrospective case study due to her ongoing experimentation and very small-scale, we are excited to create a simple profile on her operation as a part of the project. In the meantime, outreach is ongoing for a female row crop farmer. Because AFT's Soil Health Economic Case Study team has significantly expanded thanks to a recent NRCS cooperative agreement, we now have the assistance of Lia Raz, AFT Conservation Agronomist, who will co-lead our outreach and facilitate the development of the case study once an appropriate subject is found. See attached recruitment materials. Our timeline for development of the case study remains on track.

• • • The NRCS Cooperative Agreement will also fund the time originally budgeted for the Soil Health Economic Case Study team on this project, including Michelle Perez, Ben Wiercinski, Ellen Yeatman, and Agronomist 1. As a result, while we will continue to report on the milestones and targets associated with this portion of the project, we are submitting a budget amendment request in conjunction with this annual report to shift a portion of the requested funding from the case stud team to provide individualized technical assistance for cohort participants. (see "Assessment of project approach / areas of further study needed", below). We will report on this portion of the project under Milestone 7.  
    • Attachments: Milestone 3 Recruitment Materials
  • 1/2024 status: Complete
  • 1/2024 accomplishments:
    • As discussed in both last year’s project progress report and AFT’s 2024 Gender Equity in U.S. Agriculture (see quote in Milestone 2, above), women farmers are significantly underrepresented in row crop commodity agriculture. In addition, the requirements of AFT’s Retrospective Soil Health Economic Calculator (R-SHEC) tool limit the pool of eligible farmers even further with specific parameters around the types of qualified soil health practices and the number of years in particular practices. As a result,despite extensive outreach to nearly two hundred farmers and farm service providers in PA and seven in-depth interviews with female farmers, we were ultimately unable to locate a female farmer who qualified for the R-SHEC analysis. Instead, AFT’s Soil Health Economic Case Study team completed a case study on William Thiele, a crop and dairy farmer from Butler County, PA (linked in attachments), while our Mid-Atlantic team created two soil health profiles focused on participants in the cohort. These soil health profiles are the first exclusively featuring women producers on the AFT Farmland Information Center (FIC), and while they were not subject to the same rigorous economic analysis and review as the official economic case studies, they are powerful inspirational and educational tools for women farmers in the Mid-Atlantic region interested in adopting soil health practices. They illustrate the stories of women farmers characteristic of the region in terms of scale, production system, and selected soil health practices, and also demonstrate the breadth of available technical and financial assistance available for soil health, from Pasa’s Soil Health Benchmark Study to NRCS conservation plans and cost-share. We proposed a session focused on the Teena Bailey profile at the 2024 Pasa conference, but unfortunately it was not selected in a highly competitive year for sessions. We hope to try again with a proposal for the 2025 conference and possibly other local farmer-focused conferences.
    • Attachments: Outreach Tracker PA_ThieleDairyFarm_Soil_Health_Case_Study_AFT_NRCS AFT_Mid-Atlantic_Soil-Health-Farmer-Profile_Miller AFT_Mid-Atlantic_Soil-Health-Farmer-Profile_Bailey-1

Milestone 4: Host six Learning Circles and two farm field days (Learning)

