Education & Training

Highlights from the 2011 Farmers Forum—an annual event giving farmers, ranchers, and others the chance to share information about sustainable agriculture practices with a national audience.

The third edition of the "Accepting Bridge Cards at Michigan Farmers Markets" resource manual will help farmers markets decide if they should accept food assistance benefits. If they decide to become an authorized SNAP retailer, it will help implement this food assistance program.

This curriculum on Colorado’s Department of Agriculture website was designed to provide detailed training resources for agricultural professionals and farmers interested in expanding their income sources and entering into the agritourism industry. 

Honeybee losses, compounded with rising rental rates for pollination, are a concern for many producers. Not only are growers looking for alternative pollinators to improve crop security, but they also want to learn how to manage on-farm habitats for native bees and other pollinators. Since 1988, NCR-SARE has supported researchers, educators, and producers who are researching, rearing, and managing species that provide pollination alternatives to the declining honey bee.

In association with an NCR-SARE Professional Development Program grant, the Bioenergy Training Center has developed an Anaerobic Digestion Course to provide educational training resources focused not only on the technical feasibility anaerobic digesters  but also on approaches and processes that assist communities in understanding the comprehensive implications of bio-based alternative energy. This course can provide foundational materials for teaching undergraduates or for community education sessions.

Backpack sprayers are a boon to farmers on small acreage, but not all sprayers are created equal. Video series.

NCR-SARE developed a Diversity Goals Narrative to clarify NCR-SARE’s goals for its new diversity initiative and initiated a special call for the Diversity Research and Education Grant Program.The special call for the Diversity Research and Education Grant Program’s purpose was to fund people and/or projects that could help NCR-SARE reach and work with underserved audiences to improve agricultural sustainability in the region.

This website represents the collaborative efforts of: the Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy; Ohio Department of Agriculture, Sustainable Agriculture; Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA); the Organic Food and Farming Education & Research Program of the Ohio State University Ohio Agriculture Research and Development Center; and the Ohio State University Extension. These entities, working together as Begin Farming Ohio, aim to build Ohio’s capacity to provide, expand, enhance, and sustain services to beginning farmers.

A farm is to a beginning farmer what a blank canvas is to an aspiring artist, which makes it no wonder that beginning farmers and ranchers are some of agriculture’s greatest innovators and experimenters. In fact, studies have found that most innovation takes place within the first five years of a farmer’s operation. SARE has made fostering the next generation and its ingenuity a priority.

Communities in the North Central region continue to change, with representatives of different cultures regularly being added to an already diverse population. We know that cultural and economic barriers exist that present challenges for some in the region, new and established alike, from working with the NCR-SARE to achieve our common sustainability goals. NCR-SARE feels it is important to reach all people about sustainable agriculture as we strive to make our communities more sustainable.  As part of the 2012 Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Webinar Series, Nebraska SARE hosted a webinar on December 18, 2012, called "Beyond Diversity: Understanding White Privilege and the Challenge for Sustainable Agriculture."

This toolkit provides a decision making tool (the matrix) to guide communities toward developing their own standard of sustainability and criteria for meeting that standard.

Organizations are providing invaluable training and resources to help small-scale commercial poultry farmers establish profitable operations.

Bringing the business planning process alive, Building a Sustainable Business: A Guide to Developing a Business Plan for Farms and Rural Businesses helps today's alternative and sustainable agriculture entrepreneurs transform farm-grown inspiration into profitable enterprises.

A new program has been developed in Iowa and Kansas to train Extension and other professionals to increase their awareness of Latino culture and community.

The “Building Capacity to Engage Latinos in Local Food Systems” project was designed to provide Extension educators and other agricultural professionals in Iowa and Kansas with the knowledge and skills to identify and respond to the needs and goals of Latino growers and produces and their families.

This guide lists funding opportunities offered by federal programs, and is indispensable for anyone seeking government help to foster their innovative enterprise in forestry and agriculture. Available only online.

Communities often have access to a variety of production agriculture expertise, including University Extension Educators, Resource Conservation and Development coordinators and assistants and vocational agriculture instructors who are commonly consulted for advice and guidance, especially in the area of sustainable agriculture practices. University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Extension Specialist, Cheryl Burkhart-Kriesel, says that these resource experts can feel unprepared to help when it is time for a product or service to move to the marketplace. Burkhart-Kriesel is working to create targeted professional development for creating feasibility and marketing plans, and conceptualizing and organizing online direct marketing websites.

