Outreach and Education

Georgia Organics

Outreach, Extension, and Education

Georgia Organics (www.georgiaorganics.org), the umbrella organization for organic farming in Georgia, specializes in extension, education, and outreach. Throughout the state, they host conferences and workshops on all aspects of organic agriculture. At the 2007 conference in Douglas, Georgia, the agroecology laboratory put on a special session on the research being conducted at Spring Valley EcoFarms, under a grant from U.S. Dept. Agriculture’s SARE Program (Sustainable Agriculture, Research, and Education ). A partnership between Georgia Organics (GO) and the Agroecology Lab (AL) is described in the summer 2007 GO quarterly bulletin. Subsequent issues will talk about the Participatory Action Research program conducted jointly by GO and AL. The program will begin with survey questionnaires sent out to 20-30 organic farmers selected by GO to determine what they feel are the most important research priorities regarding soil organic matter management. These farmers will then be invited to the February 29th, 2008 GO meeting to participate in focus groups that will help guide future research at Spring Valley Ecofarms. Then in April, 2008, the Agroecology Lab will host a GO field day at Spring Valley Ecofarms to demonstrate techniques and research findings.

The “Certificate in Organic Agriculture” Program of the College of Agriculture, University of Georgia

In 2007, the College of Agriculture, Univ. of Georgia, initiated a “Certificate in Organic Agriculture Program” that would be comparable to a minor in organic agriculture. One of the required courses for this program is “Organic Agriculture” offered every year during the month of May at Spring Valley EcoFarms by the School of Ecology’s Agroecology Laboratory. The course, however, is not limited to those in the program, but can be taken by anyone enrolled in the University. Typically we have students from philosophy and religion to anthropology and physics. To determine whether a similar course would be of interest to those outside the University, an outline of the course is being developed for this website. For more information drop us a line at info@springvalleyecofarms.org .

Undergraduate experience at Spring Valley Ecofarms

The School of Ecology at the University of Georgia offers two introductory courses in Ecology, one for majors, the other for non-majors. As one of their laboratory exercises, each class visits Spring Valley EcoFarms to experience sustainable agriculture, and to write a report on the concepts they have learned. More than 1500 students per year visit Spring Valley EcoFarms as part of their courses during the Fall, Spring and Summer semesters. In addition, several hundred students from Gainesville State College in Watkinsville visit the farm as part of their course work.

Other outreach activities

In addition to these outreach and education activities, Spring Valley EcoFarms hosts groups from the State Botanical Garden, the International Agriculture Program at the University of Georgia, Science Education majors from the College of Education, the YMCA, and others.

The Future

Spring Valley EcoFarms Incorporated is a Domestic Non-Profit organization operating within the 501(c)(3) section of the Internal Revenue code. Our primary interest is to educate (and cross-pollinate!).

Spring Valley EcoFarms has been very focused on graduate and post graduate education and research with local institutions such as the University of Georgia. A new goal for the years to come is to reach out to a wider range of schools, organizations and institutions to develop programs aimed at making conservation a general interest subject for everyone.