Family Farm Members’Stress and Coping Experiences

Behind the Research: Q&A with Dr. Emily Paskewitz Q: Can you talk about why you decided to family farm members in particular? EP: Studying family farm members is something that’s very personal to me. I grew up on a family dairy farm in Minnesota. It was a second-generation farm that my dad took over for…

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Spotlight on Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands

The Southern region of the Farm and Ranch Assistance Network (FRSAN) includes 13 southern states as well as the territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Puerto Rico has a population of 3.22 million people with 7,602 farms on the island, according to the 2022 Puerto Rico Census of Agriculture, which is the…

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Farmer Advisory Groups

The Southern Ag Exchange Network relies on a variety of professionals and researchers across the region who bring their expertise in sociology, mental health, and other disciplines to the task of addressing farm and ranch stress. But if those experts are the only ones at the table, a crucial voice is missing from the conversation:…

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Trainings for Recognizing, Addressing, and Reducing Farm Stress

In the effort to address stressors and reduce stress among farmers, ranchers, and agricultural workers, trainings are an important piece of the puzzle— from making use of existing trainings by service providers who work with farmers to creating trainings to be used directly with farm families. When it comes to farm stress, resources and trainings…

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Evaluation: Measuring What We Do 

Dr. Erin King, Evaluation Specialist Because SAgE and the other three Farm and Ranch Stress Network regions are funded by the USDA, regular reporting is required to account for how those funds are used and the effectiveness and impact of the funded projects.  For the southern region, that evaluation is conducted by Dr. Erin King,…

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Southern Ag Exchange—en Español

Beginning early in 2023, all published SAgE materials have been published simultaneously in Spanish—the current SAgE brochure, research briefs, and the infographics that accompany the briefs. Last fall, the effort began to reproduce the entire website in Spanish. Starting in January of this year, the SAgE webinars have included Spanish interpretation, and Spanish interpretation is…

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SAgE Resources and Trainings

As part of the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network, the Southern Ag Exchange Network collects and disseminates resources for the purpose of alleviating farm stress. But that process is far more than simply doing a Google search and putting the results on the website, explains Emily Ellis, SAgE’s Resources and Trainings Director. Emily Ellis,…

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Applied Research: Exploring the Best Ways to Alleviate Farm Stress

In order for SAgE—and the other three Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network regions—to effectively address farm stress, research is essential to discover the best methods to tackle it. Dr. Andy Smolski, SAgE’s Director of Applied Research, explains why applied research in particular is the type of research that’s needed to find solutions that can…

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