Resources.
The "untranslated expert story" asks the following questions of experts in the food and farming field:
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What is farming?
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Why is farming important
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What are the challenges involved in farming?
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How are farmers effectively meeting these challenges, including sustainability?
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What should society do to help meet the challenges of farming?
The Landscape of Public Thinking about Farming
This report maps the gaps between expert and public understanding of food and farming in the U.S. after the presentation of both the untranslated expert story and the public understanding of farming.
Reframing Toolkit
Produced by FrameWorks
Reframing Farming: A Communications Toolkit
This toolkit draws from original FrameWorks research on framing strategies that are effective in building public understanding of crop farming in the U.S. It is intended for agricultural professionals who focus on crop farming practices and the ways in which farming connects to other social issues.
Project Reports
Produced by FrameWorks
The Landscape of Public Thinking About Farming: Mapping the Gaps between Expert and Public Understanding (2019)
This updated report maps the gaps in understanding of food and farming in the United States between the public and experts in the field.
Researchers ask the following questions of both the public and experts:
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What is farming?
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Why is farming important
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What are the challenges involved in farming?
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How are farmers effectively meeting these challenges, including sustainability?
-
What should society do to help meet the challenges of farming?
Reframing Farming: Strategies for Expanding Thinking About Agriculture (2022)
This report is the culminating piece of a research project that seeks to work through framing challenges. Examining and changing the way we talk about agriculture can help shif the way society understands it, leading to more productive conversations and contexts that shape both grower and consumer decision-making. The framing strategies described in this document can help build deeper understanding of farming practices, counter oversimplified thinking, and boost support for farming practices that work in harmony with other goals.
Modules
Produced by FrameWorks
Why Farming Needs Framing: Findings from the Farming and Food Narrative Project (episode 1)
In this video, FrameWorker Julie Sweetland sets the stage for why the agricultural sector needs a new approach to framing farming. Topics include the general understanding of the field, the public, and the gap that this project aims to bridge.
(Watch time 14 minutes.)
Finding New Frames for Farming: Research Methods for the Farming and Food Narrative Project (episode 2)
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In this video, FrameWorker Julie Sweetland explains the research methods used to pursue new frames for farming. From "descriptive" research to "prescriptive" research, learn about FrameWorks' multi method approach that has grounded FFNP's framing recommendations.
(Watch time 21 minutes.)
A Map of Mental Models: Findings from the Farming and Food Narrative Project (episode 3)
FrameWorker Julie Sweetland walks through FrameWorks' finding about what the public thinks about farming and food, and what that means for communicators who are trying to shift thinking around sustainable agriculture. Content is drawn from The Landscape of Public Thinking About Farming report.
(Watch time 33 minutes.)
Maximize your Metaphors: Talk about the tightrope that farmers must cross
Metaphors are an especially powerful tool for building understanding. FrameWorker Julia Sweetland explores how the metaphor of a tightrope can help to rebalance the conversation about farming.
(Watch time 9 minutes.)
Webinars
Southern IPM Hour: Reframing the Narrative around Food and Agriculture
Original Date of Webinar: January 5, 2022
Speaker: Michael Rozyne, Founder of Red Tomato and Project Lead for the Farming and Food Narrative Project
Description: The way we talk about food matters. Collaboration between physical scientists and communication scientists is vital. Take a closer look at the Farming and Food Narrative Project that has spent 5 years studying how to reframe the public narrative around food and farming. This webinar also explains their "Mapping the Gaps” between the perspectives of experts and the public, examining points where understandings converge and diverge. Their analysis highlights the key challenges advocates face when communicating about farming and how to improve it in the United States.
