Family Farms Conference workshop recordings highlight sustainable agriculture

Videos include farmer SARE grant projects, farmer wellness, farm to school, agritourism, small-scale livestock and more.

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Check out 19 videos from the 20th annual Michigan Family Farms Conference.

Workshop recordings from the 20th annual Michigan Family Farms Conference are now available for you to stream from home. This conference welcomed over 300 farmers and agriculture advocates of all backgrounds to meet for workshops and discussions with speakers on March 9, 2024. Since there were nine sessions to choose from at any one time, these videos are a welcome way to attend the sessions you missed, review sessions you attended or experience the entire conference for the first time.

Michigan Food and Farming Systems (MIFFS) has organized the Michigan Family Farms Conference annually since 2004. It is a favorite for small, diversified, sustainable and urban farmers and for farmers of the global majority.

“This year marked the 20th annual Michigan Family Farms Conference, and after three years of not being able to gather in person we were thrilled to be back in the same space with everyone again,” said Lauren Marquart, MIFFS co-director. “The conference is a joyous opportunity for people to learn together, share wisdom, make connections and to gather resources to bring back to communities all across the state. The goal of MIFFS and the planning team every year is to cultivate a community-centric and equity-driven space for celebration, networking and for digging in with peers about all things food and farming!”

Michigan Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) funded the SARE Farmer Forum track to share insights and results from four SARE grant projects in Michigan. “The conference was a great chance to meet people excited about giving back to their communities and the sustainability of agriculture. Not only was it wonderful to share SARE information we also shared a great deal of what MSU Extension has to offer to small and beginning farmers,” said Sarah Fronczak, SARE state coordinator.

Check out all the following great videos

SARE Farmer Forum Track

Farmer Wellness

Farm to School

Small Scale

Michigan-centered

Livestock

Awards Ceremony and Music

  • MFFC 2024 Awards Ceremony with awards presented to Rebecca Titus, TC Collins and Roxanne Moore Jones and performances by:
    • Kevin Harris of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi (NHBP) Drum Circle
    • Charles Pfeifer - NHBP Drum Circle
    • Hadassah GreenSky @coolwatergreensky on YouTube and Instagram
    • Soufy @SouFy313 on YouTube and Instagram
    • Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund video

Sessions without video:

  • Michigan Queer Farmer Advocacy Network
  • Black Farmers Gathering
  • Global Majority (BIPOC) Farmers Gathering
  • The Ubuntu Network: Centering Ourselves in Accountability Networks
  • Youth Track – Movement Exchange and Food Corps
  • Youth Track – Food Systems
  • Youth Track – Sensory Stations

All videos were produced by Dejuan Jordan and the team at Alpine Media Company.

Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE)

SARE is a USDA program that shares numerous resources for farmers and agriculture educators including books, bulletins, videos and more. For more information about SARE grants and resources, visit https://misare.msu.edu/index.html or https://www.sare.org/.

North Central SARE grants include Farmer Rancher Grants, Research & Education Grants, Youth Educator Grants other grant programs. You can find them all at https://northcentral.sare.org/grants/ . Michigan SARE grants include the Michigan SARE Travel Scholarship and two funding opportunities for people organizing sustainable agriculture workshops and conferences.

Michigan SARE Coordinator Sarah Fronczak, Tribal SARE Coordinator Emily Proctor and Katie Brandt from the MSU Organic Farmer Training Program are glad to advise grant applicants, review proposals and support farmers, educators and students applying for NCR-SARE grants. Grant-writing support is available free of charge for all six North Central SARE grants and for Michigan SARE mini-grants. Email froncza3@msu.edu or brandtk7@msu.edu with questions, to have a proposal reviewed or to set up a time to discuss your proposal idea. Tribal members and communities are encouraged to reach out to Emily Proctor at proctor8@msu.edu for assistance with SARE proposals.

The program aims to support an inclusive mix of farmers and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program or political beliefs.

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