These case studies highlight the project planning and development of 12 county-based teams trained to assist in the development of community-based food systems in North Carolina. 

This course covers planning and business development, marketing opportunities and strategies for farm/ranch businesses, and managing the farm/ranch business for long-term success.

Crop rotation is the ancient practice of growing a wide variety of crops in a sequential system throughout a field in order to avoid a buildup of disease and pests. Strategic crop rotations can help producers promote good soil health by alternating crops with different nutrient needs and benefit overall soil structure by breaking up subsoil by alternating deep and shallow rooting plants. NCR-SARE has valued research and education projects that study the applications of crop rotation-including improving soil quality and health, and managing pest, diseases, and weeds.

In 2005, Jim Sluyter received an NCR-SARE Farmer Rancher grant to help farmers, especially new and prospective ones, learn about Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and sustainable agriculture through a 'mini-school' for prospective CSA farmers. As part of that project, Sluyter created a CSA "startup" manual in both English and Spanish. 

A landmark curriculum that helps USDA professionals better serve American Indians is being widely adopted throughout the West, and garnered its writers USDA’s 2011 National Extension Diversity Award.

Shermain Hardesty and Penny Leff of the University of California Small Farm Program see an opportunity in agritourism to increase and diversify profits for producers, given the increased public demand for local foods and for education about local farms and ranches...

David Clay’s long-term goals for his project were to increase producers’ awareness of the importance of determining costs of production, as well as conducting energy efficiency and environmental sustainability assessments during long-term planning. Clay edited curricula suitable for use in training sessions and conducted seven related workshops and 31 presentations.

A grassroots apple-breeding program has released its first apple variety, EverCrisp. The variety was bred by the Midwest Apple Improvement Association (MAIA), a group of more than 140 apple growers who are interested in developing new varieties for the Midwest.

These in-depth training manuals, produced by the University of California Santa Cruz, help instructors conduct hands-on teaching in organic farming and gardening, direct marketing, and small-farm business planning.

University of Vermont Extension Specialist Heather Darby partners with colleagues and farmers to advance research in biofuel production, organic grains for dairies, and value-added wheat for local bakeries.

A graduate student from North Dakota State University created five extension fact sheets after monitoring and reporting on the riparian ecosystem associated with the Middle Sheyenne River, a perennial stream in eastern North Dakota.

Beginning farmers in South Dakota have an opportunity to learn first-hand about lowcost, sustainable methods of farming and gather the tools to successfully launch a farm enterprise thanks to Dakota Rural Action’s Farm Beginnings program. 

Beginning farmers in South Dakota have an opportunity to learn first-hand about lowcost, sustainable methods of farming and gather the tools to successfully launch a farm enterprise thanks to Dakota Rural Action’s Farm Beginnings program.

In 2009 Tonya Haigh and Frank James with Dakota Rural Action submitted a proposal for an NCR-SARE Researchand Education Grant and were awarded $25,000 to evaluate and refine the Farm Beginnings platform, which was developed by the Land Stewardship Project, in order to meet the unique needs of beginning farmersand ranchers in SD. As a result, the SD BeginningFarmer Training and Linking project was developed to build an educational network for beginning farmers in SD.

This informative book contains history and present day stories about how food is regarded as the medicine and economic staple of the Anishinaabeg people.

Iowa State University graduate student's unexpected discoveries inspired vibrant new learning communities for small-scale meat processors.

Many greenhouse growers are looking for options to reduce their energy costs, but they don’t always understand which options will provide the greatest return on investment. For his project, Scott Sanford developed curriculum materials, extension bulletins, resource lists, and a spreadsheet model for educators to use for delivering programming on energy management and conservation for greenhouse production.

Includes curriculum materials, extension bulletins, resource lists, and a greenhouse energy model that were developed with the intention that educators can use the materials in full or part to deliver programming on energy management and conservation for greenhouse production.

This guide details the steps taken by Mohawk Harvest Cooperative Market to successfully establish their cooperative in upstate, NY. Information on planning for and running a cooperative can be found in this handbook. 

Efrain Hernandez (and family) were 2010 graduates of Community CROPS's SARE-supported Growing Farmers Training Program in Lincoln, NE. They were featured in the television documentary "Hispanic Farmers on Broken Ground,"  produced by Harvest Public Media's Clay Masters and Nebraska Educational Telecommunications. It was part of a special report on the Farmer of the Future.

