Sara Delaney: Farmer outreach in a changing world

Changing markets, environmental degradation and invasive pests pose persistent threats to the future of food production. To tackle the challenges of the uncertain future, farmers need ongoing communication about climate impacts and options for adaptation.

Sara Delaney is advancing research that fine-tunes ongoing education to help farmers thrive amid this uncertainty. Before becoming a Ph.D. candidate in ecology and environmental sciences at the University of Maine, she spent 15 years advancing food security around the globe. Delaney was inspired by her time as a Peace Corps volunteer working with rural farmers in Mali. She knows firsthand the importance of maintaining sustainable food production, having seen the impact of extreme weather in her work. 

“We all need food. We need nutritious food. We need affordable food. And the climate challenge is not going away,” she said.

Maine’s official scientific assessment of environmental degradation reported that food producers were increasingly concerned about crop yields and quality. Warming temperatures invite pests, weeds and crop diseases. These factors are known to stress crops and increase water needs. Maine imports 90% of its food, making the state’s food system vulnerable to environmental changes.

Delaney interviewed and surveyed farmers and agricultural advisors to learn how they make choices to keep up with current and future environmental shifts. Understanding their learning preferences helps researchers and outreach agents for organizations like University of Maine Cooperative Extension better equip farmers with the knowledge they need. One finding that Delaney highlighted from her surveys is that group-based educational programs can help both farmers and advisors with persistence through the uncertainty.

Delaney’s research follows an educational program that served farmers and agricultural advisors. She is helping future scientists and people who provide ongoing education to better connect with farmers. Delaney’s advisor, associate professor of sustainable agriculture Rachel Schattman, created the program, along with a group of other educators, advisors and farmers. 

Schattman and her team designed a curriculum using Adult Learning Theory and peer-to-peer educational methodology to reach farmers and agricultural advisors. The course offered lessons on developing risk assessments, cost-benefit analyses and other activities for measuring progress. The project directly supported 36 farmers and agricultural advisors. It reached more than 74,000 others through the participants’ outreach, such as talks, newspaper articles, newsletters, blog posts and on-farm demonstrations and tours. 

Farmers typically like to learn from each other, and the outreach program taps into this culture of exchange. Group meetings and community gatherings are integral for farmers. Currently, there is little documentation on how farmers use resources to learn and make decisions about the relatively newer challenge of climate change. Delaney’s work makes one contribution towards filling this gap by examining the impact of the educational curriculum and its outreach.

Delaney’s research found that environmental degradation is a generally accepted phenomenon among farmers in the Northeast, but knowledge of specific impacts or adaptation strategies varies. Weather data is continually updated and the projections of future impacts are updated every few years. The ongoing nature of this research creates a degree of uncertainty which, according to Delaney, elicits a mixed reaction from farmers depending on the messenger. Delaney said a key factor in farmer perception and subsequent action is the efficacy of the communicator. 

“Someone that’s communicating clearly about what to expect is crucial,” she said.

Once completed, Delaney’s dissertation will help provide educators and researchers with the knowledge they need to support farmers. Her framework can help farmers adapt in the future, and the bond between the two groups will foster resilient agriculture in the face of climate change.

Story by Jesse Bifulco, communications intern for UMaine Research

Contact: Erin Miller, erin.miller@maine.edu