Knowledge Sharing

Project Funder: Soil CRC

Project Lead Organisation/Researcher: Southern Cross University (SCU), Dr Hanabeth Luke

Project Duration: September 2021 – September 2023

Aim

The project purpose is to identify and test more effective knowledge-sharing strategies that will increase the number of landholders actively engaged in soil health improvement practices. This involves co-designed and locally delivered farmer engagement strategies by researchers and local grower-groups based on the findings of recent Soil CRC research in four local contexts.

Description and background

This project builds on the findings of previous Soil CRC projectsb‘Why soil management practices are adopted?, ‘Surveying on-farm practices’ and ‘Building farmer innovation capability’. It aims to address challenges and opportunities associated with knowledge-sharing efforts directed at improving the uptake of new innovations and best-practice soil management.

Embedded in this project is an understanding that knowledge-sharing processes need to be locally relevant and related to key challenges identified by farmers.

Supporting extension efforts for grower groups across four case-study regions, this project will co-develop and test a range of knowledge-sharing modes and processes across farming systems groups. These range from digital strategies to field days, drawing on the skills of a cross-institutional, cross-disciplinary research team to test and assess the effectiveness of these modes over time.

Partnership

This project is a partnership between Southern Cross University, Murdoch University, Federation University Australia, AIR EP, West Midlands Group, Central West Farming Systems, University of Newcastle, Charles Sturt University and Birchip Cropping Group.