I don’t think of my school days often, but this time of year, I remember teachers complaining that some of us had gotten spring fever and needed to calm down. It only became more pronounced when I lived in Oklahoma and New York. But once I was working and living in the midst of agriculture, wow. Even all my city family & friends know that spring and planting really gets me jazzed up.
Now on another front…
Growing up, I always wanted to stay in touch even if friends and family were further away. I’d write letters to cousins and summer camp friends and usually included a few photos. As I became “grown,” I more & more cards to friends and family at the holidays. And my love of travel made me want to share the unique sights I’d seen & people I’d met. Somewhere along the way, I went from newsletters in cards to email to social media. [ And yes, I remember who among you chided me for joining Facebook early on (and yes, we are Facebook friends anyway). ]
Last April, I was able to tweet into the first #agchat discussion on twitter. And I’ve become so much more aware as well as becoming more effective in what I want to accomplish on social media.
Knowing all of that, I had to be pumped about the AgChat Foundation. The group of people who have been pulling ideas together and working on it have started a new season. It as if a field map and flags have been laid out and we need a lot of help with planting seeds and producing the crops!
If you haven’t checked out the site yet, go to agchat.org and look around. My favorite part is the videos on the site of the four farmers who are behind the Foundation talking about the four program areas. I’m sure you’ll enjoy them too!
- Jeff Fowle talking about Agvocacy 2.0 Training: Educate farmers through basic, mid-level & expert training to move mindsets up the technology ladder.
- Mike Haley on Strategic Agvocacy Coordination: Empower agriculture’s voice through coordinated industry-wide efforts.
- Darin Grimm discussing Data Analysis: Provide tools to assist agvocates with targeted community efforts.
- Ray Prock introducing Technology Scholarships: Equip farmers with infrastructure to enable full use of social media.
You can also see Michele Payn-Knoper talking about leveraging tools and working together to create the AgChat Foundation.
And if you haven’t already made plans to join the streaming conversation this Tuesday at 7 pm central, go ahead. The group will be throwing around ideas on social media — come join us! IT’S PLANTING SEASON! Plant some ideas on the AgChat Foundation Facebook page — just look for the discussion boards!
Nice post Janice.
Planting season indeed. I look forward to many fruitful (notice the obvious pun) conversations and interactions to come.
Best,
NJT