Western SARE 2020 in Washington State

To date, we have focused on incorporating sessions that address diversity issues into events that have a broad target audience. By merging these sessions into the greater event, we encouraged attendance and maintained engagement with the subject discussions. Specific responses from evaluation data indicating participant satisfaction with the sessions are included below the relevant session. At this stage, impacts include providing a platform for diverse perspectives to be shared and initiating conversations around diversity in practical topics. Participants were extremely receptive to Roylene Comes At Night’s session on tribal ecological knowledge and soil health and were eager to search out more information from that session.

Specific sessions:

• WSU All Extension Meeting PANEL II – Climate justice, and why everyone must help. Rishi Sugla, Frontline Community Climate Resilience Scientist, Climate Impacts Group, University of Washington.
• SoilCon 2022 Native American Perspectives: Tribal Ecological Knowledge. Roylene Comes At Night, NRCS Washington State Conservationist.
  • Feedback on Native American Perspectives session:
    • “I appreciated the Native American perspectives and hope to learn & incorporate more Tribal Ecological Knowledge into my work”
    • “My perspective is broadened on what to include when discussing soil health and the spectrum of approaches used in "sustainable" agricultural practices”

The WSARE PDP funds supported efforts to invite presenters from across Washington State University – many of whom would not have otherwise attended this Extension-targeted conference – and across the country, namely:

• Kris Johnson, Professor, Animal Sciences Department, WSU – PANEL V – WSU applied climate research
• Anne Pisor, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, WSU – PANEL V – WSU applied climate research
• Hannah Goodspeed, WSU student – KEYNOTE I – Young voices on climate change: WSU Undergraduates
• Hugo Vasconcelos, WSU student – KEYNOTE I – Young voices on climate change: WSU Undergraduates
• Emily Boatright, WSU student – KEYNOTE I – Young voices on climate change: WSU Undergraduates
• Rishi Sugla, Frontline Community Climate Resilience Scientist, Climate Impacts Group, University of Washington – PANEL II – Climate justice, and why everyone must help
• Crystal Raymond, Climate Adaptation Specialist, Climate Impacts Group, University of Washington – PANEL I – WA State climate disturbances: Human, environmental, and economic impacts
• Paul Loikith, Associate Professor, Department of Geography, Portland State University – PANEL I – WA State climate disturbances: Human, environmental, and economic impacts
• Jenifer Wightman, Senior Extension Associate, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University – KEYNOTE II – Mitigation strategies for farms and forests
• Paul LaChapelle, Professor, Department of Political Science, Montana State University – PANEL III – Cool examples of climate change Extension and outreach programs

PANEL IV – Increasing adaptive capacity and community resilience

• Mike Peronto, WSU Master Gardener, Pierce County
• Sonia Hall, Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources, WSU – Planning Committee member and facilitator for White Paper Working Group sessions

WSU Extension fielded an evaluation survey after the conclusion of the conference. They received 29 responses, representing 19% of registrants.

Overall, 75% of respondents were somewhat or very satisfied with the conference. That percentage rose to 84% when responding specifically to the speakers at the conference, and to 88% when focused specifically on the presentations given.

59% of respondents stated that climate change was already included in their existing programming, research and/or services before the conference. However, 41% stated the identified new ways to integrate climate change into their existing programming, research or services, with an additional 38% responding “maybe” to this question. Similarly, when asked whether they had identified now programming, research or services that they could implement to integrate climate change into their activities, 21% responded “yes” and an additional 32% responded “maybe.”

The survey also explored perspectives on confidence addressing climate change related topics. 36% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they had adequate institutions support from WSU to move forward in climate change work, and 50% agreed or strongly agreed that they felt more confident communicating about climate change because of the conference.

These sessions provided multiple perspectives into challenges and sustainable solutions to pressing issues in current agricultural production. Attendance was primarily producers and consultants, with the Washington State Soil Health Initiative (WaSHI) panel being the best attended with 20 people. Through the WaSHI panel, 95% of survey respondents stated they learned new information through this session, though 32% stated that they would implement practices from this session. It was noted on multiple occasions that the information was useful in understanding soil health metrics and new policy but was a more conceptual rather than practical session. Participants expressed gratitude for the openness and practicality of the presenters and stated they would be “looking forward to participating in the future”.

