This article assumes you’ve read Article 1 in this section and have already selected one-on-one support as your next step.
BY THE END OF THIS ARTICLE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO…
- Describe at least two qualities of effective one‑on‑one technical assistance relationships.
- Connect specific grower toolkit activities to questions you can ask during a site visit.
- Plan one focused one‑on‑one conversation or site visit, including what you will review beforehand.
Field days, demonstrations and other peer-to-peer connections are a critical component of building a community of practice with others experimenting with water resilience in your region. That said, one-on-one connections, technical assistance and ongoing support can be critical in supporting farmers and other land stewards to adopt and sustain their use of new practices. Research suggests that technical assistance, both formal and informal types, is most effective when it is built via:
- Slow and steady relationships,
- An emphasis on fostering mutual trustworthiness
- Clear and consistent communication that can lead to assessing, planning and making decisions about practice implementation
In the Grower resources — Articles 1–3C
Growers working through Section 1 of the grower toolkit will be completing observation tables, water maps, soil profiles, and AWHC calculations. Before a site visit or field day, work through these articles yourself so you can orient growers to the activities, ask good questions, and recognize what they’re finding.
Familiarize yourself with the activities in this article before a site visit or field day. Growers working through this section will be using the observation tables, maps, and assessment tools described there.
In the Grower resources — “Putting It Into Practice” boxes
In the Putting It Into Practice boxes, growers connect their context assessment to specific practices and strategies. As a facilitator, this is often the most important conversation. It helps growers move from ‘here’s what I found’ to ‘here’s what I’m going to try.’
Familiarize yourself with the activities in Section 1, sub-articles 3a-3c of “Your Soil Story”, before a site visit or field day. Growers working through this section will be using the observation tables, maps, and assessment tools described there.
RESOURCES
Coaching for Water Resilience Training — — Western Water Resilience virtual workshop (11/21/24): tools for coaching growers through decision-making and goal-setting.
Coaching Slides — — Addie Candib of American Farmland Trust provides guidance on coaching for water resilience decision-making.
Conservation Technical Assistance — — USDA NRCS resources for navigating technical assistance programs.
Intertribal Agriculture Council TA Program — — Technical assistance resources for Indigenous and tribal land stewards.