Bridging the Food Supply and Sustainable Agriculture Systems with the Nonprofit Sector

We propose a training program for Florida’s CES agriculture and natural resources agents and field personnel from NRCS. This training will provide Extension agents the skills needed to build stronger public-private-nonprofit networks to address numerous procedural barriers and policy issues that hinder cross-sectoral collaboration within sustainable agriculture. These networks could reduce food waste, give farmers alternatives to traditional market venues, and generate opportunities for expanded joint programs to address a broad array of problems and needs in the food system. The proposed training program will be achieved through three key objectives.

Objective 1: Build expertise in Florida’s agriculture and natural resources CES agents so they can then provide needed training and technical assistance on capacity building to food and agriculture nonprofit organizations.

Objective 2: Establish an electronic repository of training materials on nonprofit capacity building in food and agriculture organizations.

Objective 3: Build a directory of food and agriculture nonprofit organizations to support partnerships between Cooperative Extension and nonprofit organizations. 

Meeting these objectives within the project period will set up the CES to support collaboration between farmers and nonprofit organizations. We will focus on five types of nonprofit organizations, all of which address issues of direct concern to sustainable agriculture and food security.

• Membership organizations, like Florida Organic Growers and Consumers, provide educational programs for farmers and other actors in the food system and provide venues for individuals and organizations to share information and develop action projects.
• Professional associations bring together individuals or organizations with common interests to support farmers in implementing best practices in sustainable agriculture and resource management.
• Community-based nonprofit organizations support small farms in marketing, production, and distribution and serve as fiscal agents for innovators to test their projects and ideas.
• Urban farmers often seek nonprofit legal status to fulfill missions related to social resilience and environmental conservation.
• Food and agriculture advocacy nonprofit organizations and alliances focus on influencing public policy related to financial sustainability and environmental conservation.[1]

We propose a program that will enhance Extension’s capacity to work with all these types of nonprofit organizations. The program focuses on strengthening nonprofit leadership and management skills through collaborative training with Extension conducted by regional and county faculty. While large, well-established nonprofit organizations may be able to overcome leadership and management skills, the majority of nonprofit organizations are small and have limited resources. Our program focuses on these typically community-based nonprofit organizations. Our approach is a “train the trainer” one in which regional and county Extension faculty deliver training to local nonprofit organizations that work in the areas described above. The local focus of the training is critical for three reasons. (1) It puts the decisions about what type and which specific nonprofit organizations will be the best fit for local Extension in the hands of the local and regional agents. (2) It creates a venue and opportunity to interact and exchange ideas, goals, and objectives for the Extension personnel and NPO personnel, a first step in creating the trust and shared goals needed for successful long-term collaboration. (3) It permits the trainer to tailor the program to the specific needs of local clientele groups. 

[1] This project will not be involved in policy advocacy in any capacity.