Supporting farmers in coping with water extremes: aligning farmer needs and advisor confidence, skills, and expertise

Abstract

Temperate regions, where water supply has not historically been a limiting factor in agriculture or other industries, are expected to face new challenges related to water availability and use. It is important to investigate the gap between farmers’ need for professional support around water management and the services that agricultural advisors can provide. Needs assessments generally consider one of these topics or the other, though we suggest a deeper understanding of the two together is called for. Here, we report on a farmer survey conducted in the state of Maine in the United States (n = 174) and a survey of agricultural advisors conducted in twelve northeastern states (n = 381). By comparing two investigations, we find (a) opportunities for outreach programs both targeted towards the needs of specific agricultural sectors, and (b) professional development topics for agricultural advisors to close the gap between current capacity in the region and farmer needs. Based on these results, we suggest a framework informed by theories of social learning for targeted outreach. We propose that this approach can serve as a model for moving forward with program development in agricultural services into the future, both in the United States and around the world.