Do you ever sit around your kitchen table and contemplate other crops you might like to grow? Here is a novel idea – grow carbon. What you ask? Growers across the country are becoming carbon farmers as highlighted in the documentary film Carbon Nation. The film touts itself as a “climate change solutions movie that doesn’t even care if you …
IFAJ Master Class
Want more reasons to support IFAJ? How about the annual Master Class held prior to the IFAJ Congress? The Master Class started this year with a ‘Getting Familiar Evening’ followed by peer-to-peer workshops on Monday and Tuesday. The agricultural journalists represent nine countries. They are: Burkina Faso: Inoussa Maiga Burundi: Jean de Dieu (John) Ininahazwe Congo: Roger Vutsoro Gambia: Sang …
IFAJ Boot Camp for Young Leaders
Here’s a reason why I support the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists. It is because of programs like the IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism awards. These winners attend a pre-Congress Boot Camp. The winners participate in a two-day boot camp to develop their professional skills in agricultural journalism and get a broader global perspective in agricultural communication. The first …
Livestock 101 at NAMA Boot Camp
Animal agriculture seems to be under a constant fire from those who don’t understand it. During the recent NAMA Boot Camp, Dr. Dan Thomson, Assistant Dean of Outreach and Professor at Kansas State University Vet School, addressed the basics of the industry along with issues and challenges so agri-marketers could help educate the growing population of non-ag consumers. “I think …
Do The Right Thing
During the 2012 NAMA Boot Camp a highlight for me was a breakout session on crisis management. Daren Williams, Executive Director of Communications for NCBA, spoke with attendees about the ins and outs of dealing with crises in the agriculture industry. In my interview with Daren he shared his role of promoting the wonderful world of beef to consumers, how …
Social Media Beyond the Choir
AgNerds from across North American came together in Kansas City, MO to attend the 2012 Agvocacy 2.0 Training. “Beyond the Choir” was a common theme throughout the week as we tweaked how to use social media in telling our story of agriculture to those not quite as familiar with it. Some came as social media gurus and others with a …
It’s An Exciting Time To Be Involved Agriculture
The 2012 North American Ag & Food HR Roundtable was full of industry recruiters saying their businesses are growing and they are ready to hire, as well as university representatives expressing they had great students ready to full those spots. Lori Pence-Barber, Career Services Coordinator for the College of Agriculture at Purdue University, couldn’t agree more with her colleagues. I …
Support I Love Farmers
I Love Farmers.org was one of the busiest booths during InfoExpo at the Ag Media Summit. T-shirt sales were doing well. If you didn’t get yours then go to their website to order. Working the booth was Luke DeGroot who says that in the last year they’ve made some great partnerships with businesses “who believe in the same things we …
Welcome AgChatOZ to AgCareers Roundtable
AgCareers welcomed Danica Leys, founder of AgChatOZ, to the 2012 Ag & Food HR Roundtable. After learning about AgChat Foundation here in the United States, she felt a similar dialogue was needed in Australia. AgChatOZ holds weekly online conversations on Twitter about topics and issues farmers face in Australia. I was fortunate to sit down with Danica and chat with …
AgCareers Recognizes Russ Weathers
In honor of the 10th Anniversary of the North American Ag & Food HR Roundtable, AgCareers took time to recognize a few people who have supported them since the beginning. One of those individuals was Russ Weathers, President of Agriculture Future of America (AFA). Both organizations started about the same time and each has grown successful in the support for …