1. 10-15 women farmers
2. Farmers will attend Learning Circles and farm field days and learn about the benefits of soil health practices and how to implement them on their farmland
   • 10/1/22-6/3/23 update:
     • Our first on-farm field day took place October 26th at Hameau Farm in the Big Valley, hosted by advisory group member and dairy farmer Gay Rodgers. Women farmers were able to learn from service provider discussion leaders including advisory group member Lisa Blazure, who presented on the principles and essential practices of soil health, NRCS staff member Melissa Erdman, who led discussions on the NRCS Soil Health Card and Pasture Assessment, and Penn State graduate students Madeline Luthard and Zoelie Rivera-Ocasio and undergraduate Heer Patel, who led hands-on demonstrations of additional soil health assessments including aggregate stability, active carbon, and microbial respiration. Women participants shared their overall goals for their farm operations and for the health of their soils. Host Gay Rodgers discussed her participation in the Pasa Soil Health Benchmark Study and her approach to building soil health in the context of her pastured dairy operation. Additional NRCS staff shared resources available to producers to assist with business development and soil health management and expressed their appreciation for opportunities to connect with female farmers and to learn about soil health basics and soil health assessment.  See attached evaluation results.
     • The first virtual Learning Circle was held December 1, and featured advisory group member Mary Barbercheck leading a discussion on soil health practices. The second included advisory group member Sarah Bay Nawa of Pasa Sustainable Agriculture sharing the results of the soil health benchmark study, in particular the ways in which particular practices contributed to soil health outcomes. She focused on row crops, vegetable operations, and pastured livestock producers since our participating farms include all of these production systems. Practices covered included tillage reduction, cover crops, nutrient management, and more. See attached evaluation results for the first two virtual learning circles.
     • Attachments: MI9675~1 Milestone 4 Hameau Farm Learning Circle Evaluations
   • 1/2024 Status: Complete
   • 1/2024 Accomplishments:
     • The third virtual learning circle was held February 15, 2023, with discussion leader Lisa Garfield from Future Harvest walking participants through the soil health management planning process using the template she developed for the Million Acre Challenge.
     • The fourth virtual learning circle was held March 15, 2023, with peers and advisors helping cohort participants workshop and refine their soil health management plans.
     • The second on-farm learning circle was held on April 11, 2023 at Rowantree Farm, a woman-run diversified vegetable and livestock farm in Mechanicsburg. Host and cohort participant Rowan Miller, who recently purchased a 100+ acre farm and is in the process of converting it from conventional commodity crops to rotationally grazed pasture, was also the subject of one of our soil health profiles and a ‘soil health champion’ video funded by the PA-CIG award that supported the learning circles themselves. Rowan led cohort participants on a farm tour during which Lisa Blazure from the Stroud Water Research Center and PA Soil Health Coalition sampled individual fields, comparing them with soil test results and nearby hedgerows. Cohort participants also had the opportunity to present their soil health management plans to the group and received feedback from advisory group members and partners as well as guests from NRCS and Capital RC&D.
     • By popular demand, we were able to organize a ‘bonus’ on-farm twilight learning circle at Dorene Pasekoff’s Hill Creek Farm in Pottstown on August 29. This learning circle focused on discussions of the ways cohort participants were experiencing climate impacts on their farms, and the specific ways that they saw their soil health practice implementation helping them adapt to these impacts. Cohort participants also toured Hill Creek Farm, a highly successful specialty vegetable, herb, and seed operation that Dorene has carefully right-sized to her interests, available labor, and financial goals.
     • Our final surveys and interviews with cohort participants demonstrate the effectiveness of the learning circle cohort model. One participant commented, “This learning circle truly brought a group of women together and kept us together and held us accountable! Other learning circles have been great as far as content but then you are left on your own.” Another responded, “being able to see other women farmer’s operations and having the chance to hear other’s stories and just talk has helped alleviate the sense that I am alone as a farmer. I have learned from what I’ve seen and heard at the Learning Circles.” A third farmer noted that she appreciated "the initial instruction, continued follow through and continued follow through,” while a fourth put it succinctly: “The learning circle model works. Interested in seeing what else AFT comes up with.” This participant applied and was accepted to an AFT Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Fellowship program for women and non-binary vegetable and small fruit producers, and we are excited to see what she will do with her fellowship! 
     • Attachments:

Milestone 5: Eight Learning Circle participants create plan to implement soil health practices; AFT and advisory group review and approve plans (Learning)

1. Eight women farmers
2. Farmers will create a plan for implementing soil health practices on their farmland with support from the advisory group
   • 3/31/23 update:
     • This milestone is in process as of January 2023. Cohort participants have used an online “homework” assignment to create generalized soil health goals for their operations and to outline their assessment methods. In February, Lisa Garfield from Future Harvest will present her template for a producer-focused soil health management plan, enabling cohort participants to create a draft management plan for their operations. Essential elements of these plans will include soil health constraints or challenges as identified through the assessment methods selected by participants, reasonable, attainable goals to address these challenges, and specific practices that can be implemented on participant operations to meet these goals. AFT staff and advisory group members will review plans and offer support for revisions. One-on-one meetings between AFT staff and cohort participants in January 2023 are also supporting the development of soil health management plans. See attached “homework” results for level of engagement and sample participant goals. See also attached soil health management plan template developed by the Million Acre Challenge. 

