Farmers and ranchers from across Louisiana and neighboring states gathered in Chicot State Park for the inaugural Louisiana Farmers Climate Convening on January 21 and 22 to tackle the increasing impacts of climate change on local agriculture. After a year that saw overlapping climate disasters that impacted Louisiana farms—including persistent drought, wildfires, record-breaking heat and saltwater intrusion—this two-day event hosted by the Louisiana Small Scale Agriculture Coalition (LSSAC) provided opportunities for farmers to connect on the community impacts of climate change and gain technical skills for climate-smart agriculture.
SPROUT NOLA’s Producers & Sustainability Director Margee Green discussed the purpose behind the event and the benefit of creating a space for farmers to gather, share resources and learn together. “We’ve had about 150 people join us over these past two days,” Green said. “We’re really excited to have spent Sunday as a day building community and helping farmers figure out tools and shared experiences that will help them organize against the impacts of climate change on all different kinds of farms.”
On the heels of the extreme winter weather fueled by climate change that slammed Louisiana and most of the US, Sunday’s program focused on the social, emotional and community impacts of climate change on Louisiana’s food system. The day opened with a keynote address by Southern climate justice writer Mary Annaïse Heglar on climate grief and processing a changing environment.
Tray Lively of L4S Farms in Scott, Louisiana, spoke to the importance of getting to know other farmers from across the state when facing the challenges of climate change in farming. “We learned a lot about the climate and had great camaraderie, great relationship building. I think the most important thing is for farmers to come together to talk about any problems that they have, and that they think they could help each other with.”
The event’s series of panels and workshops were geared toward farmers and growers from all regions of Louisiana, and individual workshops addressed the needs of different types of farmers such as urban farmers, rural farmers, meat producers and flower farmers. Federal USDA agents were also on hand to talk about their programs, and Monday’s series of workshops moved into brass tacks solutions for Louisiana farmers to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
“We’re seeing farmers connect over techniques like windbreaks, carbon capture on their farms, cover cropping, and biochar effects,” Green continued. “We even have some really awesome research here on climate smart agriculture solutions for sugarcane and rice production.”
Adrianne Williams, a third generation fruit and vegetable farmer from Batchelor, Louisiana, discussed the importance of sharing experiences with other Louisiana farmers. “I’ve learned that as farmers come together and talk about issues, we may think that the issue is just in our area, but really these issues are all over Louisiana,” Williams said. “I’ve also learned about resources, people that we can reach out to in order to solve these problems.”
As Louisiana farmers face new obstacles with increasing heat, drought and other climate impacts, farmers also discussed the importance of experimentation when developing growing techniques that adapt to climate change. “We’re all doing something different. We all have different observations, and a farmer is just as good as what they see has been happening in their system and how they can adjust to do things better,” said Brock Barker, farmer at BrockEllie Patch in Scott, Louisiana. “The more we talk to each other, the more we know—what’s working and what’s not. Especially what’s not. We’re all experimenting with some of the same things, and so it’s just so important to hear everybody’s successes and failures.”
This LSSAC event was a collaboration among multiple organizations working in food and farms across the state at the frontline of climate change, including:
Big River Economic and Agricultural Development Alliance
New Orleans Food Policy Action Council
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About the Louisiana Small Scale Agriculture Coalition
The Louisiana Small-Scale Agricultural Coalition (LSSAC) is a statewide organization that exists to strengthen capacity, resiliency, and economic opportunities for Louisiana’s small-scale agricultural producers. The coalition’s members provide comprehensive technical assistance to farmers and the Coalition acts as advisors to organizations and institutions that wish to purchase Louisiana grown, harvested, raised, and produced food directly from Louisiana Farmers, Ranchers, and Fishers. LSSAC member organizations have deep roots in Louisiana agriculture and support small scale producers with technical assistance and programs across multiple program areas.