 |
|||||||||||||||||
| Southern SAWG e-News,
Volume 4, #2
| February 2008 |
|||||||||||||||||
| Dear Friends, Once again, Southern SAWG’s annual conference was a hit, featuring a cornucopia of outstanding educational sessions and courses, exciting field trips, inspiring speakers, a fabulous dinner, and a great time visiting with friends old and new. Thank you to all who joined us in Louisville last month and made the 2008 conference a wonderful experience. We look forward to seeing you again next year. As our conference demonstrates, one of the missions of Southern SAWG is to provide top-notch educational resources for farmers. Read on for news about our latest innovation, an easy-to-use CD-ROM that offers an extensive array of information and resources, along with dynamic presentations tailored for Southern organic vegetable growers. Your feedback and suggestions are key to the shape of things to come at Southern SAWG, from your responses to the recent questionnaire about our website and newsletter, to helping us evaluate and develop our projects, and sharing your thoughts about future conferences. We welcome photos, stories about your farm, updates on community food projects, and announcements about events. So be sure to stay in touch! --Your friends at Southern SAWG |
|||||||||||||||||
|
Southern SAWG’s 2008 Practical Tools and Solutions conference held in January generated lots of energy! We hosted 1,150 participants this year, and there was plenty of enthusiasm in the air throughout the four days. We always hear from registrants about how great the conference is and how they leave with an abundance of useful information. This year was no exception. During the conference we were hearing it and the positive comments are still coming in. We are so pleased that we have been able to offer something helpful.
Several presenters who were new to our conference this year did a great job and let us know how glad they were to become a part of the Southern SAWG community. One presenter told us she has been to most of the major sustainable and organic ag conferences throughout the country and this one is right up at the top. It is through the hard work and dedication of many people that the conference reached this level of excellence. We thank all of the presenters and field trip hosts for making this conference so outstanding. The commitment of our presenters to give participants something of value is remarkable and inspiring. Mac Stone and the folks at the Kentucky Department of Agriculture made sure that the Taste of Kentucky Dinner was a meal to remember. Many thanks to them and to all the Kentucky farmers whose products made this a superb dinner. You did Kentucky Proud! Thank you also to the folks who donated products for our fundraising silent auction. With all the fabulous donations, we raised nearly $4,400. Yay for those who placed the winning bids. We’ll begin planning the 2009 conference this month, so we hope you’ll send us your suggestions on how we can make it even better! Quantum Leap: Taking Food & Farms Back to the Future The National Agricultural Law Center at the University of Arkansas is the only agricultural law research and information facility that is independent, national and international in scope, and directly connected to the national agricultural information network. Southern SAWG was pleased to welcome Harrison Pittman, the center’s director, to SSAWG’s 2008 annual conference in January, where he presented a session on Limited Liability Corporations (LLCs) as a business entity option for farmers. The center has expanded its coverage to include food law as it recognizes the expanding scope of agricultural law and its convergence with food law topics. A team of law and research professors, lawyers, other specialists, and graduate assistants from the University of Arkansas School of Law Graduate Program in Agricultural Law make up the center’s staff. Their free bi-monthly e-newsletter provides information about new research and information on their website, important events in the agricultural and food law communities, and agricultural and food law developments in the nation and the world. In addition, it fosters a dialogue between subscribers and the center on needed areas for research and information. Sign up for the e-newsletter, or view past issues. For more information click here. |
Organic Vegetable Production and Marketing in the South, with Alex Hitt of Peregrine Farm, is Southern SAWG’s exciting new educational tool. The first of its kind, this CD-ROM is a comprehensive interactive resource designed to give organic farmers and educators in the South the technical information they need all in one place. Instead of spending hours searching the web or thumbing through books, you can just pop this CD-ROM in a computer and find what you need at your fingertips. The thirteen chapters include topics such as soil building, organic certification, transplants, pests, weeds, irrigation, marketing, and recordkeeping. Each chapter features an introduction and the most pertinent educational materials and resources available on the topic, plus segments with Alex Hitt, North Carolina farmer and educator, explaining in his own voice “How it Works at Peregrine Farm.” Over 450 color photos illustrate Alex’s talks to provide the user with a fuller understanding of how to apply