Regenerative Farming Policy Fellowship Program

The Regenerative Farming Policy Fellowship is an educational project focused on farm policy for small-scale regenerative BIPOC farmers located in the Greater Dayton-Springfield metropolitan region. BIPOC farmers are requesting help in addressing policymakers, lawmakers and other elected officials. Developed in partnership with The Nature Conservancy of Ohio, the goal of the fellowship is to create policy literacy, funding literacy, and skills in facilitation and public speaking. Policy leaders, legislators and policy change groups will engage with Regenerative Farming Policy Fellows. The fellows will learn how they might overcome barriers and change or advocate for policies that benefit their community at local, regional, state and national levels. 

The USDA and other federal and state agencies  are committed to helping small-scale farmers, but there is often a gap between what is offered and what is needed. Most farm policy was written for large-scale conventional farms. As farms and farmers become more diverse in multiple ways, such as operating in urban settings with unique environmental challenges, public policy and outreach needs to shift accordingly.