The Biofumigation and Food Safety Challenges sessions had 15 and 8 participants, respectively. Through the Biofumigation session, 100% of survey respondents stated that they learned new information and 92% stated they would be implementing techniques learned through this session. They noted that this session provided “useful” and “deep” breadth of knowledge. The Food Safety session reported that 40% of survey respondents learned new information and 40% would implement new techniques. Due to the lower attendance and response rate, responses were heavily influenced by profession. Respondents noted that while the session was relevant and interesting, they were not likely to use the information unless they were a farmer.

Northwest Cider Symposium: Climate Change Implications, Opportunities, and Planning for Uncertainty Session (Hosted)

The Northwest Cider Symposium brings together cider industry professionals, including apple growers, researchers, consultants, and cidermakers. This session “Climate Change Implications, Opportunities, and Planning for Uncertainty” was hosted by Katie Doonan of CSANR and Marcus Robert, President of Tieton Cider Works. The session outlined the state of research on climate change risks and adaptation within the tree fruit industry and impacts and successful sustainability measures seen in the industry. Intended behavior change objectives included seeking latest information on climate impacts for their operation and increasing flexibility in management decisions based on actual conditions rather than historical practices.

64 people attended the session. Evaluation data was gathered through an online survey directly following the session. 18 survey responses were collected, with 94% reporting knowledge gain due to this session and 94% reported an intent for behavior change in their practices due to this session. Highlighted comments included “Your work is extremely important and also inspiring for me to learn more about future sustainability and food science. Thank you so much!” and “Fascinating info! Whether we use it to project how our orchard is developed, I don’t know! But thank you”.

Washington State Farmers Market Association Symposium: What Does Climate Change Mean for Washington Farmers? Session (Hosted)

The Washington State Farmers Market Association Symposium partners farmers, Extension, researchers, farmers market professionals, and agricultural professionals for educational sessions across production, sustainability, and future farm and farmers market resiliency. Key considerations in farm and farmers market management include wildfire smoke, heat domes, cold domes, and flooding. CSANR’s Sonia Hall and Chad Kruger, leaders in the intersection of climate and agriculture, provided insight to help attendees understand what the natural scientists are discovering about changes afoot for farmers – and where we are heading under climate change.

Questions explored:

• What do we know about where food may be grown and when it will be brought to market in the future?
• How can we engage and where can we find more resources on this topic?

40 people attended this session across a range of agricultural professions. 81% indicated they gained knowledge through this session and 57% noted an intention to incorporate material into their practices. Highlighted feedback includes: “Fascinating to put all this research into context. Thank you for all distilling it to this level.”, “Great sharing of resources and balance of concern and opportunities that may arise with climate change.” “Not helpful for the season, but insightful for long-term planning, recruitment, etc.”

Science Talk (Attendance)

Science Talk is a conference focused on applying principles of science communication across a range of disciplines, especially to increase outreach and education toward intended audiences. Two participants were funded to attend Science Talk, where sessions included topics such as reducing jargon in public communication, increasing conservation efforts through messaging, and engaging with audiences of multiple languages, cultures, and beliefs. Participants noted that they learned how to be more inclusive of diverse audiences while developing engaging content to educate and inspire action from intended audiences.

Knowledge gained through participation in this session will be shared through CSANR faculty development meetings and through the WSU project management working group.

Howard Wyman Sheep Leadership School (Attendance)

26 participants from 14 states came together in Columbus, OH for the Howard Wyman Leadership School. Participants included sheep producers, processors, industry experts and extension staff to network and learn from university and private sectors on how to raise, market and process sheep products.  Participants took lambs from farm to table to see all aspects of the sheep industry and familiarize themselves with areas they may lack expertise in. The funded attendee noted that they learned producers are prioritizing raising healthy sheep while providing a safe, economical, and sustainable food and fiber products for the public. This was apparent across the US, regardless of region, and Extension professionals are a valuable resource for progressing these priorities in sustainable livestock management.