• • • Attachments: Milestone 5 Women for the Land Soil Health Cohort Homework #1Milestone 5 MAC Soil Health Management Plan Template
  • 1/2024 Status: Complete
  • 1/2024 Accomplishments:

    • Cohort participants completed soil health management plans during Learning Circles #3 and #4, and presented them to one another and service providers at the in-person Learning Circle at Rowantree Farm in April. After Lisa Garfield presented the framework for the SHMP during Learning Circle #3, and AFT staff met one-on-one with cohort members to answer questions and help them set goals for their soil health management during the 2023 growing season. Participants were able to workshop their draft plans with their peers and advisory group members during the next Learning Circle in March. At Rowantree Farm, each cohort participant presented her soil health management plan, including her methods of soil health assessment, which soil health principles she was focusing on, what practices she wanted to implement and what resource concerns, if any, she was planning to address with her SHMP. Participants were highly invested in and inspired by their peers’ successes and very supportive of their challenges. The soil health management plan proved to be an effective framework for incorporating soil health priorities into a whole-farm perspective. 

    • Attachments: Soil Health Management Plan - Amanda Lee-Milner & Highfield Hollow Farm

Milestone 6: Eight Learning Circle participants are awarded implementation stipends (Engagement)

1. Eight women farmers
2. Farmers receive stipends
   • Year 1: 6/30/23; Year 2: 6/30/24
   • 1/2024 Status: In progress
   • 1/2024 Accomplishments:
     • We are pleased to have awarded stipends to seven cohort participants in 2023 to implement soil health practices. They are as follows:
       • Suzanne Shea, Old Sword Farm. Soil Food Web approach for integrated pest management (IPM); application of biologically complete compost and/or compost extract; and managed grazing integration
       • Caitlin Gabers, Herb & Sprouts Homestead. Soil testing; refining compost production through purchase of bagger for mower; crop rotation; addition of biological amendments
       • Lelayna Yarnell, Amity Springs Farm. Soil testing and assessment; additional infrastructure to improve rotational grazing practice; compost extract preparation and application.
       • Christine Williams, Little Swatara Creek Flowers. Soil health evaluation on multiple areas; soil sampling for nutrient management; addition of organic amendments and compost tea; nutrient analysis on compost and compost tea; implementation of no-till on row crops and pasture seeding; interseeding of legumes and grasses; no-till seeding of wildflower/ pollinator mix.
       • Amanda Lee-Milner, Highfield Hollow Farm. No-till seeding of soil health mixes with specific goals into hay fields and pastures.
       • Dorene Pasekoff, Hill Creek Farm. Soil health testing and assessment; goal-driven cover crop seeding.
       • Teena Bailey, Red Cat Farm. Tillage reduction; goal-driven cover cropping; compost application.

Milestone 7: Learning Circle participants implement soil health practices; receive technical assistance as necessary (Engagement/Learning)

1. Eight women farmers
2. Farmers sample soil to collect baseline for comparison; farmers implement soil health practices on their farmland; farmers sample soil after two years to compare soil health after practice implementation
   • Year 1: 9/30/23; Year 2: 9/30/24
   • 1/2024 Status: In progress
   • 1/2024 Accomplishments: 

     • AFT staff are currently meeting with cohort participants one-on-one to discuss soil health assessment and soil testing results from fall 2023 and assess participant interest in the Pasa Soil Health Benchmark Study. During these one-on-one meetings, we are also evaluating the successes and challenges of soil health practice implementation on cohort farms in 2023. Cohort participants appreciate the follow-up and opportunity to connect one-on-one. We have experienced some attrition in project participation following the completion of the learning circles and are currently considering ways to re-engage our farmers. Following the completion of our winter one-on-one check-ins, and based on the information we gather from surveys and in-depth interviews and potential budget revision requests, we will initiate one or more strategies to encourage re-investment on the part of our producers, including offering to fund their participation in the Benchmark Study, connecting them with additional funding through the Pasa Climate-Smart Agriculture project, highlighting one or more of them as the subject of a blog post or additional soil health profile, or something we have not yet determined. Based on the results of our interviews and reflections, we hope to propose a budget revision for 2024-25 that will enable us to most effectively meet our deliverables while remaining responsive to changing conditions in the region (see Areas for Further Study for more on this). We are finding that maintaining producer attention and engagement over the course of more than two years is both labor intensive and deeply rewarding.

