By Michael Wall
Michael Wall is Georgia Organics’ Director of Advocacy and previous Director of Farmer Services.
As a non-profit, Georgia Organics updates its strategic plan every five years to ensure it remains on track with its mission, values, and farmer-focused programming.
Typically, the board of directors, key constituents, and important partners are interviewed to assess the changing landscape that Georgia Organics operates within, and the needs of the community that Georgia Organics attempts to serve.'
One of the surprising elements that emerged from these discussions in the most recent strategic plan was a strong direction for Georgia Organics to re-launch its advocacy efforts, this time with a singular focus on farmer prosperity.
To that end, and after months of conversations and planning within the Georgia Organics offices, Lauren Cox was promoted to Director of Farmer Services, and Michael Wall moved over to the new position of Director of Farmer Advocacy.
It must be noted that advocacy is not a brand-new effort for Georgia Organics.
Roughly 10 years ago, Georgia Organics had an Advocacy Director, Jennifer Owens, who addressed small-scale poultry processing, early Farm to School efforts, and many other important topics. Also, the Atlanta Local Food Initiative, another Georgia Organics initiative under the leadership of now Director of Programs Suzanne Girdner, also engaged in policy work that gave rise the City of Atlanta’s urban agriculture legislation and later the city’s first Urban Agriculture director position.
Wall and other members of the farmer services team, including Donn Cooper and Tenisio Seanima, and the board of directors, such as farmer Joe Reynolds of Love is Love Farm Collective, have worked on advocacy in the past, especially around the Farm Bill, SARE and NRCS funding, and the Organic Cost Share Reimbursement Program.
The strategic plan was approved by the Georgia Organics board of directors on Nov. 8, 2021, and includes several key themes that pertain to advocacy, partnerships, and movement building, especially around farmer prosperity, racial justice, and climate change.
For example, one of the plan’s goal states that Georgia Organics work would:
“Grow an influential network of advocates who champion organic and regenerative farmers.”
Other key themes from the Strategic Plan summary related to Farmer Advocacy work:
Move from program building to movement building. Step fully into our role as a convening and advocacy organization.
Foster strong partnerships, and together pursue collective impact strategies.
Become an integral part of Georgia’s climate change solutions.
A summary of the strategic plan is below.
So far, Georgia Organics Farmer Advocacy work has been based on strong existing partnerships and previous advocacy experience, especially around the Farm Bill with partners such as the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition and the Organic Trade Association. In March, Wall and organic farmer and board member Sed Rowe traveled to Washington, D.C., and met with federal lawmakers about the Farm Bill and the needs of Georgia’s organic farmers.
Georgia Organics and a handful of farmers also been hosted USDA Undersecretary Jennifer Lester Moffitt to discuss much-needed improvements to the Organic Cost Share Reimbursement Program, and the upcoming Organic Transitioning Initiative, which will have $300 million devoted to support farmers seeking organic certification.
Most importantly, Georgia Organics’ advocacy agenda will be set by its most important constituents: farmers. Over the Spring and early summer of 2022, Georgia Organics distributed a survey to more than 1,000 farmers to determine their highest policy priorities.
That survey will be finalized and analyzed over the coming weeks, and a report will be shared with Georgia Organics’ farmer members and partners.
2022-2026 STRATEGIC PLAN
Key Themes and Shifts that Emerged from Internal and External Reviews:
Champion diversity, equity and inclusion internally and externally, working towards becoming an anti-racist organization
Move from program building to movement building. Step fully into our role as a convening and advocacy organization.
Invest in farmers, especially Black farmers, and local food communities.
Refocus core programs by regionalizing/localizing work and centering on farmer prosperity.
Foster strong partnerships, and together pursue collective impact strategies.
Use the power of storytelling to recruit more advocates and members to the movement.
Become an integral part of Georgia’s climate change solutions.
Re-envision and reshape The Farmer Fund to increase impact.
Expand and diversify revenue streams, including unrestricted revenue and fee-based services.
Organize, invest in, and develop staff and board to ensure needed skills, aligning with the organization’s values and capacity to achieve goals.
Consider these delivery mechanisms and ways to build the movement: direct services; partnerships; investment; convening and peer-to-peer services; advocacy.
VISION
All Georgia farmers nurture and heal the land, people, and communities.
MISSION
Georgia Organics invests in organic farmers for the health of our communities and the land.
VALUES
Farmer Prosperity
We believe that thriving farmers are the catalyst for a transformed world playing the central role in the interdependency between restored soil, thriving people, stronger communities, and healthier environment.
Soil Health and Environmental Stewardship
We believe agriculture should use soil-building farming practices, and steward our air, land, and water resources.
Anti-Racism
We believe in working intentionally, consistently, and collaboratively to transform our food system, our farming system, and our own organization to one that is anti-racist, multi-cultural, diverse, and just.
Community & Collective Impact
We believe in the inherent talents, passions, and wisdom that exist in communities and our partners in the local food movement. We believe working collectively is essential to transforming our food system to be healthy, local and organic.
Climate Action
We believe organic farming is a critical solution to sequester carbon in our soil and mitigate the catastrophic impacts of climate change on people and ecosystems.
Public Health
We believe that public health begins in the soil where our food is grown and raised and organic farmers are stewards of our health and should be recognized and supported accordingly.