As part of the regional small farms Extension team, the funded participant will use and share this knowledge while on farm visits and at regional “Dirt Talks”- Extension sponsored farm walks for the public. Their target audience is local landowners either currently in sheep production or those with an interest in learning to raise sheep on their properties. Programming is expected to reach 25-50 people annually.

PNDSA Annual Cropping Systems Conference (Attendance)

The PNDSA Annual Cropping Systems Conference is a producer-focused continuing education event for the applied aspects of soil health, cropping system diversification, and this year was very focused on ‘Regenerative Ag.’ The keynotes and sessions covered many topics including a global context of production ag, soil testing for biology, roller crimping cover crops, industrial hemp production, the implications of climate change and the carbon market for ag, and the regenerative agriculture headliner for the special session John Kempf.

This conference discussed reduced dependency on synthetic fertilizers, promoting soil biology for nutrient cycling and pathogen suppression. Also of current interest is foliar feeding-particularly micro-nutrients, and that growers focused on soil health in the iPNW continue to be interested in mixed species cover crops and particularly in grazing them when they are in rotation. Leveraged benefits of this experience will be two-fold – through informing the development of outreach programming, and by reinforcing and building attendee’s professional network.  The funded attendee is creating videos about microbially mitigated nutrient cycling and other key biological systems in the soil.

Wetland Training Institute’s Basic Wetland Delineation (Attendance)

The Wetland Training Institute’s Basic Wetland Delineation course offered both a self-paced online lecture series and two-day field practicum in the Marysville/Arlington area. Participants learned the technical guidelines for wetland delineations, including field indicators of hydrophytic vegetation, hydric soils, and wetland hydrology, as well as methods for making jurisdictional determinations and methods for applying to difficult situations.

Whidbey Island Conservation District partners with staff from Washington State University Extension Island County Farm and Food Systems Program on a regular basis through the “Whidbey Island Growers Association” – an informal group of farmers on the island who’ve been meeting regularly since 2015 with WICD and WSU as the coordinators of this group. “WIGA” as it is called is in the process of looking to the future of how and what they’d like to learn about as farmers. It seems like the group is trending toward wanting to have another series of educational speakers come to potlucks and teach them about “hot topics” and attendee is prepared to conduct the “Rural Property Prep” workshop at a future WIGA potluck with emphasis on HEL/WC information and wetlands management in the coming year. Through this partnership with WSU staff, they will also learn and glean this information to relay to their audiences.

Environmental stewardship, at its core, requires systems-based solutions and practices to address the complex challenges we are experiencing today in the agricultural industry. Land use alteration is occurring at a quick pace in our Pacific Northwest region, brought on by residential and commercial development on thousands of acres of historic farm and forest land. Combined with the precipitation shifts and more extreme weather events - a result of climate change - our farmers are at a crossroads. Gone are the days of easily bending the landscape to suit their needs. The way many producers have farmed for decades no longer works as well on the properties they own, requiring a shift in both thinking and doing. Instead of adapting the land to us, what our region is experiencing is asking us to adapt ourselves and our farming practices to the land. Conventional, and even sustainable, agriculture movements have traditionally followed the premise that we can indefinitely adapt our landscapes to suit our needs and grow the crops we want. With the emergence of regenerative agriculture in popular culture today, consumers are asking for farmers to demonstrate not just how well they are producing their food, but also how they are contributing to greater ecological integrity through soil building, water quality improvements, and carbon sequestration.

Climate Conversations (Attending)

Climate Conversations is a 5-session online class that focuses on effectively and authentically engaging others in discussing climate change. The program will result in tangible communication skills, with the opportunity to practice how to talk about climate science in a variety of settings, including conversations with colleagues, clients, and family.

Kalispel Reservation, Clark, Island, and Snohomish Counties are implementing a pilot program titled Integrating Climate Change Education Mitigation, and Adaptation throughout WSU Extension Programs. This training will be an essential tool in how to communicate issues of climate change with staff, university, and community. The goal, with this pilot program, is to do the following:

• Discover how the current work in three county WSU Extension offices, and one tribal program is addressing issues of climate change through adaptation, mitigation, or education along the continuum of local growers from farm to table including county services and transportation networks relative to food systems.
• Research how Extension offices can develop and implement internal environmental and system changes that shift every day sustainable agriculture, business, and programmatic practices.
• Research how other universities and Extension programs communicate similar work.
• How are Extension’s impacts communicated? We are interested in crafting public value statements around the impact of Extension programming in relation to climate change.

