This paper presents findings of a study of WA Wheatbelt landholders. The aim was to describe their perceptions of individuals and organisations who support their adoption of natural resource management practices. It builds on 2012 Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences research findings that availability of support played an important secondary role, requiring further investigation. Results suggest use of services is linked to awareness, motivation and trust of support providers, and there is a general preference for the methods of support used. As landholders progress through the stages of practice change the methods of support they prefer changes, with the most accessible and relevant support for conservation agriculture practices, and least for agroforestry. These results underscore the benefit of channelling NRM information through preferred providers of support, and understanding landholders' stage of adoption and their preferred methods of support for NRM practices, so effective support can be tailored to influence NRM decision-making.
In this paper, results from a study on PNG cocoa farmers' livelihoods and socio-cultural aspects that effect cocoa production are presented. A cross-sectional descriptive study, in the context of phenomenological reflection involving semi-structured interviews, discussions, and observations, was used to study the livelihood of cocoa farmers in the province of East New Britain. Findings indicated that land tenure and shortage, culture and traditions, livelihood diversification, and poor government support were the key impediments to cocoa production. Furthermore, the research and extension system focuses on increased production for profitable capital-based farming. However, farmers are very entrenched within their socio-cultural practices and consider farming more as a way of life to survive. Farmers seem adverse to risk, comfortable in diverse livelihood activities, and seek to make a reasonable income rather than focusing solely on more profitable cocoa production.
Australian farmers will be greatly impacted by climate change. But farmers' attitudes and actions to climate change vary. Rather than changing attitudes to increase actions this paper considers addressing farmer adaptation and mitigation through understanding farmer decision making drivers. Using two waves of a large-scale climate change survey of Victorian farmers, four distinct farming styles were derived using cluster analysis. Each style had varying propensity to risks, planning, innovation, technology use and farming practice. The farming styles also reflect uncertainty and division in belief about causes of local climatic changes in Australia. However, there were few differences in actions between the groups. Thus, rather than attempt to change farmer beliefs, social drivers can be used to tailor key messages and outreach programs to appeal to each styles goals, experiences, and climate concerns. The findings support the need for segmentation that considers the broader socio-economic drivers of farming.
The increasingly regulated management of natural resources in New Zealand provides another dimension for agricultural extensionists to consider, alongside the economic and bio-physical dynamics of farming systems. New processes for on-farm learning and system adaptation are needed that address the legal and statutory obligations being imposed on farmers to reflect the values of communities, industry and central government. DairyNZ and private consultants have worked together with the Manawatu-Wanganui Regional Council to assist dairy farmers in that region comply with the regulations while improving on-farm productivity. During 2014-2015, dairy farmers in the Waikawa Catchment were required to apply for landuse consents to reduce the estimated nutrient contamination in the catchment by between 5-15%. The significant changes in farming systems for this catchment target to be addressed needed an extension strategy involving collaboration across organisations to pool their capabilities for the good of the dairy industry, rural communities and future generations.
Meat and Livestock Australia's Farm300 project demonstrated the appropriateness of supported learning using a coaching methodology to assist livestock producers develop skills to achieve practice change on farm. The project focussed on management of greenhouse gas emissions from livestock production, with practice change resulting in private and public benefits. A supported learning methodology based on coaching was used to develop skills. A number of critical findings emerged from the adaptation of the approach. The project also confirmed that implementing practices that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from livestock systems need not compromise increased productivity.
Research was conducted to identify the influences on change decisions in Victorian irrigated dairy farms. This qualitative research included the development of a conceptual model that draws on farm control, value chain, image theory and path dependence. An important finding was the influence that the family and personal domains of the farmer could have over farm decisions, even when the issue at hand did not relate to the farm (such as when a farmer directs limited family resources to a child’s school fees rather than a farm development plan). this finding has relevance to the way extension, research and development and policy should seek to influence farm change decisions. Key Learning: The family and personal domains of the farmer can influence the capacity of the farmer to make changes to the farm, even where the family or personal issues are not related directly to the farm.
Farming styles research uses farm decision-making drivers to classify farmers into a farming styles typology. Understanding farming styles enables the development of extension strategies that target the diversity of farmers. We classified Victorian farmers into four distinct styles that measured differences in attitudes to risk/planning, technology use, knowledge, farming practice (business or tradition) and finance. However, the large number of variables required to classify farmers, increases time, costs and respondent fatigue in data collection processes. Thus, we developed a quick tool using the Brownell Reduction method to produce a reduced set of attitudinal variables without loss of important information, enabling classification of new responses into the four farming styles, with 90% accuracy. Thus, this BR method is a significant innovation for large repeated surveys and enables farmer style comparisons across data collection years. Quick-tool applications include evaluation of targeted communication and programs, monitoring audience attendance and mobile device usage.
