Solanki, Surabhi (author) and Verma, Seema (author)
Format:
Conference proceedings
Publication Date:
2019-06
Published:
Elsevier
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 121 Document Number: D11119
Notes:
8 pages., Proceedings of International Conference on Sustainable Computing in Science, Technology and Management., In any country, agriculture plays important role in the prospect of economy and sustainability. As technology grow day by day so it is necessary for the farmer to know about the technology, innovations and take them into practice, so they make strong themselves in terms of economic and sustainability. In this paper discussed the intensity exposure to information and communication technology and its relationship to the characteristics of farmers at different stages of adoption use of information and communication technology for different farm practices and also know the preferences of farmers regarding the use of Information & Communication Technology (ICT). In the continuation of this process conduct the personal interview to collect personal details of farmers as well as farm information that associate them to know about the adoption of information technology. The data collected through personal interview of farmers have been classified, tabulated and analyzed to know how efficiently and effectively information and communication technology disseminate farm information to the farmer.
6 pages., ISSN: 2456-1878, via online journal., The use of mobile phones as means of
communication between the extension agents and local
farmers in Edo South was examined to determine the
perception of the extension agents on its effectiveness.
Fifty-one (51) respondents were obtained through random
sampling using questionnaires to obtain relevant
information in the two local government areas; Ovia North
East and Ovia South West selected for the study. The result
obtained indicated that male extension agents were in
majority (72.5%), 54.9% of the sampled population above
45 years of age and 58.8% possessed 16 – 20 years working
experience. Phone calls and short message service (SMS)
were found appropriate for agricultural information
dissemination. Significant and positive relationships were
established between the working experience of extension
agents and their perception of mobile phone usage. The
recommendation is that formal integration of mobile phone
into extension activities be done to enhance wider coverage,
reduce cost and risks associated with movement. Extension
agents and farmers need more training on effective usage
of SMS and phone calls for interaction on farm related
issues. Enforcement of existing telecommunication laws
could reduce network failure and also enhance effective
usage.
10 pages., Article #:4FEA4, via online journal., Childhood obesity is one of the leading problems facing Americans today. As children continue to struggle with both obesity and food insecurity, many parents and doctors look to schools to be responsible for providing healthful meals. The aim of the Farm to School (F2S) program is to bring fresh, local produce into school cafeterias. Aligning with Extension goals, the F2S program provides an opportunity for both the development of healthful lifestyles and increases in agricultural profits. Through interviews with producers and school food service directors, we determined ways Extension programming can be used to improve the efficiency of the F2S program.
11 pages, Many academics ask ‘How can I use my research to influence policy?’. In this paper, we draw on our first-hand experience as social researchers for the British Government to advise how academics can create and communicate research with policymakers. Specifically, we describe methods of communicating research to policymakers in relation to research we undertook to listen to farmers about their priorities for a new agricultural policy for England following the exit of the UK from the European Union. The main purpose of this research was to ensure farmers’ voices were included in policy development and therefore communication of the research to policymakers was key. We reflect on the effectiveness of the communication methods we employed and summarise our learnings into four practical recommendations: (1) make research relevant to policymakers; (2) invest time to develop and maintain relationships with policymakers; (3) utilise ‘windows of opportunity’; and (4) adapt presentation and communication styles to the audience. We consider that employing these recommendations will help to improve how evidence is communicated between academia and government and therefore the influence of evidence in decision-making processes.
19 pages, via online journal, Dairy farms pose many hazards to farmers and their employees, including the risk of injury caused by handling animals. On many farms, there is a lack of consistent information and training related to farm safety topics, including stockmanship, or safe animal handling. The purpose of this qualitative research was to explore effective communication strategies that support the application of stockmanship practices and more broadly support health and safety measures and the adoption of new behaviors by farmers and their employees. Research was conducted in three stages via in-depth farm tours and in-person interviews, a qualitative survey, and follow-up phone interviews with dairy farmers. Findings identified four values and moral norms important to dairy farmers and four barriers to implementation of farm safety practices. The research also revealed publications and in-person meetings as key channels of communication and on-farm consultants as important influencers. From the research findings, three major recommendations emerged. These include using a train the trainer educational model, engaging with professionals and encouraging farmer-to-farmer communication, and leveraging digital resources.
20 pages., via online journal., During the last 10 years, different initiatives have been implemented to provide mobile-based extension services for the agricultural sector in Egypt. The current study compared the quality of agricultural extension messages between public and private providers. A simple random sample of 120 farmers was selected representing 7% of the total farmers registered in the databases of Ministry of Agriculture (public services) and Shoura company (private services). Farmers assessed a sample of 10 messages delivered by both providers in terms of six indicators namely (1) access, (2) utilization, (3) timeliness, (4) trust, (5) satisfaction, and (6) sharing information with other farmers. The findings revealed the lack of access to messages by the farmers in the two services. However, more than 50% had utilized the majority of messages (in case of access). The study also showed significant differences between perception of farmers to quality attributes in public and private services (Access 6.77, 0.01; Utilization 8.44, 0.004; Timeliness 8.55, 0.002; Satisfaction 8.88, 0.001; information sharing 7.62, 0.009) except for trust (1.11, 0.4). Findings provide practical implications to support mobile-based extension services to enable sharing information and link farmers with other actors in the agricultural value chain.
