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A Message from Caroline Wade, STAR Executive Director
I’m pleased to share our 2023 Annual Report which highlights the progress we’ve made in establishing a new national organization and the partners who have made that progress possible. National STAR formally launched in September 2023, and in four short (and busy!) months pulled together a strong, collaborative, and proven team of passionate staff and partners who have hit the ground running.
We’ve been busy refining the STAR framework, tools, and strategies to offer more support and resources for producers and conservation partners to best fit their needs. We know from the work of our current state STAR Affiliates that a successful path must be locally led, producer focused, scientifically sound, and flexible enough to accommodate the risks that come with change, the trials, and errors.
We continue to celebrate producer success but also the process of learning which encourages incremental steps forward. We are grateful for the hard work of STAR farmers and ranchers and for the enthusiastic support of stakeholders and funders in Affiliate states across the US. They were instrumental in promoting and encouraging STAR’s vision and expansion.
Thank you to our state Affiliate colleagues, STAR staff, contractors, supporters, and funders for your hard work and ongoing support.
STAR News and Updates
Announcing Anisa Kline, STAR Research Associate
We enthusiastically welcome Anisa Kline to our national STAR team as a Research Associate. Anisa has a PhD in Geography from the Ohio State University and holds dual master’s degrees in Spanish and Latin American studies from the same institution. Her expertise is in applied research with agricultural guestworkers, the growers who employ them, and farmworker advocacy groups. Her 2022 survey of 285 male, Spanish-speaking H-2A workers in Ohio is one of the largest surveys of H-2A workers in the country and her work has been featured in the Farmworker Chronicles Podcast, Cut Flowers Quarterly trade magazine, and the Ohio State University’s TedX speaker series.
She is the author of “Latino H-2A Workers and their Importance for Ohio’s Agricultural Industries”, a report commissioned by the Ohio Commission on Hispanic and Latino Affairs, and she serves on the Board of Directors for MHPSalud, a national nonprofit that promotes community health workers in underserved communities around the country.
Says Anisa, “Working with STAR is a great opportunity to do applied research that supports conservation in agriculture. I’m looking forward to expanding my expertise beyond labor while also contributing my research skills and enthusiasm to a project that is evidenced-based and impactful.”
Spotlight on Missouri STAR
In June of 2023 the Missouri Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (MASWCD) signed on as a partner for the Missouri Climate-Resilient Crop & Livestock (CRCL) Project administered by the University of Missouri Center for Regenerative Agriculture. As part of this project, MASWCD will launch and implement STAR in Missouri. Both the Missouri STAR Steering Committee and the Missouri STAR Science Committee have been developed and both committees include several conservation partners in Missouri. STAR in Missouri is in the very early stages. Currently the landscape assessment is being done. The projected date to start signing producers and landowners up for Missouri STAR is June 2025. Any questions on Missouri STAR can be directed to Jim Boschert, MASWCD Executive Director at maswcd.net@gmail.com
STAR Producer Spotlight
Northeastern CO small grains farmer, Roy Pfaltzgraff has fields in Haxtun where he has planted 15 different crops over the last 15 years. Diversity is the emphasis on his operation. Roy is using STAR to understand operation in context of climate smart agriculture and to publicly share his progress. Roy has several 5 STAR fields and has used his STAR sign at the local farmers markets to promote his gluten-free pancake, cookie, and brownie mixes.
“I would recommend STAR to my neighbors and to non-neighbors alike; and even to my worst enemy. I think STAR is vital for what’s coming down the pike in terms of climate consequences for agriculture. STAR gives farmers the opportunity to be proactive and make changes and choices in how they improve.”
See STAR Soon at…
Soil and Water Conservation Society 2024 Annual Meeting
The annual Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS) meeting will be held July 21-24, 2024, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. This year’s conference theme, “Rising Together: Collaborative Conservation for All,” challenges all conservationists to rise to the great challenges and opportunities ahead of us, together. The agenda will feature the latest ideas, technologies, and practices, and foster a dialogue around their adoption. Cutting-edge research and practice developments in soil health, water quality, and resource management will be shared through various workshops, sessions, symposia, tours, exhibits, and demonstrations. Scientists and practitioners will present their work at the field, farm, and watershed scales.
Two members of the STAR team – Caroline Wade and Amanda Raster – will attend and present a poster on STAR. Read more and register.
Find Employment Opportunities in Agriculture
The Quivira Regenerative Ag Job Board is a new resource for employment postings specific to agriculture. The job board is part of Quivira Coalition’s New Agrarian Program to “help develop the next generation of land stewards, graziers, food producers, and agricultural leaders through land-based learning and mentorship.” Organizations and individuals can access the program for resources on how to create a job posting, hire an employee, put together a great looking cover letter and resume, or figure out how to build skillsets to become a more competitive candidate.
