13 pages, Managing the spread of introduced invasive species relies on educating recreationists that currently or potentially harbor such species. By partnering with a local brewery, we developed the Lagers for Lakes Draft Series to facilitate outreach about aquatic invasive species in Erie, Pennsylvania. To date, Lagers for Lakes drafts and associated launch events have reached over 230 individuals and increased awareness of invasive species by 86%. With the materials provided here and the lessons learned from these events, we hope similar outreach efforts can be developed elsewhere to educate and minimize the spread of invasive species.
4 pages, The Covid-19 pandemic has been highly disruptive to Extension programming. Online programming has emerged as one of the primary approaches for maintaining engagement with the communities and populations Extension serves. Some have even suggested that it might become the default programming method, even after it is safe to return to in-person programming. In this commentary, I discuss some of the current limitations and challenges inherent in online-only programming -- ones that are often overlooked by Extension personnel. Further, I discuss key factors that Extension personnel should take into account when considering online programming for any future professional efforts.
10 pages, Barriers to the successful implementation of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) education and outreach initiatives are being documented across higher education institutions as DEI policies and protocols are gaining attention. Despite growing attention to promote DEI in higher education institutions, there remains a need to examine barriers preventing DEI efforts in a systematic way, particularly in Extension education contexts to formulate strategies to promote DEI. We present an expert, consensus-based framework to identify the most salient barriers to successful DEI implementation in Extension. We also discuss opportunities for Extension practitioners to overcome salient barriers with tailored mitigation strategies.
21 pages, Social media and the internet have impacted how companies and organizations advertise to consumers. Digital advertising has created the opportunity to engage with consumers, target specific groups, and capture metrics of use to help build effective advertising strategies. The floral industry is a large sector within the agricultural arena, which is primed to engage with young consumers. This research examined the effectiveness of utilizing static and animated social media advertisements to increase consumers’ intention to purchase floral products. Using an online survey and an experimental design, this study examined 8,488 respondents’ intention to purchase floral products after viewing static and animated social media advertisements. This study identified respondents’ attitudes, social norms, age, and internet use to be significant predictors in their intent to purchase floral products. Recommendations from a theoretical and applied perspective are discussed within relation to the study’s findings to advance strategic advertising in the floral industry.
Mott, Rebecca (author), Preston, Kate (author), and Brandt, Heath (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2022-12-19
Published:
United States: Clemson University Press
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 206 Document Number: D12800
Notes:
4pgs, The Anchor podcasting tool provides an innovative way for Extension professionals to deliver information to youth, as well as promote further engagement. This article describes the process our team followed to create a series of career podcasts for middle school students using Anchor. We discuss benefits and considerations to keep in mind if you are considering launching a podcast of your own.
5 pages, Social media usage has precipitated changes in Cooperative Extension’s delivery of programs to amplify involvement with selected audiences and it is important that we craft relevant content for a variety of audiences. Current research tells us that social media and related content can enrich education and can create broader audiences for programming. Resources like blogs, podcasts, and geofilters have shown to be received positively by a wide range of audiences and have created greater rates of engagement.
Yet, one platform that has received limited attention is TikTok, perhaps due to TikTok’s mixed reviews in educational systems. With current trends showing that 48% of 18-29 year olds are using the app, we believe that TikTok has great potential for connecting audiences with research-based information and engaging previously unreached communities.
6 pages, In this article, I review Donaldson's (2020) Community Engagement for Extension Professionals: 21st Century Program Planning, Evaluation, and Professionalism. This guidebook is relevant to several audiences including undergraduate and graduate students, Extension professionals, and faculty who work with students and advisees on program planning research and practice. This article highlights the primary contributions of the guidebook, with special emphasis on proactive and reactive Extension programming models.
Online issue. 3 pages., Announces a new core program area, Integrated Health Disparities, in Illinois Extension. Purpose: "To provide leadership and resources in the crusade to address health inequities." Priority issues will include health promotion and education, healthcare access, behavioral health, and community well-being.
Online from publication. 4 pages., Suggestions from a New York City-based exotic fruit influencer and leadership developer Angela Scarfia in leading an online workshop about marketing produce brands and companies on social media.
Via online magazine. 9 pages., An old 1,300-acre oil refining site in South Philadelphia is being converted into a vast e-commerce distribution center. "But the developers of these brownfields must confront a legacy of toxic pollution and neglect of surrounding communities of color." A Philadelphia council member reports, "We have a long way to go as relates to community engagement, as well as paying attention to the environmental remediation process."