24 pages., via online journal., Social innovation has received widespread attention in the rural development field, especially its contribution to future rural sustainability. Social innovation revolves around social networks. Rural areas, however, can be relatively disadvantaged by their geographical peripherality. Social media, therefore, has strong potential to foster social innovation by enabling remote communication, but in rural areas, social media use may be low because of an aging and decreasing population. This study examined community-level adoption and use of social media in rural areas in Japan, with a focus on Facebook, for the purpose of sharing community information and facilitating networking with a variety of actors to promote rural social innovation. The study involved a comprehensive search and case studies targeting 139,063 rural communities and 10,922 rural joint-communities, all of which are legally designated agricultural communities throughout Japan. The search found that disadvantaged rural communities’ adoption of Facebook was scarce, and most of the communities that had adopted Facebook did not expand their social networks. Furthermore, investigation into the communities that had adopted social networking to a larger extent revealed that external supporters or migrants had essential roles in successful networking. Based on the obtained findings, this study has provided insights for future policy design.
14 pages., via online journal., This article addresses a stated need within the food justice movement scholarship to increase the attention paid to the political socialization of hired farm hands in industrial agriculture. In Canada, tackling the problem of farm worker equity has particular social and political contours related to the Canadian horticultural industry’s reliance on a state-managed migrant agricultural labour program designed to fill the sector’s labour market demands. As Canada’s Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) produces relations of ‘unfree labour’, engaging migrant farm workers in social movement initiatives can be particularly challenging. Critical educational interventions designed to encourage migrant farm workers’ contribution to contemporary social movements in Canada must therefore confront the socio-cultural obstacles that constrict migrant farm workers’ opportunities to participate as full members of their communities. In this article, I argue that social justice oriented approaches to community-based arts can provide a means for increasing the social movement contributions of farm workers employed through managed labour migration schema such as Canada’s SAWP.
Wick, Abbey F. (author), Haley, Jean (author), Gasch, Caley (author), Wehlander, Terry (author), Briese, Lee (author), and Samson‐Liebig, Susan (author)
Format:
Online journal article
Publication Date:
2019-06
Published:
Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 122 Document Number: D11140
8 pages., via online journal., Farmer adoption of practices to build soil health can be enhanced using a knowledge network supported by programs and resources that incorporate technical, social and experiential learning pathways. University Extension plays a critical role in building and supporting the knowledge network by serving as (a) a boundary organization to create space for conversations to occur, (b) network manager to facilitate learning and (c) builder of social capital to encourage trust in the network. The North Dakota State University (NDSU) Soil Health Program was used to illustrate the above approach. Between 2014 and 2016, 32 informal discussion groups, called Soil Health Café Talks, reached 156 individuals. A knowledge network of all participants was developed using NodeXL. The 10 most influential individuals in the network included two scientists, five farmers, one crop consultant and two Extension specialists. All non‐NDSU participants received an evaluation form. Respondents increased their frequency of discussing cover crops with other individuals and increased sharing equipment across farming operations (i.e., vertical tillage implements and no‐till drills). Of the topics discussed, over 25% of respondents adopted practices using cover crops (interseeding and using cover crops for weed control and adjusting rotations to incorporate cover crops) as a result of attending Café Talks. Respondents also increased their use of NDSU Soil Health online resources such as Twitter (22%), YouTube (23%) and the web page (21%) as follow‐up information to Café Talks. Network‐based approaches have proven to be successful in encouraging on‐farm adoption of soil health‐building practices.
16 pages., via online journal., The study assessed the use of ICTs among public and private extension officers in Lesotho. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 86 public and 19 private extension officers. Data collected were analysed, using percentages, mean, and standard deviation, multiple regressions and t-test. Extension officers use ICT tools to obtain information on new technology (79.1%), preservation of farm produce (79.1%); time of planting crops (75.6%), call attention of extension officers (75.6%) and cultural practices (75.6%). Serious constraints to the use of ICTs, as perceived by extension officers were: high cost of ICT (83.7%); poor basic infrastructure (79.1%); non-availability of technical personnel (72.1%), failure of service (73.7%) and non-availability of genuine parts. There is a strong relationship between access to information, residing within place of work, constraints, age awareness, type of extension and use of ICTs. There is also a significance differences in the use of ICTs between public and private extension officers. Policy makers should improve national e-readiness and make more ICT tools available and accessible to extension officers. Constraints of high cost, lack of ICT infrastructure and training of technical personnel should be dealt with.
