Project Overview
Annual Reports
Commodities
Practices
- Education and Training: demonstration, display, farmer to farmer, mentoring, networking, workshop, youth education, technical assistance
- Energy: energy conservation/efficiency
- Farm Business Management: whole farm planning, marketing management, e-commerce, agritourism
- Sustainable Communities: community planning, leadership development, local and regional food systems, new business opportunities, partnerships, public participation, public policy, urban/rural integration, community services, employment opportunities, social capital, social networks, social psychological indicators, sustainability measures
Proposal abstract:
The Live Green and Prosper Community Education and Outreach Initiative began in September 2009. The initiative has allowed WCTE to become a trusted partner in the agricultural community by creating links between community organizations directly involved in sustainable agriculture, community leaders, government agencies, and local farmers. Throughout the first year of the initiative, WCTE has been working toward making connections between local agriculture producers, consumers, regional organizations and institutions through an effective network mobilized through public media. During the second phase of the initiative, it is our goal to use the partnerships we have formed as a platform to further strengthen the connections we’ve made. WCTE will continue to be an active resource working to advance economic sustainability for family farmers by teaching regional agriculture producers about digital media and free public media resources as well as teaching a new generation of young people to support the local food movement through our on air broadcast of Live Green Tennessee; our distribution of the Local Table as a print media resource; and by our community outreach efforts.
Project objectives from proposal:
Objective 1 - Create stronger links between producers, key consumers and resources on a local level through an effective network of community partners mobilized through WCTE.
1. Hold quarterly Partner Meetings.
2. Utilize local, state and community agricultural organizations to obtain local producer/agriculture related stories to be told on the education & outreach broadcast of Live Green Tennessee.
3. Utilize local, state and community agricultural organizations to obtain the pilot group of agricultural producers for “Life as a Farmer” and “Digital Media for Farmers” class.
4. Use social media platforms to distribute original content and build connections and relationships between consumers, producers, public services, teachers, parents, young adults, kids, and other stations.
Objective 2 - Create innovative content and publish it through digital media platforms (website, Facebook, You Tube, Twitter, PBS Digital Learning Library, and National Center for Media Engagement), and broadcast/print media outreach to make agriculture visible within the community.
1. Through direct links and feeds, we can automatically share fresh content from our Partners and other sources around the web with the WCTE/livegreen website.
2. Incorporate social media networks such as Facebook, You Tube, Twitter, PBS Digital Learning Library, and National Center for Media Engagement with an initiative-based web site.
3. Utilize the WCTE/livegreen website to be a place for user-generated content.
4. Produce spots directing consumers to farm products at local markets for televised promotion.
5. Create local producer/agriculture related stories to be told on the education & outreach broadcast of Live Green Tennessee.
6. Use the WCTE/livegreen website to feature the stories of community based organization leaders and individuals by hosting embedded video segments from our Live Green Tennessee series, our farmer produced “Life as a Farmer segments” as well as any extra or behind-the-scenes content that provides a deeper look into various segments of the initiative.
7. Work with Lisa Shively (publisher) to distribute the Local Table Magazine free throughout our communities.
Objective 3 - Be an active educational resource working to advance economic sustainability for agricultural producers by teaching them about digital media and how to utilize digital media in marketing and advertising.
1. Educate producers about online direct marketing techniques that can increase their marketing potential and sustainability by holding a digital media based class for agriculture producers.
2. Train a pilot group of farmers to use the flip video camcorders and upload them to WCTE’s established drop zone.
3. Make using multi media as simple and easy as possible with an instructional tutorial accessible online at all times.
4. Distribute agricultural video segments throughout WCTE’s multi media network; website, Facebook, You Tube, Twitter, PBS Digital Learning Library, and National Center for Media Engagement.
5. Develop the “Digital Media for Farmers” class into a fee based participation operation to sustain the initiative and continue working to educate our communities.
Objective 4 - Grow both the initiative and the understanding of sustainable agriculture by recruiting a new generation of local foods enthusiasts.
1. To meet the challenge as a station we must continue to expand our online presence into our live broadcasts and community events through streaming, chatting, and tweeting. As this evolves we can reach deeper into the community and forge mutual partnerships within this initiative that serves and enlighten the public.
2. Raise consumer awareness about local agriculture by distributing the locally produced magazine: Local Table a guide to food and farming in Middle Tennessee free during all community events attended by WCTE’s education and outreach team.
Objective 5 - Monitor & evaluate the initiative.
1. By using Google analytics, project manager Erica Duarte is able to gather reliable data to use as a measurement tool in the assessment of the reach and impact of digital content.