This 12-page bulletin outlines how to conduct research at the farm level, offering practical tips for both crop and livestock producers, as well as a comprehensive list of more in-depth resources.

The rapid increase in ethanol production from corn grain, and the proposed use of crop residues for ethanol production poses significant challenges in increasing awareness and providing needed training to extension educators and agency staff to address the potential environmental impacts of intensive corn production and corn residue use. For this reason, Mahdi Al-Kaisi conducted an educational training program on residue management through a series of workshops, webinars, and field training sessions across Iowa.

Just off of Highway 77, running north from El Dorado, Kansas, runs seventy three acres of agritourism property which is a part of Carroll and Becky Walters’ family farm and pumpkin patch, Walters’ Pumpkin Patch. 

Working in an extension office, co-owner of Dakota Family Mill, Adrian Biewer, became aware of the health needs that wholegrain products could address. Developing a better tasting wholegrain product made practical sense.

In 2006, the farm families of Dakota Family Mill, Duane and Jean Smith, Bob and Debra Evenson, and Adrian and Anne Biewer, submitted a proposal to the NCR-SARE Farmer Rancher Grant program, and were selected for funding.

SARE-funded extension specialists in 42 states are making homestead farmers better stewards of their land.

The New Entry Sustainable Farming Project, supported by SARE grants, has helped dozens of small farmers in Massachusetts establish their roots.

One of the most comprehensive and adaptable curricula in the country for training natural resource professionals to, in turn, teach small-acreage landowners how to care for their soil, air and water while maximizing the land’s value.

A 16-page bulletin intended to be a resource for agricultural educators, heads of community development and agricultural organizations, government agency staff and others who want to better connect with and improve the lives of farmers and ranchers who remain hard to reach.

A regional toolkit of strategies to support the evolution of a sustainable Portland Metropolitan Foodshed. Toolkits are for farmers, ranchers, policymakers and consumers.

Jim Sluyter first read about Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in a now-defunct magazine called Harrowsmith, soon after the first CSAs were started in the north east part of the United States. Although the concept was immediately appealing for their small homestead farm, Sluyter and his spouse, Jo Meller, hesitated to become involved. 

This video series describes measures nursery producers can take to improve sustainability in the areas of irrigation, energy use, runoff, recycling and more.

A series of eight handbooks for new farmers or established producers seeking to transition to organic or improve their current practices. Print only; order from Chelsea Green.

A SARE-funded workshop series is helping farmers produce their own biodiesel, saving money and reducing their carbon footprint.

In association with an NCR-SARE Professional Development Program grant, the Bioenergy Training Center has developed the On-Farm Energy Conservation & Efficiency Series to provide educational training resources focused not only on the technical feasibility of on-farm energy conservation, but also on approaches and processes that assist communities in understanding the comprehensive implications of bio-based alternative energy. This course can provide foundational materials for teaching undergraduates or for community education sessions.

The Organic Dairy Short Course for Ag Professionals, a Professional Development Grant Program project, aimed at improving the ability of public and private sector agricultural educators and advisors to serveorganic and transitional organic dairy producers.

The project developed, delivered, and evaluated a professional development training module called “Organic Dairy 101: A Workshop for Agricultural Professionals” at four locations in Minnesota and three in Wisconsin, training a total of 174 dairy andagriculture professionals. 

An interactive website to assist ag professionals in developing and demonstrating successful organic education programs, teaching principles in organic agriculture.

Transitioning to organic farming? Already switched, but needing to update your farm plan? Get step-by-step help in this workbook from Ohio State's Organic Food and Farming Education and Research (OFFER) Program.

This Extension educator curriculum focuses on successful strategies for increasing the adoption of sustainable practices on reservation lands. 

Honeybee losses, compounded with rising rental rates for pollination, are a concern for many producers. Not only are growers looking for alternative pollinators to improve crop security, but they also want to learn how to manage on-farm habitats for native bees and other pollinators.

This Powerpoint template makes featuring NCR-SARE projects at poster sessions a breeze. Simply replace the featured NCR-SARE projects with NCR-SARE projects that are relevant for your event.