Rules of thumb are valuable in providing starting points for decisions. Problems arise if rules are based on incorrect information or prevent new options from being considered. A Grain and Graze 2 project investigated farm decision making through workshops with advisors and producers. A workshop structure and series of questions to help unpack rules of thumb were developed. The objective was to equip attendees to critically analyse their rules of thumb, rather than providing 'the answer'. A common response was for participants to feel challenged in considering their rules of thumb more closely before using them as the basis for decisions or advice. Some participants were reticent to admit they used rules, insisting their advice and decisions were based on analysis. The workshops demonstrated ways in which potentially challenging conversations about decisions can be held in a constructive manner. This paper outlines relevant decision making theory and reviews the process and learnings from the workshops.
Based on the US eXtension model, eXtensionAUS aimed to deliver expert information efficiently by working across state and jurisdictional boundaries and using a range of integrated online media tools. At the beginning of 2014 two learning networks were developed in the area of Field Crop Diseases and Crop Nutrition. eXtensionAUS is designed to complement the Grains National RD&E Strategy, a resource efficient national approach to grains research. To match this Australia needs a nationally coordinated approach to extension to streamline the capture and transfer of knowledge from research to practice. In June Beet Western Yellows Virus (BWYV) struck down canola crops in South Australia and started to infect crops in Victoria and New South Wales. The conditions that led to the unprecedented outbreak were described as a 'perfect storm' but it was also the perfect opportunity to test the fledgling eXtensionAUS e-eXtension pilot project.
Since the early 1950's in the NZ Dairy, Industry Discussion Groups have been a tried and tested way of creating on-farm change. During the early 2000's the discussion group network was shrinking (less than 35% of farmers engaged) and there were real concerns for their future. What happened in the next 5 years was: groups rose from 200 to over 300; farm attendance rose from 30% to nearly 60% (over 6,000 farm business); and evaluation showed that over 5,000 farm businesses made on farm change. A Whole Farm Assessment process was implemented using a standardised questionnaire with industry benchmarks to focus on all parts of the business. Discussion groups became more focused on dealing with the limiting factors first. Action plans were developed. Capability was lifted through internal foundation training. This has created farm consultants that have the ability to facilitate discussion groups by incorporating industry benchmarks linked to farmer goals.
There is a wide variation in the scale of New Zealand dairy herds, 18% of farmers manage more than 600 cows, while 69% of farmers have herds with less than 400 cows (DairyNZ & LIC 2012/13). The smaller scale farms, those with less than 400 cows, are important due to the proportion of the industry they represent, yet little research has been conducted in New Zealand into their particular needs or context. Understanding these farmers' goals, plans and challenges is critical to developing innovations and extension programs tailored specifically to their needs. Farmers with less than 400 cows were surveyed (n=346) by telephone in October and November 2014. On average respondents milked 240 cows on 97 ha, employed staff and had a low level of debt as a proportion of their business assets (33%). Respondents strongly agreed that earning maximum sustainable net cash returns and planning for reasonable holidays and leisure time was important, but were neutral regarding the importance of passing the farm onto family members. Farmers were planning no major changes in farm ownership, but the majority were planning to lift production by more than 10%, and reduce the already low debt levels further and employ a non-family employee to do the majority of the work. The key challenges identified by the famers were 'environmental regulation and compliance', followed by 'finding suitable staff', then various capital and cash-flow factors were considered moderately challenging. Two key outcomes of the research are:1. The most likely future plans of New Zealand smaller scale dairy farmers is described, which can inform the development of future programs and innovations.2. The key challenges for smaller scale farmers plans are identified and ranked. It is concluded that a range of exit strategies need to be developed for smaller scale farmers without successors, which meets both their financial and personal needs.
Involving more women in extension events is one of the targets of Australian Wool Innovation's (AWI) strategy for 2013-2015. To address this target a training and support process, aimed at service providers, was developed and delivered. The two-step process involved hands-on training for service providers ('Grow Your Farmer Networks' (GYFN) Workshops) supported by a small grants program (Mini Grants). The GYFN Workshops allowed participants to develop and share skills and ideas to engage more women and was supported post-workshop using Mini Grants to fund implementation of new approaches for engaging women in events and evaluating outcomes. This process proved very successful in increasing service providers' engagement with women and resulted in more women attending events. A model that depicts the ability of an individual to participate in events, and the lessons learnt from the project, showed the participation issue is complex. It was found that the approaches trialed by the project addressed the external barriers to participation. The approaches presented here can also be used to target other groups such as young people to increase their participation.
There is an increasing need for research organisations conducting applied research to change from a traditional linear approach to extension to a more collaborative model. This paper outlines how AgResearch (the Crown Research Institute for New Zealand's pastoral industry) is focusing on partnering with next-users to deliver research outcomes to the end-user, planning science programmes with a clear understanding of who the collaborative partners will be and their roles in achieving impact, recognising the function of innovation brokering, and monitoring and evaluating progress within science programmes. Key findings have included the need to involve an implementation group to pilot tools and processes, using facilitators to guide project teams, defining language and concepts using electronic media, videos and case studies, and on-going monitoring and evaluation. This approach has enabled AgResearch to begin the process of cultural change with the aim of increasing the impact of science.