5 pages, The scientific advice needed to inform national and regional policies addressing the key challenges we face today must take account of disparate requirements. The complex nature of the problems addressed in this article—which encompass food and nutrition security, global health and climate change—and the multitude of their interconnections, calls for an integrated and multi-disciplinary approach that spans aspects related to the use of natural resources; the adoption of new technologies all the way to issues related to food demand and human behaviour. The scale is also important: national policies need to respond to a set of heterogeneous local conditions and requirements and should be particularly mindful of the effect on vulnerable groups of the population. At the same time, the global interconnectedness of food systems and shared natural resources also necessitates coordinated action at regional and global levels. The InterAcademy Partnership sought to develop an innovative model for integrating and analysing multidisciplinary scientific evidence to inform governments and regional policy bodies for policymaking on food and nutrition security. This approach relies on IAP’s membership of over 130 science academies grouped in four regional networks for Africa, America, Asia and Europe. Our article reviews the model, in particular with regards to interdisciplinarity, exploring examples relating to yield gap, plant breeding and food processing, and reflects on lessons learned during the project discussions and when engaging with policy-makers and other stakeholders. We propose that the framework developed can be applied to integrated assessment of other societal challenges where the scientific community can play a significant role in informing policy choices.
6 pages, Approaches to communicating climate science beyond academia are necessary for enhancing salience, understanding, and engagement and accelerating action. This Primer discusses the heterogeneous manner in which climate change messaging is received by different audiences, how social scientific approaches could help to better tailor climate change messaging to this varied landscape, and how attempts to close this gap must consider the emotional and affective dimensions of climate messaging. We explore how the use of narratives can enhance effective climate science communication and emphasize the importance of evidence-based advocacy in the current era of global challenges, uncertainty, and post-truth.
22 pages., via online journal, Agritourism is recreational travel for agricultural activities. While it provides many benefits, such as rural development and heritage preservation, many agritourism operators express challenges in marketing their operations. Social media is increasingly common in tourism marketing, but little research exists describing current marketing practices. Quantitative content analysis was used to describe 174 Oklahoma agritourism operations’ Facebook page activity in June 2018. Original posts created by the agritourism operations and community posts created by the general public had similar amounts of public interaction. Post interactions were not related to post length, and original post interactions were also not related to overall page likes. Live videos and traditional posts received the most interaction amongst types of original posts. Facebook event posts made by the agritourism operation received more public interaction than event posts made by the general public. Agritourism operators should focus on quality over quantity of information and be wary of creating posts in an “echo chamber” as only a small proportion of a large page following interact with posts. Marketing practitioners should avoid providing one-size-fits-all advice in Facebook marketing, as there was a large variety of Facebook activity observed. Future research should more specifically describe content of posts and consider perspectives of agritourism operators and visitors towards current Facebook marketing strategies.
Arnot, Charlie (author / Center for Food Integrity)
Format:
Commentary
Publication Date:
2020
Published:
International: Center for Food Integrity, Gladstone, Missouri.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 201 Document Number: D11706
Notes:
4 pages., Online from publisher website., Perspectives about how consumers will perceive technology in food and agriculture going forward. "...will they view innovation as positive and something they should embrace and support? Or, will innovation be perceived as another looming threat that should be avoided at all costs? The answer to those questions rests with those who bring the technology to market."
15 pages., via online journal., Water quality is a complex issue and residential fertilizer can be one of the many contributors to poor water quality. Working with residential audiences to help them understand and reduce their impacts on water quality is an important task among many agricultural education and Extension professionals. In order to effectively work with residential audiences, we must first understand what influences their intent to engage in fertilizer best management practices. In this research, we paired the Diffusion of Innovations and Elaboration Likelihood Model to examine the influence of perceptions of an innovation’s characteristics, personal involvement with water, and communication on intent to engage in fertilizer best management practices. The communication was presented to experimental groups as a 35-second video about fertilizer best management practices. Data were collected via a survey instrument and were analyzed using inferential procedures. Four of the five characteristics of innovations significantly influenced intent to engage in fertilizer best management practices among the control group. However, all five characteristics were significant among the entire sample but the influence was less compared to the control group. Involvement increased intent while the video treatments had little effect. The results of the research support existing findings, but also offer areas of new discovery as well as insights for practice and additional study. Future research should examine the repetition of communication as well as different dimensions of involvement.
8 pages., Article # 4FEA2, via online journal., Elected officials, an audience essential to the relevance and funding of Extension, may lack knowledge of Extension's capacity to engage with them in solving local problems, building consensus, and improving strategic planning or governance. They may not consider that by collaborating with locally knowledgeable Extension professionals, they also gain access to broader university resources that can assist them in understanding community needs and obtaining relevant evidence-based recommendations. We describe how Extension and county officials and personnel implemented utilization-focused evaluation to inform county strategic planning,
budgeting, and governance, leading to continuous process improvement for the county and increased support for and understanding of Extension.
12 pages, We designed a national sustainable agriculture conference for women farmers and agricultural professionals to provide a supportive environment in which participants felt comfortable to learn, share, contribute, question, network, and make connections affecting their personal and professional lives. Through post-conference and later retrospective evaluations, we identified key concepts that Extension professionals and others hosting agricultural events may consider when engaging women participants. Women in sustainable agriculture may prioritize choosing a conference, and are more likely to participate fully, when it is women focused. Women appreciate hands-on experiences and learning from experts and peers but value most the opportunity to connect with other women in similar circumstances.