Ranch ownership transitions can be complex, involving issues such as generational needs, tax issues, social attitudes, and recreational landowner competition.  In an effort to help simplify the process, Calvin Adams of Beloit, KS, Cade Rensink of Ada, KS, and Ted Alexander of Medicine Lodge, KS, and the Kansas Ranch and Range Management Internship Program are working to get experienced and well-trained young ranchers back on the ranch through a summer internship program.

A Lincoln University researcher is training extension educators on emerging plant grafting technology and the relevant physiology.

Across the region, farmers are planting cover crops,  method of revitalizing soil, curbing erosion, and managing pests. Steve Sutera, an Extension educator at South Dakota State University (SDSU), saw an opportunity to bring together Bon Homme County’s Extension service, FFA Chapter, 4-H Club, and ongoing research at SDSU.

For decades, John Allen has helped farmers develop business skills and strategies, improving their profitability and helping to revitalize rural communities.

Southern SARE and Extension

Order an entire set of SARE Outreach books and bulletins for one low price.

Course on how to incorporate principles and practices of sustainable agriculture in training for southern region ag professionals, with a focus on integrated pest management.

Francis John Hay’s SARE project focused on storage techniques for wet ethanol co-products and how those co-products could be used in small cattle operations. For his project, Hay prepared educators to teach ethanol co-products storage techniques. Conferences attracted nearly 300 educators from ten states. Written materials and videos extended the reach of this project through the internet with more than 30,000 individual downloads of educational materials.

Because of high obesity and diabetes rates and a lack of locally-grown foods on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Washakie, Wyoming, Justine Russell launched her PDP-funded project with the goal of increasing awareness of the potential for a farmers market on the Reservation. In less than two years, she and her partners accomplished so much more than increasing awareness.

This 16-page guide to sustainable agriculture-oriented educational opportunities for schoolchildren features more than 50 programs and curricula nationwide, updated in 2011. Available only online.

In association with an NCR-SARE Professional Development Program grant, the Bioenergy Training Center, in collaboration with the Farm Energy CoP, has developed a Sustainable Bioenergy Course to provide educational training resources focused not only on the technical feasibility of bioenergy generation, but also on approaches and processes that assist communities in understanding the comprehensive implications of bio-based alternative energy. This course can provide foundational materials for teaching undergraduates or for community education sessions.

A blended course designed for county extension agents and new greenhouse professionals. Participants in the course will enhance their knowledge of starting and operating a commercial greenhouse enterprise.

Marin Byrne and Jim Kleinschmit’s series of six training sessions for more than 340 attendees focused on sustainability and renewable energy for natural resource and agriculture educators throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin. Farm field days, tours, and workshops addressed topics such as alternative bioenergy crops and production methods, whole farm planning for renewable energy, and on-farm energy production and efficiency.

Anu Rangarajan, of Cornell University, is advancing the next generation of organic agriculture through research, training and by connecting farmers and educators.

Charuth van Beuzekom-Loth grew up in Holland. Her family raised goats and good cheese was plentiful. Eventually, she moved to the United States and years later settled down with her husband on a small farm named Shadowbrook near Lincoln, Nebraska. The transition went along nicely except for one thing. The cheese just wasn’t the same.

“I guess I’d always had a dream of doing some kind of a cheese making venture,” said van Beuzekom-Loth. “I love the cheeses in Holland. I never was very satisfied with the cheese that I could buy here unless it came from Europe.”

Information shared during a three-day training for Extension professionals on renewable energy topics—including biofuels, energy efficiency, and wind and solar energy—has benefited thousands of farmers in the South.

The Agricultural Innovation and Commercialization Center at Purdue University has developed a Comparative Decision Support toolkit online resource to assist with entry-level decision-making about small-scale livestock enterprises.  

The Growing Growers Training Program is a collaborative effort to train new sustainable and organic market farmers to serve the Kansas City food shed, and to develop the skills of current producers.

Will Allen is using innovative soil-building techniques and educational programs to lead the way in urban agriculture.

Brett Blaauw's SARE research investigated the response of beneficial insects and their ecosystem services to the size of wildflower plots. This video is a quick introductory guide to help people establish wildflower plantings on their own for the conservation of beneficial insects.

This award-winning report provides a sampler of best practices in sustainable agriculture—from marketing and community vitality to cover crops and grazing—as well as eight profiles of producers, educators and researchers who have successfully implemented them.