This training will inform how others are engaged through these goals and help develop content for the program. The participants present these findings through the monthly WSU Extension Climate Change Action Working Group meetings.

SoilCon will address the latest research to help people put those production topics into practice for regional systems. SoilCon will explain what metrics are used when assessing soil health, how these may change by production system and region, and management practices to support a resilient soil system. The topics are relevant to agriculture or natural resource professionals, producers, consultants, university faculty and students, and interested members of the public.

We expect healthy soils to be resilient against disturbances such as flooding, drought, or high winds; to support crop production with suitable nutrient, moisture, and physical conditions; to support beneficial biological activity that decomposes crop residues, cycles nutrients, forms soil structure, and helps fight disease; to contribute to environmental sustainability by filtering pollutants and reducing run-off; and to be, for the most part, self-maintaining as a living system with continuous nutrient cycling and soil regeneration. These standards, and surrounding awareness, benefit both production system sustainability and reduce negative externalities on the surrounding ecosystem. Like in the adage “what gets measured gets managed,” an increased awareness of soil health principles leads to the adoption and implementation of practices.

In 2022, we received 970 registrants, of which 596 attended the conference. The 2022 survey responses indicated 73% of respondents stated that they learned new information throughout the conference sessions. 73% of respondents also stated that they would implement techniques learned from SoilCon.

In 2023, SoilCon garnered 1018 registrants, with 546 attendees that joined lived across the two-day conference. From survey responses, 44% of participants reported a gain in knowledge while 31% reported they had an increase in ability to implement soil health practices across their programming or farm. 2023 SoilCon attendees represented a reported 5,462,730 acres across the world.

Sessions included:

• The state of the science on measuring carbon footprints of tree fruit systems
  • Carbon Budgeting: Resources and case studies in tree fruit – Eduardo Arellano, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.
  • Measuring carbon fluxes in orchard systems – Andrew Bierer, USDA ARS
• Research panel discussion
• Carbon models for organic soil amendments – Kirsten Ball, WSU CSANR (by Zoom)
• Apple Life-Cycle Assessment effort – David Epstein, NHC
• Industry Panel
  • Brandon Lewis, Sustainability Manager, Manulife.
  • Erick Smith, R&D Taggares.
  • Jonathan Cox, R&D Double Diamond Fruit

This workshop was attended by 100 participants both in-person and remotely. 92% of survey respondents stated that this workshop was relevant to their work, and 75% learned new information through the workshop. 100% of respondents stated that they would use this information in their work, and that it was especially timely subject matter.

This conference brought industry professionals, farmers, and ranchers together to talk about pressing issues in the regenerative agriculture realm. Approximately 110 attendees participated in the two-day event in Pendleton, OR that discussed ranching profitability, low stress livestock handing, and principles of regenerative soil health in the PNW. From this event, 83% of survey respondents stated that they learned new information, and 71% stated they would act on these new techniques in their own operations. From evaluation, the conference information was “content that we need and can use”. From one of the conference presenters: “What an inspiring day in Pendleton with Dave Pratt, then out in the field for the Roots of Resilience Conference. We had a great turn out with over 100 ranchers, farmers, students and teachers. Change on the ground is happening!”

The event was evaluated with a post-event paper evaluation.  Evaluations (n=21) indicated that the largest knowledge gains were around understanding of soil health indicators and metrics (73% increased knowledge) and in implementing conservation strategies (73% increased knowledge). Large knowledge gains (68% increased knowledge) were also reported for incentives for soil conservation, practical hands-on soil measurement, and developing on-farm trials.  Ninety-five (19/20) respondents indicated that they planned to make a change based on the event. Nearly half planned to implement new soil conservation practices.

Many respondents (14/21) indicated that they particularly enjoyed the networking and community-building aspect of the event.  The lightening talks were also highly favored (11/21).

To improve the event, several attendees suggested that more diversity of farmers and farm types be included. Also, more time for small group discussions. Though the lightening talks were mostly favored, one attendee thought there were too many.