the principles and practices of organic growing. In the words of one reviewer, “I found this CD to be chock-full of info that I can use here on my farm.” Produced in partnership with the Risk Management Agency (RMA) of the USDA, the CD-ROM is designed to play easily on almost any PC system equipped with a CD drive. It has undergone in-depth testing with farmers in five Southern states, in collaboration with several organizations and universities, to ensure that it will be as useful as possible. Even those without computers have used it at their public libraries. Arkansas farmer Mark Cain picked up a copy of Organic Vegetable Production and Marketing in the South at the Southern SAWG conference last month and had this to say: “What a resource! I immediately started to use some of Alex's techniques for crop planning and recordkeeping. We'll promote this CD to our farmers’ market producers as part of our vendor education initiative, and I'm even planning on sharing it with small organic farmers in India on an upcoming Winrock International project. Alex's advice is the distillation of years of experience we all can benefit from." Get your copy now! Organic Vegetable Production and Marketing in the South is available for $15.00. Click here to order. 2007
Communications Questionnaire Results Will Help Guide Changes Southern SAWG recently asked for your help. And, you gave it, in your responses to a short questionnaire about our website and newsletter. In order to provide the best access to sustainable agriculture information and resources, and to keep current with evolving technology and trends, Southern SAWG is working to upgrade and enhance its communications efforts. The plan includes a new look for the monthly electronic newsletter and a complete redesign of Southern SAWG’s website. Made up of organization staff and community volunteers, the Southern SAWG Communications Committee is developing the changes with input from Southern SAWG supporters, partners, and constituents. Your responses to the questionnaire indicate an ongoing need for educational and technical assistance resources for farmers. You also expressed a desire for information to help farmers, advocates, and other ag professionals learn about and connect with programs, activities, and individuals throughout the region and in their own communities. Farmers and ranchers made up 60 percent of percent of those who answered the questionnaire, with non-profit and government agency reps, extension agents, educators, and concerned citizens also weighing in. Newsletter items that were deemed most useful ranged from technical farming info and policy information to reports about Southern SAWG projects and general sustainable agriculture news. Respondents would like to see more farmer and farm advocate profiles, info on local and regional events, and even more technical how-to production information. Responses about the Southern SAWG website were similar, with participants indicating that they access news and events, farmer stories and profiles, and policy information most often. Our annual conference is also a hot topic, with nearly 80 percent of the respondents saying they use the website to find conference details. More information on regional organizations and events, plus easier access to Southern SAWG resources and tools were some of the specific suggestions for website improvement, and over half the survey participants asked for a classified ad section. Participants were entered into a drawing to receive a free Southern SAWG “virtual farm tour” video, and we congratulate the winners: Jane O’Tiernan, Kamon A. Reynolds, and Bev Fazio. We thank all of you who took the time to share your thoughts with us. Your feedback and experiences are crucial to this development process. Watch for the newsletter and website changes to take place as new elements are rolled out. We encourage your feedback at any time. Handy with a handle? You could win a Southern SAWG conference ticket! As we work to give the
Southern SAWG newsletter a new look, we would also like to give it a
new name. Not that there’s anything wrong with
“Southern
SAWG Newsletter,” but we are dreaming of something a bit
catchier. And so, once again, we turn to you for inspiration. If you
have a great idea for a name that you think conveys the message of
Southern SAWG, let us know.
And, once again, participation can have its rewards. If we choose the name you submit, you will win a paid registration to the Southern SAWG 2009 Practical Tools and Solutions Conference! If you were with us in Louisville last month, you know you will want to be at the conference next year. If you didn’t make it, here is your opportunity to win your ticket. Entries will be accepted through March 24, 2008. Submit to news@ssawg.org. |
||||||||||||||||
|
Visit Southern
SAWG online at
We welcome your
feedback and suggestions— |
e-News
Archives Southern SAWG e-Newsletters are archived here. Please visit this site to browse through past issues. Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Update Click here to subscribe, unsubscribe or update your email address. |
||||||||||||||||
|
Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group, Inc. (Southern SAWG) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1991 to promote sustainable agriculture in the Southern United States. |
|||||||||||||||||