Transferring the knowledge required to make tactical in-season fertiliser decisions is a persistent challenge given time lags associated with e-mail and newsletter updates and traditional communication strategies. Segregated communication channels across funding bodies, state departments and collaborating organisations often compound the problem by limiting the exposure of online reference material hosted on different websites. The ease associated with collaborative communication through Twitter (R) handles increases the breadth of information that can be readily leveraged by extension officers and the range of stakeholders it can disseminated to by re-tweets. Detailed analysis of a 'tweet series' conducted from June - September 2015 highlights the significance of the multiplier effect embedded within the Twitter (R) platform (evidenced by the number of link clicks, re-tweets and other analytics) and its relevance to one of the main metrics currently used to evaluate extension activities in the WA Grainbelt - 'the number of growers and advisors reached'.
The removal of traditional organophosphate sprays to control fruit fly in Australia has prompted the implementation of Area-wide management as a solution to manage Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly) in the southwest of Western Australia, which requires participation of both commercial and backyard fruit growers. One of the reasons for the low uptake of Medfly control is people failing to recognise the importance of controlling fruit fly all year round. A fruit growth development calendar of 27 common fruit plant species was prepared to demonstrate the influence of Medfly occurrence on properties from an individual and collective perspective. This material together with information based on the fruit fly life cycle served to engage the public and to ‘make sense’ of the ecological principles that explain persistent Medfly populations despite control efforts. Meaningful scientific evidence helps interpret the natural processes surrounding Medfly, facilitating the communication process required to improve Medfly control.
The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is the largest coral reef in the world, spanning over 2,300km along the Queensland coast. Agricultural land uses dominate the catchments directly adjacent to the GBR, with approximately 3,800 sugarcane farms, 8,500 cattle grazing properties, 940 horticultural farms, and 600 grain growing farms. Concern over levels of water borne pollutants from these farms having a detrimental effect on GBR health has led to the development of the Great Barrier Reef Water Quality Protection Plan (Reef Plan) a $375M 5 year joint Australian and Queensland Government program. The effectiveness of Reef Plan is measured through a monitoring, evaluation and modelling program called Paddock to Reef (P2R). P2R monitors the degree of adoption of best management practices, the pollutant loads in streams and marine waters, and a range of biophysical indicators of resource condition. P2R also estimates the potential future pollutant load reductions resulting from the adoption of best management practice. This paper focuses on the challenge of actually quantifying the degree of adoption over time of best management practice across a large and diverse agricultural landscape.
A project funded by the New Zealand Government in support of the Livestock Research Group of the Global Research Alliance investigated the development of a soil moisture-based decision tool for applying restricted grazing strategies to wet soils to reduce nitrous oxide emissions, pugging damage and nitrate leaching. Two industry workshops tested the decision support framework and potential implementation strategies. The North Island group, with little experience, learned the complexity of restricted grazing, compared to their previous thinking. The South Island group, practicing forms of restricted grazing, had developed practices that suited their farms, based on their current knowledge and observation. The inexperienced group wanted cost-benefit analyses and detailed grazing plans, while the experienced group required detail about how a mitigation tool would be implemented. These findings confirm that previous experience must be accounted for in the interpretation and development of implementation pathways of a new technology.
From 2012-2014 the Queensland Government delivered an extension project to help sugarcane growers adopt best management practices to reduce pollutant loss to the Great Barrier Reef. Coutts J&R were engaged to measure progress towards the project's engagement, capacity gain and practice change targets. The monitoring and evaluation program comprised a database, post-workshop evaluations and grower and advisor surveys. Coutts J&R conducted an independent phone survey with 97 growers, a subset of the 900 growers engaged in extension activities. Of those surveyed 64% stated they had made practice changes. There was higher (74%) adoption by growers engaged in one-on-one extension than those growers only involved in group-based activities (36%). Overall, the project reported 41% (+/-10%, 95% confidence) of growers engaged made a practice change. The structured monitoring and evaluation program, including independent surveys, was essential to quantify practice change and demonstrate the effectiveness of extension in contributing to water quality improvement.
Can extension programs have an impact on water quality entering the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) lagoon? Sugarcane farmers in the Herbert cane growing region (North Queensland, Australia) sought funding for a whole of Herbert catchment water quality monitoring project through various industry and government funding agencies in 2010. The Herbert Water Quality Monitoring Program (HWQMP) commenced in July 2011 and operated for 3 years to monitor water quality for the whole Herbert catchment. An extension strategy was developed as a part of the HWQMP, with linkages to other projects, allowing the sugar industry to assess its impacts from the cane block to the inner reefs of the GBR. The HWQMP and associated extension effort has been successful in building industry capacity to manage issues identified by the water quality monitoring program. The program has achieved positive environmental change leading to improved water quality outcomes without compromising industry viability.
