{"id":3596,"date":"2011-08-22T05:45:28","date_gmt":"2011-08-22T09:45:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.communify.me\/newvinegrowing\/?p=3596"},"modified":"2019-06-07T13:40:27","modified_gmt":"2019-06-07T17:40:27","slug":"going-to-agriculture-summer-camp-talking-agvocacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.communify.me\/newvinegrowing\/going-to-agriculture-summer-camp-talking-agvocacy\/","title":{"rendered":"Going to agriculture summer camp, talking "agvocacy""},"content":{"rendered":"

I feel a bit like I’m off to summer camp to meet my pen pals.
\nEvery Tuesday night, a diverse group of people participate in a Twitter chat using the hashtag #agchat<\/a> — it’s a moderated online conversation of usually about a dozen questions on a focused agriculture topic<\/a>, ranging from use of smartphones to farm regulation.
\nHere’s how the AgChat Foundation describes itself<\/a>:<\/p>\n

The AgChat\u2120 Foundation is designed to help those who produce food, fuel, fiber and feed tell agriculture\u2019s story from their point of view. The Foundation will educate and equip farmers and ranchers with the skill set needed to effectively engage on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, YouTube, Linkedin and other social media services. It will give them knowledge to unlock new tools to effectively tell their story. Research shows that social media is a growing opportunity for farmers to have a stronger voice in educating people about the business of growing food, fuel, feed and fiber.
\nThe Foundation is built from the highly visible \u201c#AgChat\u201d community on Twitter. This weekly moderated chat has served as an international meeting place where the people of agriculture can discuss difficult issues, tell their farm stories and identify ways to connect with people outside of agriculture. More than 2,000 people from seven countries have participated in #AgChat since it started in April 2009. And that\u2019s only the beginning.
\nFarmers are leading a grassroots effort to develop the AgChat\u2120 Foundation. The organization is designed to connect agriculture in communities beyond Twitter. Four program areas have been identified to maximize agriculture\u2019s opportunity with social media \u2013 be sure to see what farmers have to say about why this is important.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Though this group effectively uses social media to build community, there’s no substitute for meeting people face to face. We’re doing that in Nashville at an event called Agvocacy<\/a>.
\nThis is a topic near and dear to my heart, and I hope to learn a lot.
\nMeantime, some of my past posts on farms and farmers markets include:<\/p>\n