Milestone 11: AFT measures nitrogen and phosphorus reduction resulting from soil health practices

1. Eight women farmers
2. Using EPA’s STEPL Tool, AFT will measure load reductions from eight farmers’ fields (Evaluation)
3. 2/28/25

Milestone 12: AFT assesses impact of curriculum and training for women farmers (Evaluation)

1. 10-15 women farmers
2. Farmers complete a needs assessment before the training to identify, understand, and prioritize the needs of participants so that the advisory group can adapt the curriculum; women farmers complete exit surveys and follow-up interviews to track progress more purposefully on program impact
   • Year 1: 9/30/22; Year 2: 9/30/23
   • 1/2024 Status: In progress
   • 1/2024 Accomplishments:
     • As mentioned above, we are in the process of completing follow-up interviews with program participants. Needs assessment and exit survey results are included in attachments, and reflect the positive impact of the learning circle cohort model and the curriculum on participants’ experience. The following unsolicited social media posts and emails speak to the qualitative impact of the project:
       • • Cohort participant, social media post 2023:
           • “Over the past few months, I have been participating in Women for the Land learning circles... these seven sessions have been an amazing learning tool, to help me understand better how to manage the soil at our new farm, using sustainable management, livestock rotational grazing, soil testing, etc. Not to mention the connections made with some amazing women farmers, PASA, NRCS, and SARE, etc.
           • If you are a woman farmer or have a connection to land you are trying to manage in a more sustainable way, come and join us April the 11^th at my new farm, in the afternoon.” 
         • Cohort participant, social media post 2023:
           • “OMG tomorrow is TOMORROW!
           • I have been in this soil learning circle since the fall and I’m thoroughly looking forward to seeing my soil women again in person tomorrow. Also it’s the culmination of a lot of work for all of us – excited to present soil management plans! And over the top pumped to nose around Rowan’s new farm!”
         • Cohort participant, social media post 2023:
           • “I was excited about today in advance and would’ve been even if the weather were dull. But wow we had the bright sun shining down on us all day. And an amazing location at Rowantree Farm. 
           • Soil Health led by women. 9 of us did the learning circle and presented our soil management plans today. I’m so engaged with this group that I truly look forward to updates from each FarmHer on their various projects. Full steam ahead ladies! Let’s do this! 
           • So many thanks to the American Farmland Trust and to each of my soil homegirls.”
         • Cohort participant, social media post 2023:
           • “Final in-person session for the Soil Health for Women Farmers sponsored by American Farmland Trust. It is inspiring to hear what the other women are doing on their farms to promote soil health and spend time with these conservation minded women.”  
         • Cohort participant, social media post 2023:
           • “I’ve been part of the Soil Health for Women Farmers learning circle since last year and had a great day seeing the rest of the crew today at Rowantree Farm in Mechanicsburg. 
           • I’m grateful for the support, training, and cohort camaraderie as we all work towards improving soil health on our farms!”
         • Service provider/partner email, 2023
           • “I had so much fun at the RowanTree Farm learning circle.  That is an amazing group of women!  I learned a lot from them. I wish all of my extension activities were so pleasant -  I really can't think of a much better way to have spent the day!” 
         • Service provider/ partner email, 2023:
           • “Thank you SO much for inviting me to be part of this project. It's only my second women's group in my career and it reminded me that it is a much more holistic and authentic experience than when I interact with the men.  It is really inspiring and powerful....  
           • You have done a fantastic job spearheading this project and I'm sure I speak for all of us involved, that it was a lovely experience.”